Infinity focus problem with my "new" M6

[matti]

I just got a used M6 "classic" toghether with a Voigtländer Color Skopar 35/2.5 Classic and a LSM/M-adaptor.

The problem is the rangefinder doesn't focus to infinity. The rangefinder patch won't overlap completely when I set the lens to infinity and look at something distant.

I would be really glad for any advice, before I do something stupid!
Like return the camera to the guy who sold it to me as I think this was a good deal at about $1000 I got the kit and the camera have only the tiniest scratches on the bottom and top plate and seems otherwise to be in really good condition. (I checked everything on the Cameraquest Leica checklist.)

So is it likely this is expensive to fix? I have a couple of good Leica repair people nearby. Is it likely that the rangefinder just need an adjustment? Or could there be something more serious?

For people who got engaged in the thread about my Smashed Bessa R2 (the insurance money payed partly for the M6-kit), I can tell that the repair shop that checked the camera out took the camera as a payment for concluding that the camera was irrepairable. I got the strap back. Seems fair to me, as I could hardly make the insurance company pay for both the new camera and checking of the smashed one.

/Matti

 

[matti]

A short update. I just taked to the local Leica repair guy, and he said that it would be an easy adjustment if the misalignment wasn't too big. So I suppose I will leave the camera with him today.

/matti

 

[jaapv]

Not all adapters are equal. Some give this problem. Check it with another -Leica- lens first.

 

[matti]

Ok, I don't have another Leica lens except for russian LSM, but I will take it up with the repair guy. This adapter is the Voigtländer 35mm.
/matti

 

[ChrisN]

I use that lens and adapter on an M4, with no problems. Your local Leica repair guy should have a properly calibrated lens to test it with. Good luck!

edited to add: I'm not suggesting the lens and adapter can't be the problem - get them checked too!

 

[jaapv]

Some earlier threads have indicated that machining tolerances do make shimming necessary in some cases. However your Leica repairman should be more than able to sort it out. I might add that tolerances are extremely small here. Even Leica lenses can exhibit the same problem. I have a Apo-Telyt 135/4.0 that exhibits a small amount of infinity misalignment. I must confess I didn't get around to having it fixed, even though the lens is still under guarantee, as a minute amount doesn't bother me.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

My Konica lens doesn't align completely at infinity, but the error is so thin it has absolutely no effect on the final image. If the only difference is just a hairline, don't worry about it. If it's larger... have it checked, but chances are you won't have a problem anyway.

 

[matti]

M6 ok, lens was the problem

M6 ok, lens was the problem

A bit sad, but here is what happened at the Leica repair guy:

First he noticed that two of the four screws on the front of the body was missing. A bad sign, as he saw it as he had never seen this happen without some hidden damage. So he checked the camera as much as he could without taking it apart. Checked all speeds with some sort of strobe, and the of alignment of the body, and then he checked the rangefinder with a reference lens and the focusing with some ground glass.

And then he concluded that the body was fine in every way and he saw no need to actually take it apart. (He put in the missing screws and said that screws would never fall out of an M3.)

He checked with one of his LSM/M Leiz adapters and concluded that the problem was with the Cosina lens (Voigtländer 35/2.5 classic). And though he hadn't worked on the Cosina lenses before he thought the coupling problem with the rangefinder was too much to adjust without getting other problems or adjusting the camera.

Is this a problem with the Cosina lenses? I have never seen anything about it in the forum or at the Cameraquest site.

So, what to do?

Ask the seller to take the lens back?
Ask the seller for a refund?
Send the whole kit back to the seller?

The problem is buying another lens right now would be a bit more money than I should spend on this right now, if I don't have to. But the camera is in really good shape, and I really don't want to see it go. (We have already fallen in love after only one day 😉 ) Or do you think I should be afraid of the camera body, as it had lost two screws, even though the repair guy was confident it was ok?

Well what I would like to do is to just cut the losses and buy that 35 mm 1980-s Summicron that the Leca repair guy had on a shelf...

/matti

 

[Fred]

Hi,

I've used a few CV lenses including a 35 Ultron 28 Skopar and 90 Lanthar on an M7 and have not seen any alignment problems. Also the LTM - M adapters are CV. I guess there is a possibility of a faulty lens, but this is not the norm in my experience.

Just a thought, maybe worth asking the dealer if you may try the Summicron and see if the focus aligns at infinity. That at least will show you where the problem lies.

 

[jaapv]

If you've got a good body I would try to hang on toit

 

[matti]

Hi,
Just a thought, maybe worth asking the dealer if you may try the Summicron and see if the focus aligns at infinity. That at least will show you where the problem lies.

Oh, as he did test the camera both with his reference M-lens and he tested the lens with another adapter, he was positive the lens was the problem and the camera was in great shape. Maybe I was a bit unclear in my long rambling post 🙂

/matti

 

[MCTuomey]

Matti,

I agree with Jaap - if the body's good, keep it.

To do:

1. Check the M6 infinity focus with the Cron or other lens to be sure it's repaired. If there's no problem, proceed to step #2.

2. Return the CV lens to the seller.

If you get a couple hundred $ back for the lens return, then you've got one very good deal on an M6!

Cheers,
Mike

 

[jaapv]

How much is the lens out,Matti? It is, after all, a 35 mm and the error could be not very significant. In that case you could try for a partial refund and simply use the lens as it is.It might even do a lot better on another adaptor or with a shim in the adaptor.It certainly would be worth trying that.

 

[matti]

How much is the lens out,Matti? It is, after all, a 35 mm and the error could be not very significant. In that case you could try for a partial refund and simply use the lens as it is.It might even do a lot better on another adaptor or with a shim in the adaptor.It certainly would be worth trying that.

Thanks for the idea. I will develop my first testroll and see what that shows. I suppose I should look at mid or close focusing errors? Not at the infinity sharpness? As it is very dark here in Sweden now, most of the testshots was done with short DOF.

I will allso try to estimate the actual misalignment in the viewfinder, maybe put a digicam to the viewfinder and take a picture and post the results here and hear what people have to say. But the Leica repair man got a bit grumpy about how large the misalignment it was.

/matti

 

[jaapv]

Look at both infinity and close up. It is not sure that if one is correct the other is as well.

 

[matti]

Ok, I just did a quick check of the rangefinderdiscrepance at infinity (well not that far away but a TV-tower more than a kilometer away.) And I would say it is about half the thickness of the framelines in the viewfinder. Is that a lot?

/Matti

 

[jaapv]

Not really, with a 35 I would say you would not be able to see that in a photograph 2.5 has a reasonable amount of DOF as well- provided the discrepancy is not the end product of a number of misalignments.