Leica M4 - Questions

[Dvenosa]

Hi,

I live in Brazil and I just came across a Leica M4 + Summicron 2.0 for a price that I can buy.

The body shows heavy signs of use, but there isn't a sign that it has been dropped (no dings). The plastic tip of the wind lever its loose, it's this normal? The shutter works like a charm, I think it has been CLA'd recently. The viewfinder it's clean, the rangefinder it's clean too but when I compared it with the rangefinder of a minty M3 they had at the store the M4 was much more difficult to get in focus...when I got the picture in focus it seemed a little bit hazy, not that the rangefinder patch is hazy...the sensation I had was that it was something with my eye, but then I used the M3 again and it was much easier to find focus.
Is the M4 more difficult to focus then the M3?


thank you in advance,

Daniel
(forgive my bad english)

 

[xayraa33]

is the rf aligned horizontally and vertically on the M4?
the M3 had a superior rf patch than the M2 and M4.
it got even worse on the late run M4-2 and the M4-P.

 

[.JL.]

wind lever - the plastic tip can turn to provide a better angle to accommodate your thumb; that is normal. If the plastic tip is loose like it's going to fall off soon, then it's not normal.

CLA'd - don't make assumptions on this. Ask the seller, and get the receipt if possible (it's worth something).

Focusing - Focusing with M4 should be as easy as M3. The M4 could have a dim rangefinder (rangefinder image is very weak), which is expensive to fix. The other possibility is vertical misalignment, which can be fixed easily and cheaply.

 

[Dvenosa]

Thanks for all your answers!

Wind Lever - Yes, it turns...good to know its normal!

RF - The patch is not dim just a little less contrasty than the M3, almost unoticeable...it seems to me that it is vertically misalignment, how can I cure that? 😕

CLA - Here in Brazil CLA's are cheaper than in the USA. I just had a CLA on my IIIc as well as shutter and leather replacement and the bill was a little less then 200 dollars.

 

[xayraa33]

any good tech that works on Leica M's can align the rf for a small fee.

 

[MikeL]

Here's some info from Andrew N.'s site:Rangefinder adjustment

 

[.JL.]

Thanks for all your answers!

Wind Lever - Yes, it turns...good to know its normal!

RF - The patch is not dim just a little less contrasty than the M3, almost unoticeable...it seems to me that it is vertically misalignment, how can I cure that? 😕

CLA - Here in Brazil CLA's are cheaper than in the USA. I just had a CLA on my IIIc as well as shutter and leather replacement and the bill was a little less then 200 dollars.

This link provides instruction on how you can adjust the RF yourself. If you don't feel confident doing it yourself after reading it, let your technician do it. ^^

 

[.JL.]

MikeL beats me to it, by 1 min. darn.😀

 

[Beemermark]

Sounds like the rangefinder optics just need cleaned. Almost all, if not all, old RF get dimmer with age due to dirt. If you have an M3 that's never been CLA and think the RF is great send it off for a cleaning and you'll be amazed what bright is.