Leica M4 strange negative. Possible shutter issue?

[froyd]

Re-posting from separate thread since original post did not seem to get much traction.

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On the last roll though my M4 I had several negatives (maybe 1/3 of the roll) have a completely underexposed section on the left side of the frame and the rest of the frame seemed fairly underexposed, especially when compared with the pictures in the following frames where the same subject would be properly and evenly exposed from one side of the frame to the other. The red line indicates the approximate edge of the frame.

Anyone can diagnose the problem by looking at the negative?

 

[Huss]

Yep, shutter issue.

 

[Mackinaw]

Looks like shutter capping, which is when one shutter curtain overtakes the other as they travel across the film plane. Not at all unusual with a horizontal focal plane shutter and an easy fix. Time for a CLA.

Jim B.

 

[froyd]

Is it a common characteristic of this issue that some frames are affected by it and some not? That's what threw me a little bit. Most of the roll is fine, but in between there are some short sequences of negatives exposed like the one above.

The last CLA for this camera was 8 years ago... I was hoping for a longer stretch between repairs, but no biggie.

 

[retinax]

It's typically more evident at shorter exposure times. But could be intermittent as well. I suppose if it is intermittent, it's more likely caused by debris like a film chip stuck in a bad place. That would also explain why it occurs so relatively soon after a CLA.