Leica LTM Contrast in a Leica rangefinder

[Spider67]

I have Leica IIIC a great tool! I use it with a collapsible Industar. The only thing i would like to correct is it's rangefinder a bit more contrast would not hurt. As I like to work indoors were contrast is low sometimes I would like to bring the rangefinder patch (That can not be seen easily) up tp the standard of my Zorki S or at least my Retina IIc.
Interstingly the RF patch reminds me of the patches in my prewar Retina II's. Lack of contrast so much easier if there's something linear in your motive with a white background. So is this a "German disease"?
Advice is very muchg appreciated as this IIc turned out to be agood shooter and a better RF would turn it into a terrific one!

 

[richard_l]

http://goodphotos.com/IIIfsm.jpg

Note that the rangefinder window on the right is red. I think that is supposed to improve rangefinder contrast. You could try taping some transparent red material over that window on your IIIC and see if it helps.

Richard

 

[richard_l]

More information.

It is an attachment made by Leica called an OKARO filter, which fits over the rangefinder window. It is actually orange, not red. http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=008mH4

Richard

 

[srtiwari]

Like Richard said, either the OKARO, or a home made transparent Red or Orange piece of paper.Some say one can cut it out of multi contrast filters used for printing. I have the same problem, and have chosen to send the IIIc to Maddox for a rangefinder fix and CLA. I believe its about $127 for each.
Subhash

 

[cmedin]

There's an OKARO and an ORAKO, depending on which Leica you have.

If you're lucky your local photo store will carry the free sampler gel filter pack from some company (Roscoe?) with roughly 1x2 inch pieces. More than enough to cover a few rangefinder windows.

 

[Murray Kelly]

How about a small piece of blank color negative film?

Murray. Brisbane

 

[payasam]

Blank colour negative film is the simple answer. The real answer, of course, is replacing the beam splitter -- a 50:50 transmission: reflectance mirror -- in the R/F. Made a world of difference to my IIIc.

 

[John Shriver]

New beam splitter mirror should be about $75 installed. Makes a world of difference!

 

[Spider67]

So it's the

So it's the

New beam splitter mirror should be about $75 installed. Makes a world of difference!

Thanks guys for the advice! So the red/orange filter will be a quick cure....but in the long run I'll have the beamsplitter exchanged.
Is there a sperparts dealser who sells those online?
Thanks a lot...I am tinkerin' happily with my Leica and just wait for an opportunity to have it repaired.

 

[cmedin]

John: where can you get it done for $75? I've seen a few Leicas I'd love to pick up but with dim patches, thought it'd be way too expensive to fix.

 

[thafred]

I´ve tried a red foil and clear color film piece on my IIIa´s RF window (RF was only guessable in bright light) and while it kinda worked a much better solution for me was to paint a small black spot in the center of the round RF window to totaly block the light in the area. the RF is visible now even in a normaly lit room. edding marker is sufficent for that and cleans away with ethanol or wodka if you don´t like it ;-)

 

[Spider67]

Hallo thafred,

Is it the right or the left window if you have the lens towards you?

 

[thafred]

Servus Spiderman 🙂

it´s the right hand window if you look from the "front"

 

[Spider67]

Hi Folks,

Took the easy road and used red transparent plastic from an file envelope after having tried a piece of a neagtivefilm.(red plastic is not as dark as the piece of film).
Thanks thafred I also tried your solution and will certainly try it with my Retina II from the 30's. Seeem sto be "The German bug" on RF patches.

 

[xayraa33]

Thanks guys for the advice! So the red/orange filter will be a quick cure....but in the long run I'll have the beamsplitter exchanged.
Is there a sperparts dealser who sells those online?
Thanks a lot...I am tinkerin' happily with my Leica and just wait for an opportunity to have it repaired.

there was a japanese seller for the beamsplitter mirror on that auction site.
you can also buy the 50/50 mirror (beamspliter) stock from Edmund Scientific and have it cut to size by a glass cutter.

 

[Limpovitj]

You can also get a suitable 50:50 mirror from a broken (preferably -- I killed a poor little, fully working, Konica for this purpose and feel a bit bad about that...) fixed-lens rangefinder, if you're up to the task of tearing it down and removing the mirror from the finder without breaking it, and then cutting and/or filing it down to size. Pretty much all of them has a mirror larger than the 8x10mm (IF I recall correctly) needed for an LTM Leica. Most fixed-lens rangefinders also have a gold-plated beamsplitter/mirror (as oppossed to the silver-, or is it aluminium-plated mirror you are replacing, which is colourneutral) which gives a coldtinted finder with warmtinted rf-spot (or is that vice versa?), thus increasing contrast without light loss (as with an OKARO/ORAKO). Paint the edges black with a magic marker to reduce finder flare.
(Also, the glass can turn out to be a little to thick to fit. If that is the case, then you can file the glass on the innermost edge sort of wedge-shaped to slide a bit further into the rangefinder housing. Hard to explain in words, but should be understandable when you reach that point.)
Hope this helps, and as always, at your own risk. Don't go destroying any usable cameras please...

Oh, I also got replacement mirrors from Oleg. Very cheap and very good.