return to Leica X...

Nice! Well used is well liked. 😉

I just received a reply from the folks at Advance Camera Repair that they will change my X1's internal battery should I so desire. They want a bit of money for the effort, and I think I could do this one myself, but I'm not sure I can do as clean a job as they can. I'm thinking about it.

G
 
And now I remember one of the main reasons I never pursued the X1 or X2 - the back dial (the flat one.) I don’t get on well with them at all.

From photos the X 113 did away with this control. That combined with the lens focusing changes has my ears perked up.
 
Ken Ford said:
And now I remember one of the main reasons I never pursued the X1 or X2 - the back dial (the flat one.) I don’t get on well with them at all.
From photos the X 113 did away with this control. That combined with the lens focusing changes has my ears perked up.
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Do you mean the thumbwheel just below the top cover on the right side? Or the complex of directional pad/info button, etc? The only control "missing" on the X typ 113 vs the X1/X2 is the thumbwheel whose edge is around the directional pad/info buttons. The controls have slightly different functions on the X113 vs the X1/X2, but the differences are minor.

On the X1/X2, that lower thumbwheel controls image magnification in review mode and possible EV setting for the compensation, when the EV button has been pressed (but the four way controller is easier to use), far as I can remember at the moment. I hardly ever touch it.

You can download the instruction manuals for X1, X2, and X113 from the LeicaUSA website if you'd like to study the control design specifics.

G
 
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Godfrey said:
Do you mean the thumbwheel just below the top cover on the right side? Or the complex of directional pad/info button, etc? The only control "missing" on the X typ 113 vs the X1/X2 is the thumbwheel whose edge is around the directional pad/info buttons. The controls have slightly different functions on the X113 vs the X1/X2, but the differences are minor.

You can download the instruction manuals for X1, X2, and X113 from the LeicaUSA website if you'd like to study the control design specifics.

G
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That’s the one - surrounding the directional pad. I hate those with a white hot passion.

I need to quit looking at these… and I just downloaded the X (Typ 113) manual earlier tonight. Ugh.
 
Ken Ford said:
That’s the one - surrounding the directional pad. I hate those with a white hot passion.

I need to quit looking at these… and I just downloaded the X (Typ 113) manual earlier tonight. Ugh.
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They are around at reasonable prices now. Not so hard to get like before. And since they are preowned, someone else has taken the hit of depreciation.

Sincerely, a RFF enabler. 😆
 
One thing to ba careful on the X models is the problem of dust on the sensor. If there is dust (or much dust) on the lens when it is retracting it enters the camera and if soon or later will go on the sensor it could be a poroblem because no way to clean it without disassembling the camre. Just pay attention to it!
It happend to me years ago and I had to send the camera to Wetzlar! $$$!
Same problem happend to my wife with her D-Lux, luckly it still was on warranty and it was cleaned in Wtzlar again for free.
Just a reminder and something to check or ask whan buying a preownd X.
 
robert blu said:
One thing to ba careful on the X models is the problem of dust on the sensor. If there is dust (or much dust) on the lens when it is retracting it enters the camera and if soon or later will go on the sensor it could be a poroblem because no way to clean it without disassembling the camre. Just pay attention to it!
It happend to me years ago and I had to send the camera to Wetzlar! $$$!
Same problem happend to my wife with her D-Lux, luckly it still was on warranty and it was cleaned in Wtzlar again for free.
Just a reminder and something to check or ask whan buying a preownd X.
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Good information. I wonder is this is beyond what an independent repairer can handle?
 
Ken Ford said:
Good information. I wonder is this is beyond what an independent repairer can handle?
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robert blu said:
Good queston, unfortunately I have no idea. Not many indipendent repairer where I live (Italy)
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Many independent repair shops can handle such a cleaning, in my experience, but since it requires almost complete dismantling of the camera to get to the sensor stack for cleaning, the price is rarely much different from what Leica might charge. The bigger question is whether Leica's repair service is still doing such work on these older, lower priced cameras given that the cost of the service is so high. It's one thing for an independent shop to charge such a price, it is different for a manufacturer's service department.

G
 
I also had the urge to return to a simpler setup and the X again also - I used an X1 together with a Contax T3 for many years. But then the Ricoh GRiiix came around, which is even smaller and very capable. It’s now my only digital camera, though I may get a monochrome-converted version soon, as I miss the output of the Leica Monochrom at times.
 
I have been quite curious about the Ricoh GRIIIx for a while. I had the Ricoh GXR with the Leica M camera module for some time and liked it a lot. But I 've been hesitant to buy the GRIIIx due to its control layout ... The X1/X2 have a nearly perfect (IMO), utterly simple control layout. Well, near perfect for me anyway. 😉

I know the Ricoh is a fine camera, but something about the simplicity of the X1/X2 really appeals to me.

G
 
I got bitten by the dust issue - not a cheap affair.

In case it's of interest, I have a silver adapter for the x2 (not sure if it fits on the x1) - you unscrew the plastic ring around the lens and screw-in the adapter, which allows a hood/filter to be fitted - and protects the retracting lens from sucking in dust. Free to a good home, PM if interested.
 
Godfrey said:
If you tend to use a 35mm FoV-equivalent most of the time, these little Xs make for a very compact, light weight, and good quality carryabout.

The CL is, of course, a more sophisticated system camera with interchangeable lenses ... I had one for about 5 years and only let it go when I wanted to get the M10-R to as complement to my M10 Monochrom. The CL is not substantially less to carry in size than an M, IMO, but its EVF and the lens adaptability through mount adapters makes it very versatile.

G
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What I would like it for is a grab-and-go kind of kit, always at the ready. With a CL I'd be tempted to kit it out like my M4-P, but that's not a bad thing, except figuring out what to leave behind when a whim hits me. Funny thing is I'll take a kit with me, then wind up using only one lens, usually a wide angle.

PF
 
That's one of the "advantages" of the X2 ... the notion of a kit is pretty limited so you can spare yourself the decisions about which lenses and other accessories. Most of the time, I find myself dropping just the camera or the camera fitted with the grip into my small carry bag and not worrying about anything else. If I'm in a kind of purist mindset, I fit the OVF and turn off the LCD ... and it still fits in the small carry bag, only weighs marginally more.

I find the same when I go walking with the Makina 67 and any of my older fixed lens film cameras. To me, it's liberating ... I'm freed of making lens decisions and just work with what is there. 🙂

G
 
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