How clear should be the Leica M2 viewfinder

[Dacnard]

Hello everybody!


After almost 6 months I finally got back my M2 back from reparation. In the meantime I acquired an M6.

I was comparing the cameras today and found that the M2 viewfinder is distinctively less clear than the M6. There are no issues with the rangefinder patch, both are clear and contrasty with the M2 having the upper hand due to the slight yellow color of the patch. There is no separation in the prism of the M2, it was just checked and re-cemented.


So, the question is: how clear should the M2 viewfinder be? It is normal to be less clear than the M6? It is something that happens with the pass of time? or it is just an issue of my copy?


Thanks for your insight, and I am sorry if this has been posted before I could not manage to find an answer.

 

[Erik van Straten]

I have two M2's and the clarity of their finders is very different, but both can be used very well.

Erik.

 

[cosmonaut]

I can't speak for the M2 but the finder on my M3 isn't quite as good as my M6 but still nothing I could complain about given it's age. Just a slight difference.

 

[Frank Petronio]

It should be just as clear as a good M6 finder.

 

[splitimageview]

If it just came back from repair, it should be nearly the same...IMHO.

 

[literiter]

If it helps, my M2's finder is every bit as clear as my M4-P. (Just checked)

 

[maddoc]

If the prism block was re-cemented and during that procedure the surfaces not properly prepared (carefully cleaned from all residuals) then there is a chance that the re-cemented surfaces are optical worse than a factory assembled M6 prism block. Also, the M6 has improved window coatings over the M2, preventing flare and increasing contrast.

 

[rogerzilla]

My M2 is away being recemented by CRR (not DAG) as Peter estimates it will be OK for a while but there is definitely balsam failure and separation at the edges (my M3, on the other hand, was pronounced OK). Fixing the prisms isn't expensive when done as part of a full service, which it also needs.

I'll see what it's like when it comes back and compare to the "virgin" M3.

 

[raydm6]

Checked my 1958 M2 against my 1985 M6 Classic. No discernible difference. The M6 being perhaps a teeny bit more "clear".

 

[Richard G]

58 M2 and 96 M6 no difference I can recall. Don't want to compare now in case I find one.

 

[raydm6]

58 M2 and 96 M6 no difference I can recall. Don't want to compare now in case I find one.

Richard, 😀 I know, I was a bit hesitant to compare as I never noticed a difference before.

 

[Nigel Meaby]

Must be a busy repairman if it took almost 6 months!!! What's the story there?

 

[Dacnard]

Thanks to everyone for your input

The repair itself was very fast, just 1 month, the rest 5 months was me saving money to do the repair... (it took me longer because I found the M6 I now own at an amazing price) 😛

I have now compared it with the IIIf viewfinder and this is as well clearer than the M2, but I now the barnak's should be clearer because the rangefinder is in a different window...
So maybe is my copy after all.

 

[Michiel Fokkema]

I compared my very old and beat up M2 with my M7. The M2 is less clear but not dramatically so. It's still very usefull. RF contrast is the same in both.

Cheers,

Michiel Fokkema

 

[pkreyenhop]

My M2 viewfinder is very clear and brighter than my M6 was. To my eyes, the newer finders seem to be more contrasty, but a bit darker.