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Tripod fell with M8 on it...


DrTebi

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I was just about to wrap up after taking a few shots of my empty apartment when the tripod somehow slipped out of my hand and bang! The Leica hit the hardwood floor.

 

First I was in shock, but at least the body itself didn't even have a single dent. I tried to turn on the camera, the screen showed up and the controls seemed to work fine, but then the camera seemed to have a problem with the shutter release. It just kept going and going and going, the same sound you hear right after taking a picture, just that it would repeat about two times per second non-stop.

 

This was of course frustrating. I took off the lens, opened the battery cover, changed the battery, turned the camera on and off etc., the same non-stop shutter sound came back again.

 

I am sure many of you would never consider opening the M8, but I am not that kind of person. I thought I should give it a try at least, to see if it was maybe just a simple problem, maybe something got stuck.

 

After unscrewing the screws under the batter cover, I was able to remove the plastic cover, which then revealed part of the shutter mechanism. And there it was--it was indeed stuck. I carefully moved it back into position, screwed everything back together and was quite relieved because it worked :) The camera doesn't show any symptoms anymore whatsoever. After taking a couple of test shots, it appeared that the camera is back to normal again.

 

I thought I would share this experience--not that I suggest taking the camera apart if something goes wrong, but if it's a similar problem to mine, it may be well worth it.

 

Attached is a test shot (with default automatic settings, nothing spectacular, just my wonderful Musical Fidelity amp).

 

 

DrTebi

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Impossible to know from that test shot whether the camera is OK.

 

The area of the camera most likely to be affected by a fall on to a hard surface is the rangefinder calibration and it would be worth taking some more test shots to verify the rangefinder accuracy.

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Thank you for your response. For the moment I was just very happy that I fixed the repeating shutter issue.

 

Taking a closer look now, it seems that the rangefinder images do not perfectly line up anymore. It seems as if it is off slightly horizontally. I should try some shots in daylight tomorrow to check into this further.

 

How should I go about testing the accuracy? Any tips? Does anyone know how much Leica charges for a "tune-up?"

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First, change only one thing at a time. Since (presumably), there was a lens on the camera, try a different lens to see how that is; if a second lens is unchanged, the fault is with the original lens not the camera. Also, remove the lens and check the roller at the top of the lens throat can move freely (albeit against a weak spring) in and out. In the viewfinder, you should see the frames and rangefinder patch moving diagonally as you do so.

 

The camera has three main adjustments which are all to do with positioning the rangefinder patch so that the two images coincide at the correct focus. Behind the red/black dot, there's the vertical adjustment in case the two images do not align vertically; in the lens throat, there are two (in theory independent but not quite so in practice) adjustments to set the "gain" and "offset" of the lever arm and therefore the horizontal position of the rangefinder patch.

 

The first is an eccentric on the roller which has the effect of adding a fixed offset to the roller position and is used to adjust the infinity position. It is adjusted using a 2mm Allen key and is easy for the user to adjust with care - small movements only!

 

The second is reached through the pop-out plastic plug in the floor of the lens throat. You can insert a long screwdriver through it and adjust the effective length of the lever arm; the longer it is, the smaller the angle of rotation for a given displacement at the roller. This is a fiddly adjustment to make and is best left to Leica.

 

It might be worth trying the first adjustment to see if that fixes it.

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Dr Tebi, what a traumatic experience and you are brave to share it with us.

 

Your test picture does appear soft, even allowing for jpeg compression and viewing on screen. You can never be sure what residual derangement can occur after a 'fall'; so my inclination would be to have the camera body and lens checked by Leica or trusted 3rd party.

 

Incidentally, if you bought the camera new it should be covered by Leica for accidents such as the one you described. Worth exploring.

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As I wrote elsewhere I dropped mine yesterday - absolutely no visible damage to the body - shutter was fine- no visible damage or change in the rangefinder - but the camera had suddenly developed backfocus. Now I do no know whether a part of the RF, the RF assembly itself or the sensor has shifted - but something has. I think, in a case like this, it is essential to have the camera checked by Leica - and nobody else.

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This is an object lesson: Do Never Ever Use a Tripod!

 

The old man from the Age of Wood Camera Stands

With the greatest respect to the Venerable Old Man I must politely disagree. I have used my M8 on a tripod for many thousands of night shots and for church and cathedral interiors without incident and the risk of my M8 sustaining damage does not justify missing the many pleasing pictures I've managed to acquire in this way. :)

 

For more than ten years I exclusively shot with a medium format Pentax 67 on a tripod in all types of terrain from frozen peaks in Iceland to the blackest dead of moonless night on the treacherously mossy hexagons of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland without so much as a mishap.

 

In fact the only time (touch wood) that any of my cameras (my M8 :o) has hit the floor was when it foolhardily leapt from my camera bag on a picnic table in Whistler, Canada onto the concrete surround.

 

I would argue that it is safer if the M8 is always on a tripod! :D

 

Pete.

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Incidentally, if you bought the camera new it should be covered by Leica for accidents such as the one you described. Worth exploring.

 

By opening it he voided any warrantee he might have...:o

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As I wrote elsewhere I dropped mine yesterday - absolutely no visible damage to the body - shutter was fine- no visible damage or change in the rangefinder - but the camera had suddenly developed backfocus. Now I do no know whether a part of the RF, the RF assembly itself or the sensor has shifted - but something has. I think, in a case like this, it is essential to have the camera checked by Leica - and nobody else.

Jaap,

Sorry for you and for Dr Tebi to learn that your M8 felt down !

The better is to send back to Leica camera AG for a revision of the rangefinder (the most fragile part according to me) and other various "sensitive" pieces inside the camera.

For the optics it is also necessary to send for check

If the camera is under guarantee,it is better not to touch because risk of cancellation of the guarantee.

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Yes- the lens suffered a mild relapse. An earlier incident resulted in a blocked focussing ring - now it has a tight spot at about 3m.

 

Waiting for Fedex pickup ;)

Sonja Becker at Solms was very nice on the phone :)

 

Edit: Fedex arrived as I posted....

Edited by jaapv
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My Leica M8 was bought second hand, and by now the warranty is expired (unless it's not the standard one year?).

 

I just went outside and checked the camera again, and it's now obvious to me that the rangefinder did suffer from the fall. I agree I should have it checked out by a professional.

 

What are the options besides Leica? I am in San Francisco and would rather avoid sending it all the way to Germany. sfokevin mentioned "DAG" but I don't know what it stands for.

 

By the way, I also politely disagree with the statement to never put a Leica on a Tripod. In my opinion the Leica is much more than a "street scene" camera. I have shot quite a few images with a Tripod in low light situations where I think my shaky hands would certainly degraded the outcome... I also experimented with long exposures which were fun, see attachment :)

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Edited by DrTebi
attached image was upside down...
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Dr Tebi, your camera can also be sent to Leica in New Jersey, The phone number is 1-800-222-0118, speak to Sarah Mayville , extension 223. Dag stands for Don A. Goldberg, an extremely qualified Leica repair person, located in Wisconsin. Google DAG to find out more about him. Sorry to hear about your M8, when you send your camera, send the lens (that was on the camera when it fell) with the camera. Hopes this helps. Russell

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...

Attached is a test shot (with default automatic settings, nothing spectacular, just my wonderful Musical Fidelity amp).

 

I would have imagined that your taste in integrated amplifiers would be commensurate with that of your camera. Ditch that MF and switch to something significantly better, like the Audio Research VSi60 perhaps :cool:

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Your camera should have a 2 year warranty , so depending on when it was purchased initially you may still be covered. In addition this may be a opportune time for a shutter upgrade , which should also give you an additional year of warranty. I would check w/ Leica in NJ first,

 

cheers

Peter

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I would have imagined that your taste in integrated amplifiers would be commensurate with that of your camera. Ditch that MF and switch to something significantly better, like the Audio Research VSi60 perhaps :cool:

 

 

...well, seeing as the discourse has hurtled inexorably into the Nutter Quarter, I recommend replicating the trajectory and slamming said M8 on the hardwood floor one more time (in the opposite direction, of course), aiming to correct any maladjustments that may have occurred the first time around. Hmmm. Just a thought. Just might work.

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Your camera should have a 2 year warranty , so depending on when it was purchased initially you may still be covered. In addition this may be a opportune time for a shutter upgrade , which should also give you an additional year of warranty. I would check w/ Leica in NJ first,

 

cheers

Peter

How on earth can impact damage be covered by a warrantee:confused::confused: There is of course passport guarantee, but that is just shorthand for a courtesy insurance included in the warrantee.

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