Correct Shutter Speed Dial for Early II / D ?

Luddite Frank

Luddite Frank

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This morning I had all my black Leicas out and something about the top shutter speed dials caught my eye...

The earliest is a D (II) from 1932, s/n 77xxx.

The other two are F's (III) from 1933, s/n 1173xx & 1177xx.

What attracted my attention was the size of the top shuttter speed dial on the II... it is larger than the dials on the III's... and I began to wonder if the II had gotten a later dial at some point...

The dial on the II is 16mm (20/32" [5/8"]) diameter, the dials on the III's are 13mm (17/32") diameter. All three bodies have 1/500 top-speed.


Did the Leica II originally have a larger top-speed dial ? 😕

The knurling on the II is a coarse pattern, and seems to match the wind & rewind knobs, all plating appears to be nickel...

Any ideas ?

Thanks ! 😎

Luddite Frank
 
Thanks, Tom...

Further pondering.... since Leicae seeem to be "evolutionary" , I'm beginning to wonder if they used the same shutter speed dial from the Standard / A / E...

One of the things I've always noticed when using my black II is how little clearance there is between the shutter-speed dial and the accessory shoe... definitely not an issue with the Standard / A / E....

Likewise, the early Elmar 50mm lenses ( and probably the early Hektor 50) with the "11 o'clock Infinity lock" are "interchangeable".... until you try to use one on a III: the Infinty lock conflicts with the front slow-speed knob !

Again, not an issue with the Std / A / E or the II....

And it looks like the top shutter speed dial got big again for the -f and -g cameras...

LF
 
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A photo of a black II in Jim Lager's book show a large dial like you are describing. The serial # is 80834, so it's an early II with five-digit number. Then Jim has a photo of #315474, in satin chrome. This one has a smaller dial. Rogliatti has a photo of a black II, #142329; and a chrome II whose number I can't make out. They both have the smaller dials. Mine, #148375, has the smaller dial, identical in size to those on my IIIcs. So I think it must be that early IIs have the larger dial, and later ones (mine is from 1934), the smaller ones.
 
I think the smaller dials came in with the III bodies around 1933 - still a few around on II's until a bit later, posssibly 1935.

Both my black II bodies ahve gone now, but they were 5-digit and both had the larger knob. I find it interesting that the factory were able to do all sorts of changes to the same design and still get consistent shutter sppeds. If i were to put a smaller knob on one of mine, the shutter would run faster (less inertia) and vice-versa. Maybe they weren't that bothered about ultimate speed accuracy, providing the speed progression was correct?
 
John, I'm staring at one of your ex's now and it ceratinly has a large dial. Doesn't the small dial always say 20-1 and the large dial says 20? This would confrim your point about the small dial coming with the III and slow speeds.

Michael
 
my 1938 ii d black has the small dial that says "20-1" ~ the old guy at the camera store said he thought it was a replacement because the camera doesn't have slow shutter speeds -- i said i don't think so.... confirm?
 
By 1938 Leica were using the same dial on the III and the II including the black enamel version so yours is not necessarily a replacement. I have recently acquired an early 1932 chrome II which has had the original dial replaced with the later, smaller version marked 20-1 instead of just 20 (for 1/20th of a sec). It is in for a service and I am having the dial replaced with a 15.5mm chrome one to return it to original condition. It is a beautifully compact study little beast and I will be less worried about possible wear to the chrome than I would be to a black II of similar vintage. Incidentally an identical II just five digits from mine with its original dial was sold by SD Cameras of Manchester a couple of weeks before i found this one.


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