Leica M2 + VCII Meter: Worth it?

[Vincent.G]

Hi Guys

I am getting my first Leica camera. My budget is about US$1800. I have this offer of Leica M2 (nice black painted by a famous japanese, Shintaro) with a used VC II meter selling for USD$1040.

I am choosing an M2 because I love the 35mm focal length and M2 comes with 35mm frameline. I wear spectacles and I am not sure whether the entire 35mm lines will be visible or not. I am eyeing CV nokton 35mm f/1.2.

My worry is whether such a old camera would have any teething problems or not. Or should I go for the more pricey M6 or M7? But this would stretch my budget by a lot.

Can I ask for your kind advise please? I am currently a nikon film SLR and DSLR user.

Cheers!

 

[Mephiloco]

I bought an M2 and I've had no problems with it. I'd really like it to have a meter, but I've gotten accustomed to not having one. I shot long enough with a metered film slr to remember what exposures worked in similar low light situations, or I just set it to 1/15 at f1.5 and stand develop. Sometimes I'll grab my girlfriend's point and shoot to get a meter reading just to double check.

The price difference between a M2 and a M6/M7 is substantial considering the only real gain (in my opinion) is the meter. I don't really care about DX coding or AE (though perhaps it would be nice sometimes). It's also worth noting that the M2 is one of the easiest focusing M bodies (2nd to the M3 iirc).

I've heard good things about the VCII meter, most people here with one here are very happy with theirs. I'd personally get the m2. The lens matters more than the body (provided there are no defects) technically speaking

 

[elshaneo]

At the price of 1040 USD for both the BP Shintaro Leica M2 and VC meter II, that's a fair price I would say 😀

A lot of RFF members will also tell you that the Leica M2 + a 35mm focal length lens is a match made in heaven 😛

And that the Leica M2 is also the quintessential Leica M camera 😉

In my case, my first Leica was indeed the Leica M2, I sold it after getting the Leica MP, which I then traded in for the Leica M7 afterwards. But guess what?! I recently sold the Leica M7 and bought back a Leica M2, I'm back to where I started 😛

 

[Debusti Paolo]

I think you can buy a used but in good condition m6 with 1000/1200 USD😉

 

[robinsonphotography]

Go for it. You'll love it. My first Leica is an M2, with a VCII and 35/2.5 PII Voigtlander....so save for the lens (and the fact that mine was a beater in chrome, not a black repaint--wish I could've afforded that!!) I'm basically sportin' the exact setup you're looking at getting. This is my first ever rangefinder setup and I've been very happy with it. I love my big gripped D700, but when I travel or shoot for myself, I love the unobtrusiveness of the M2. Fantastic setup, and the VCII is very nice; I have bigger handheld incident meters, but I often spot meter the shadows and highlights, then make a mental note of it and put the VCII in my pocket since it makes the camera even lighter to carry without it (small difference, but I still notice it).

 

[payasam]

To address a specific concern, you may not be able while wearing spectacles to see the entire 35mm frame of the M2. For myself, I would buy a good, functioning camera rather than an expensive Shintaro masterpiece and would not complain about a limited budget.

 

[hans voralberg]

What teething problem? It should be fine, just get it.

 

[Vincent.G]

Thanks everyone for your input! Really appreciate it. The people in this forum is really nice, friendly and knowledgeable. This can be seen from many threads posted by newbies like me and the many sound advices provided.

Actually I do not know anything about shintaro masterpiece. Seller showed it to me just said it is black painted by the jap who he claims is well-known. I just said.... OK. I didn't jump at all. But it sure looked nice and minty. But I was more concerned with getting a M2 and the price with the meter looks reasonable. I have viewed some bashed-up user chrome M2 and they are about US$100 cheaper than this one offered for sale. But of course, I still have this anxiety of buying an almost 50-year-old camera for over a grand without warranty so I thought I would ask you guys for some advice before I commit to it.

 

[maddoc]

Shintaro is Japanese and indeed a well-known master regarding camera painting but I don't think he would be very amused being referred as "jap".... Neither do I like this word for some reasons.

Actually I do not know anything about shintaro masterpiece. Seller showed it to me just said it is black painted by the jap who he claims is well-known. .

 

[Paul T.]

WHen I sold my M4, I added around $400 for the Shintaro paint job; you should check it is really by him, if possible. Those meters are $125 used.

The price is reasonable, but only if you really want a black paint camera; an M6, black, with meter built in, should cost around $1000, and is a better buy for someone who's not attuned to the aesthetic of the early, painted models.

And seconded, re the Jap word.

 

[rxmd]

It seems expensive to me. Here in Germany M2s regularly sell for 400 to 500 EUR, beaters on eBay can be had for under 300 EUR. For US prices, there recently was an M2 in the RFF classifieds here that sold for $620, an M6 for $900, and an M4-P which had a recent overhaul for $650.

Unless you don't attach special value to that Shintaro repaint (I wouldn't), maybe the offer is not the best for you.

 

[sevo]

Personally I'd always choose a Leicameter over the VCII on a M - the price difference is small, if any, and it is time knob coupled!

 

[mutikonka]

If you just want a good quality user M2 shop around a bit. I'm sure you can get one from a reliable dealer like KEH for less than that. Beware online sales sites. I was sold a lemon by a seemingly trustworthy pro photographer, which I was only able to get a refund for after much hassle. The M2 is a great solid camera, and ideal if you want to use a 35mm lens. I just had mine CLA'd by Youxin Ye and it's like having a new M2 out of the box - 50 years young.

 

[ruby.monkey]

In terms of meters I've always found a match-needle meter to be the fastest in action. The amount and direction of adjustment needed to match the light reading, and all the appropriate shutter-speed/aperture combinations, are available at a glance.

 

[Ronald_H]

Bought my user M2 for 400 euros + 200 for a CLA. It really needed it, shutter speeds were completely off.

My meter is a Gossen Digiflash. It does the job but it is cheap and nasty. I would have been better off with a VCII.

M2 is a great camera, meter or paintjob doesn't really matter.

 

[Vincent.G]

First, I would like to apologize to everyone who was offended by the "jap" word. I meant japanese.

I think I will give this sales offer a miss. I don't fancy the paint job probably because I don't know how to appreciate it. And it carries a premium. maybe someone else will. Think I will continue to look around for THAT classic M2 that is fated to end up in my hands.

During CLA, do they replace faulty parts? What is the price range for CLA?

 

[robklurfield]

Having great regrets now at having had to trade my M4 and M6 earlier this year to afford an M8, I finally plunked down the dough to buy an M2. Expected delivery in a few hours. Please hurry mister postman. Deliver the letter the sooner the better.

 

[wjlapier]

I was pretty successful using the VCII meter with my M3. I relied on it too much a few times and should have known better. I'd seriously consider the Shintaro BP M2 and VCII meter combo. Classic camera and a first rate paint job, and an excellent meter for it's size.

 

[rxmd]

During CLA, do they replace faulty parts? What is the price range for CLA?

Whether they replace faulty parts largely depends on the parts. If it's exotic parts, you may have to pay extra.

Two weeks ago I got my M5 back from a much needed CLA after two years of heavy use in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Georgia, on a camera I had bought used, not knowing what had happened to it beforehand. They calibrated the speeds, replacing some parts in the slow speed mechanism, put in a new viewfinder window (multicoated glass, new Leica part) to replace the old broken one, cleaned and adjusted the viewfinder/rangefinder mechanism and fixed some other minor issues. The meter was fine, so they left it as it was. All in all I paid 180 EUR for that, with a 12-month warranty on the repairs they did. At least over here that seems like a fairly standard price, quite cheap actually given that they actually had to order a viewfinder window from Solms.

 

[Ronald_H]

Whether they replace faulty parts largely depends on the parts. If it's exotic parts, you may have to pay extra.

Two weeks ago I got my M5 back from a much needed CLA after two years of heavy use in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Georgia, on a camera I had bought used, not knowing what had happened to it beforehand. They calibrated the speeds, replacing some parts in the slow speed mechanism, put in a new viewfinder window (multicoated glass, new Leica part) to replace the old broken one, cleaned and adjusted the viewfinder/rangefinder mechanism and fixed some other minor issues. The meter was fine, so they left it as it was. All in all I paid 180 EUR for that, with a 12-month warranty on the repairs they did. At least over here that seems like a fairly standard price, quite cheap actually given that they actually had to order a viewfinder window from Solms.

Seems like a bargain to me... they did not replace anything on my M2 (it only needed adjustment) and it still cost me 200...

There are several great people who can work on Leicas, there will be someone near where you live. In the Netherlands (where I live) there is Will van Manen. He is not exactly cheap, but his work is excellent and turnaround is quick. He worked on my M2, a Nikon EM, Yashica Mat 124 and a 35mm Nikkor with sticky blades. All were returned to perfect working order.