Pimp my camera?

R

Ronald_H

Don't call me Ron
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Cameras are just tools, cars are just means of transport aren't they? I don't care how my Nikon FM looks, as long as it works. I drive a 2005 Fiat Panda. Good little car but hasn't been washed in a year and sure as hell hasn't got any spinners on it.

But I have to admit... since I own a M2, I dream of having it recovered. In blue leather. No particular reason, I just like blue (my Panda is blue too 😀). Some people put ostrich on a Contax or cobra on a Kiev you know...

An Abramhamson Rapidwinder would be extremely nice too. There is some rationale there, I am left eyed. But he sells blue softies as well. Says it will improve shooting at long shutter speeds. And I do that a lot.

And what about a VC meter II? Nothing wrong with my Gossen Digiflash or even my Lunasix... but it would just be so handy to have a meter on the M2.

And to top it all of, I now have visited Luigi's site, in his charming Italian English. His products are just too nice to be true. A half case wouldn't go too well with a rapidwinder, but maybe he can do a custom job. And for a few bucks extra he does red stitching.

Edit: Sure, he DOES make a half case to match the rapidwinder.... oh the temptation!

I have to face the question: Is there something wrong with me?

And yes, I do use the Leica to actually shoot pictures with...
 
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So you are saying a silver M2 with a silver rapidwinder with blue leather housed in a Luigi 1/2 case with red stitching?

What color leather on the Luigi case - depending on that answer you may need therapy 🙂
 
The RapidWinder II is perhaps the most important accessory you can add to any film based M camera. I loved my first one so much I got another one for my other M body. It adds very little bulk and LOTS of flexibility.

I'd skip (forget about) the case as it slows reloading. Yes, they do have some cool stuff, but I'm into ease of use. Look into an A&A strap in red! See below:

http://www.artisanandartist.com/straps/acam106.htm

The VC II meter is a fine choice, I myself use a Sekonic 318 as it has a spot attachment (just in case). I like the design, size and fact that it takes AA batteries, very easy to find. The 328 adds a flash meter into the same size unit. Much less expensive than the Gossen Luna-Star F2.

Go for the blue leather, she will look great and become more a part of YOU!

B2 (;->
 
pkuglin said:
So you are saying a silver M2 with a silver rapidwinder with blue leather housed in a Luigi 1/2 case with red stitching?

What color leather on the Luigi case - depending on that answer you may need therapy 🙂
Click to expand...

I was thinking about black... but maybe he does blue stitching as well 😀

But yes, I have a plain chrome user M2. Looks ok, but has very obviously been used for 40+ years. But for some reason I can't see it solely as a camera. Especially with a similar vintage DR 'cron on it it looks and feels fabulous. A quality product from a bygone age.
 
If you REALLy are going to pimp your M2 - have it painted dark "Royal Blue" and the Rapidwinder to match. Then use "gold" fill on the lettering!
I have seen one and it looked suffiently Royal that you had to fight the urge to curtsey when you held it! That one had a blue lizard skin covering too - so somewhere there is a lizard going "damned. it's cold today".
 
Tom A said:
If you REALLy are going to pimp your M2 - have it painted dark "Royal Blue" and the Rapidwinder to match. Then use "gold" fill on the lettering!
I have seen one and it looked suffiently Royal that you had to fight the urge to curtsey when you held it! That one had a blue lizard skin covering too - so somewhere there is a lizard going "damned. it's cold today".
Click to expand...

LOL, you better watch out that you don't get 'save the lizards' activists after you! Btw, Tom, do you have a picture somewhere of that camera? I'd like to see that for sure. But Royal just isn't me, I'm a working class guy 😉
 
Ronald_H said:
LOL, you better watch out that you don't get 'save the lizards' activists after you! Btw, Tom, do you have a picture somewhere of that camera? I'd like to see that for sure. But Royal just isn't me, I'm a working class guy 😉
Click to expand...

Then maybe a coverall faded blue with Lewis jeans cloth covering and a couple of Lewis rivets replacing the lenslock and selftimer/Focal lenght switch? My god- it almost makes sense - I need therapy!
Sorry, I dont have pictures of that camera and even if I had, they would have been black/white anyway!
 
did someone say blue?

2669984904_dbd902c96d_b.jpg
 
I've long toyed with the idea of having one of my M2s painted red.

Trouble is, every pimped camera I've seen looks ghastly, unless the pimping is so subtle as to be barely noticeable (e.g. Leica a la carte), and I can't help fearing that if I had the M2 customized, even I might not like it.

Adding a Rapidwinder ain't pimping, it's a useful accessory -- unlike a half case, which as far as I can see is designed to add bulk and slow down loading to no advantage whatsoever. Some people say it improves the grip on the camera, but I've never been troubled with Leicas sliding out of my hands, and others say that they improve the handling if you have big hands, but I can't see how. I suspect they're like CLAs; a fad that has caught on for no particular reason.

For really subtle pimping, consider an A&A strap.

Cheers,

R.
 
I disagree slightly with the CLA remark Roger, my M2's shutter speeds were way off. So far off as to render the camera unusable. If it would have worked well from the day I bought it I of course wouldn't have bothered 😉 My other vintage-ish gear just works and I leave it at that.

The picture of the Ikon is gorgeous, I've seen it before here. Yes, that's how I would like my M2 to look...
 
Ronald_H said:
I disagree slightly with the CLA remark Roger, my M2's shutter speeds were way off. So far off as to render the camera unusable. If it would have worked well from the day I bought it I of course wouldn't have bothered 😉 My other vintage-ish gear just works and I leave it at that.

The picture of the Ikon is gorgeous, I've seen it before here. Yes, that's how I would like my M2 to look...
Click to expand...

Dear Ronald,

I've nothing against CLAs when they're needed, as was clearly the case with your camera, though equally, a plain shutter repair and general mucking-out (not a full CLA) is all I'd have gone for.

What I am against is the idea that newly acquired old cameras need a CLA as a matter of course, even if they're working fine -- we agree on that -- and (still more) I have my doubts about the cheap so-called CLAs that some people go for. I know a number of good camera mechanics and while it's perfectly possible to do a good repair and a bit of mucking-out for $100/75 euro/GBP 60, a full strip, clean and overhaul at that price strikes me as unlikely.

I knew of one UK repairer (not one of my friends) whose 'CLA' sometimes consisted of syringing the works with 5% clock oil dissolved in ether; the ether removed most of the crap, and the residue of clock oil provided the lubrication...

As for the blue leather, well, de gustibus non disputandum est, and while it's pretty in its way, I'm not sure how happy I'd be trying to use it unobtrusively.

Cheers,

R.
 
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I second the idea about the A&A strap, they are really good (I have two of these and will buy two other soon) and - depending on the model - still understatement. Otherwise, the scratches I do are pimping enough for my taste ... 😎😛

Cheers,

Gabor

Oh ... posting number 1500 !
 
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