M Shutter Issue, Return/Repair?

[byronfry]

Hello!

I had a post a couple days ago about digging up info on an MD-2 body I was looking into. I got the body today, and it's in immaculate condition as described by the seller (a used photographic store I ordered from over the phone). I bought it with the understanding I could return it if it was not as described, which in most cases it is, however I took it into my local vintage camera store and they tested the shutter for me, finding all the settings to the 250th mark were perfect, the 250 setting was a touch fast, the 500 setting was measuring around 2000, and the shutter was barely opening on the 1000 setting (either the first curtain was travelling to slow or the second too fast). So this means I either return the camera which I don't want to do (already ordered the lens for it and the camera itself is gorgeous) or swallow it and just not use anything over 250th and hope the problem works itself out maybe (which won't be too big an issue right now as the weather where I live is super overcast for the next 5 months) or call the seller and ask for a refund of the value for a CLA.

What are your thoughts?

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

It wont work itself out. if one curtain is faster than the other, you'll get uneven exposures even at the speeds where the shutter tester said it was correct. If you got it at a price where you can justify the $300 a Leica CLA typically costs, keep it and fix it. If not, return it.

 

[byronfry]

I don't think it will effect the other exposures, that seemed to only be happening with the 1000/s exposure when using a proper shutter tester you could see the difference between 500 and 1000.

 

[Merkin]

I would contact the store you bought it from, and either return it or ask if they could repair it at no charge.

One would expect an MD-2 to have had a pretty easy life, so one that is out of whack would make me suspicious.

 

[byronfry]

It looks like it has never been touched. So much so that I am afraid to touch it lest I mark it before I decide to keep it. I am wondering if its just a product of sitting for so long.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

It WILL affect your other exposures. Trust me, I have seen this before, it requires a CLA and adjustment of the curtain tensions. A shutter can give the correct time and stil give an uneven exposure (one side of the frame darker than the other) because one of the curtains is faster than the other. It will not work itself out, it will not stop doing it, until you get it repaired.

 

[Merkin]

It looks like it has never been touched. So much so that I am afraid to touch it lest I mark it before I decide to keep it. I am wondering if its just a product of sitting for so long.

This, to me, is the aggravating thing about Leicas. If it sits too long without use, things get gummy and sticky and it will need a CLA. If it gets used too much for too long, parts wear out and go out of adjustment, and it will need a CLA. If it gets knocked about and abused, parts will break or go out of adjustment, and it will need a CLA. Basically, it seems like unless the camera has been babied and had no more or less than a roll or two put through it every week or two, it is going to need a CLA by now, and there isn't really any way to know that unless you are buying it directly from a previous owner that you know and trust. That is why my default answer to anyone even remotely considering the purchase of a Leica more than 15 or 20 years old is to automatically get a CLA, even if it turns out to have been unnecessary. The downside to being built like a Rolex watch or a Ferarri is that it has to go to the shop like a Rolex watch or a Ferarri.

 

[Mackinaw]

This, to me, is the aggravating thing about Leicas. If it sits too long without use, things get gummy and sticky and it will need a CLA. If it gets used too much for too long, parts wear out and go out of adjustment, and it will need a CLA. If it gets knocked about and abused, parts will break or go out of adjustment, and it will need a CLA. Basically, it seems like unless the camera has been babied and had no more or less than a roll or two put through it every week or two, it is going to need a CLA by now, and there isn't really any way to know that unless you are buying it directly from a previous owner that you know and trust. That is why my default answer to anyone even remotely considering the purchase of a Leica more than 15 or 20 years old is to automatically get a CLA, even if it turns out to have been unnecessary. The downside to being built like a Rolex watch or a Ferarri is that it has to go to the shop like a Rolex watch or a Ferarri.

What you describe holds for ANY classic camera that has been sitting around unused for 30+ years. I've had shutter capping (what the MD-2 has) on Nikon Fs', Canon FTbs', Pentax Spotmatics', Minolta SRTs', you name it. A CLA is the price of admittance for putting an old mechanical camera back into action.

JIm B.

 

[Tom A]

The MD-2 used the same shutter brake as the M4-2 and it was prone to shutter problems. Nothing serious and an easy fix. Any competent service guy can reset the shutter. All you have to do is remove the inside base cover plate and access the screws there. However, you need a shutter speed tester to do it. It sounds to me that someone has fiddled with it already. Otherwise the 1/500 would be slow - not 1/2000!!! Too much tension on the shutter and that probably causes the capping at 1/1000. This would not even require a full CLA - just an adjustment.

 

[John Elder]

Send it yo Youxin Ye! He will fix it quickly at a most reasonable price. He will even tell you the actual shutter speeds after adjustment.

 

[Beemermark]

What you describe holds for ANY classic camera that has been sitting around unused for 30+ years. I've had shutter capping (what the MD-2 has) on Nikon Fs', Canon FTbs', Pentax Spotmatics', Minolta SRTs', you name it. A CLA is the price of admittance for putting an old mechanical camera back into action. JIm B.

AMEN to that. Also most MD-2's look mint. They spent their life on top of a microscope, or at least that was the main market they were made for. Doesn't mean that they didn't see a lot of use.

 

[coelacanth]

Youxin's full CLA will end up around $120 including shipping costs, and it's well worth it. And it sounds like yours won't even need a full CLA. That said, if the local repair guy will charge much for the shutter adjustment, maybe getting a full CLA might be a better idea. (at least if you are in the US or possibly Canada)

My M2 had several minor yet annoying issues when I got it from an RFF member (sad), but he fixed up everything and I got the camera back in less than a week including two-way transit time.

Edit: That Youxin job above included a full CLA. (The M2 was advertised as "recent CLA by YY", but it wasn't true.)

 

[byronfry]

Tom,

Thanks for your super educated answer, I'm going to swing by the local repair shop who once did some work on my M6 when I owned it and see what they think. Sending it abroad seems like a hassle and I don't want to let it go away so quickly, I think I've fallen in love.

 

[byronfry]

Just an update to those out there watching this and another big thank you to Tom. I went down to the local used camera shop where a friend works and him and I managed to adjust the shutter ourselves on the shutter tester there. Works like a charm now!

 

[seifadiaz]

i'm wondering where can you get a shutter speed tester?

 

[byronfry]

I really don't know, its a pretty crazy little contraption the one I used, you have to use a foot pedal to turn it on!