M3 viewfinder restoration ...

[maddoc]

... the viewfinder of my M3 is not in best condition. Seems that the balsam used for cementing the two glas prism has deteriorated and some cleaning is necessary, too. Now I am searching for some good repair / service. I mailed to "Camera Repairs & Restoration, Luton, UK" and also Sherry Krauter but no reply yet. Since I have no experience with camera repair shops, how long does it usually take to get an answer ? Any other recommendations ?

Thanks,

Gabor

 

[Artorius]

Luton CRR is probably your best bet, from your location. I have no experience with them but their website describes viewfinder re-silvering and re-alignment.

 

[maddoc]

Artorius: Thank you ! I just checked Luton CRR's HP again, they won't accept any repair before July 2007 ... Seems that I have to be patient ...

Gabor

 

[Ororaro]

Youxin Ye has just done mine and he has one extra finder just in case. Contact him asap. I've had the most excellent service from him on both my M3s...

 

[maddoc]

Great tip ! Thank you !! Can you sent me contact info of him ?

Thanks

Gabor

 

[Ororaro]

I will PM his email it to you in a second.

Youxin has been so kind with me it's incredible. He thoroughly answered all my questions and when I asked about which M he prefered, his reply was so long and detailed it was incredible.

I have no doubt the other regular repair people are good, but Youxin was definitely a revelation.

 

[maddoc]

NB23: Thank you again for mailing me the contact info of Youxin Ye ! I mailed him yesterday and this morning I received a very detailed answer from him. He will do the repair / CLA job and I am goint to sent my M3 over to him the next couple of days. 🙂

Thanks,

Gabor

 

[Ororaro]

Yes sir! Keep the forum informed as I'm sure many will benefit...

 

[pvenables]

Members of this forum have said it before, and I'll say it again. Peter at CRR does not reply to e-mails. If you ring him he can often find time to fit your repair in. He's a gentleman to deal with and I have never heard anyone complain about the quality of his work or the value for money.

Paul

 

[maddoc]

Members of this forum have said it before, and I'll say it again. Peter at CRR does not reply to e-mails. If you ring him he can often find time to fit your repair in. He's a gentleman to deal with and I have never heard anyone complain about the quality of his work or the value for money.

Paul

... I didn't know that 😕 Well, I am located in Japan and due to the time zone difference it is not that easy to reach somebody by phone in Europe. Anyhow, I sent my M3 to Youxin Ye this morning and hopefully he can fix the rangefinder.

Again, thanks anybody for the infos and tips !

- Gabor

 

[furcafe]

It's moot now, but is there no one in Japan who does that kind of work? I find it hard to believe that there isn't someone in that vintage camera-loving country who can rebuild an M3 RF/VF.

 

[maddoc]

About Japan .... here for sure somebody can do the restoration of a viewfinder but ... my language skills are not good enough to find a good shop and also to tell them what exactly I want. The only offers for an CLA, which I found per on-line search, wanted roughly 400 USD (including replacement of the shutter curtains) plus shipping cost. If somebody has a tip for a repair shop in Japan, I would be grateful to get some info🙂

Thanks,

Gabor

 

[aad]

I will PM his email it to you in a second.

Youxin has been so kind with me it's incredible. He thoroughly answered all my questions and when I asked about which M he prefered, his reply was so long and detailed it was incredible.

I have no doubt the other regular repair people are good, but Youxin was definitely a revelation.

He did a great job on my IIIf recently. Outstanding.

 

[maddoc]

I got my M3 back from Youxin Ye 😀 Luckily, the viewfinder only had to be cleaned. He did a great job on my M3, camera feels like "new" !

- Gabor