M5, dead meter..or not? Help!

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bibowj

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Hello everyone- New ish member here but I have a question that I cant seem to find elsewhere, or rather I don't want to admit that they're right...

Just bought a very nice M5 off of the bay from Japan at a decent price. Item arrived, seems to be good to go...cept I cant get the meter to work. The ad doesn't list it as not working, only that the camera is fully functional. I only purchased this camera for the meter, vice a 2nd M3.

Heres what Ive done tested:

- Ive tried over 8 batteries that are the correct voltage, some from cameras with working meters. No joy, and the battery test trick shows no movement.
- The arm never swings out , but as far as I can tell...its still there.
- Ive tried using a rubber grommet to ensure the battery is well seated and Ive tried in both possible positions..no joy.

Id rather not return the camera because of the $80 + shipping charge that I won't get refunded and ultimately I did get it at a fair price ($560 ish) but I doubt I could resell it w/ a dead meter. Aside from sending it out to get repaired, are there any other tricks of the trade I should look into before make the decision to repair or return? I enjoy the feel of the camera, and I would like to keep it..but w/o the meter, Id be better off with my m3.

Please advise when you have time.

Thank you.

James in San Diego, CA USA
 
iyou should return the camera while you can. You will get back the whole amount you spend on it, cmaera and shipping fee.

In the past i managed to fix an m5 meter, it was a ton of work, before going into it i tested the coil, becasue that part i think it´s almost imposible to repair.

Send it back before it´s too late.
 
in my case i do receive every cent when i return the item, of course the returning cost doesn´t count, you just need an inexpensive reliable shhipping service with tracking nuember and you´re done,

Check.

Good luck.
 
bibowj said:
Hello everyone- New ish member here but I have a question that I cant seem to find elsewhere, or rather I don't want to admit that they're right...

Just bought a very nice M5 off of the bay from Japan at a decent price. Item arrived, seems to be good to go...cept I cant get the meter to work. The ad doesn't list it as not working, only that the camera is fully functional. I only purchased this camera for the meter, vice a 2nd M3.

Heres what Ive done tested:

- Ive tried over 8 batteries that are the correct voltage, some from cameras with working meters. No joy, and the battery test trick shows no movement.
- The arm never swings out , but as far as I can tell...its still there.
- Ive tried using a rubber grommet to ensure the battery is well seated and Ive tried in both possible positions..no joy.

Id rather not return the camera because of the $80 + shipping charge that I won't get refunded and ultimately I did get it at a fair price ($560 ish) but I doubt I could resell it w/ a dead meter. Aside from sending it out to get repaired, are there any other tricks of the trade I should look into before make the decision to repair or return? I enjoy the feel of the camera, and I would like to keep it..but w/o the meter, Id be better off with my m3.

Please advise when you have time.

Thank you.

James in San Diego, CA USA
Click to expand...

You have to test the meter with a lens attached.

As a safety feature, the M5 meter cell stays recessed when a lens is not attached.

Stephen
 
If the seller said the meter worked and after this extensive testing it's not doing it, then send it back and claim the shipping amount back. Usually, these people will do their utmost to satisfy your claim because they don't want to see negative feedback. Contact the seller first, and explain that, as opposed to the description, the meter isn't working. I'm sure they will work something out.

Sorry about your misadventures with an M5... they're beautiful bodies to work with...

One last thing: you'll never see the meter arm swing without a lens mounted on the camera. If you really want to see it, try using an LTM to M adapter on the M5 arm, or look carefully through the lens (mounted on the M5 body). The meter arm ONLY shows up when there is a lens on the camera body. Take care!
 
interesting

interesting

Oh thats interesting...I didn't know that. Ive seen lots of youtube videos showing the arm moving into place w/ no lens attached.
 
CameraQuest said:
You have to test the meter with a lens attached.

As a safety feature, the M5 meter cell stays recessed when a lens is not attached.

Stephen
Click to expand...

Make sure the lens isn't a jupiter-8, 21/super angulon, collapsed elmar or any other lens where a protruding back element can smash the metering arm. If using a lens doesn't cause it to work, I was told once to take the battery and with the battery seated in the holder (without the cap on) rotate it with your thumb a few times. Sometimes that will get the juice flowing - it worked for me.
 
makes sense about the LTM adaptor... saw that as soon as I posted. Also, Im using a 50mm 'cron..lets cap off. Even tried a verified good PX 13 mercury battery that came with an old minolta and still worked.....and nada.
 
I once had to have a M5 repaired after pulling the arm with my finger , so put a lens on it .

The arm is mechanical and will work without a battery, the actual meter uses the batterie.
 
$560 is a good price for an M5 with no meter, though why would anyone want a meterless M5? That's my non-Zen koan. Spend the money for a good one. Sounds like a straightforward return/not as described, too.
 
Return the camera, and learn from the experience.
I had to return two Fuji GW690 cameras back to the ebay sellers in Japan. Both claimed the cameras were perfect etc, both times they were not. In my case they had fungus which is why I would never buy a equipment from a humid country unless you use a service like japancamerahunter.com to inspect it.

$560 is waaaay too low to get a decent M5. You most probably would need a CLA no matter, and Sherry Krauter at Golden Touch would tell you if it is repairable.
And yeah, I see no reason for an M5 if the meter does not work. Like you, I would use my M3 instead. But a properly functioning M5 (like the one I have thank you Sherry!) is a wonderful thng.

Good luck!
 
First, check a couple things.

If you don't have an LTM adapter, put your fastest lens on, and open it to max aperture. Wind the shutter, and holding the camera in a bright light, you should be able to see the spiral front grid of the light meter cell when the shutter is cocked. As you push the shutter button, the cell drops down to the bottom of the camera. Note the meter ONLY works with the shutter wound. If the cell does not come up, return the camera.

Does the battery check work? Push the frame preview all the way toward the 35mm position. If it doesn't work, make sure you don't have a corrosion problem in the battery chamber- this is a common problem.

If the battery check works and the meter doesn't, you have a worry. It could be a bad contact on the meter circuit board, which is simple to fix, or a dead cell, which isn't. If you have that kind of problem, you are better off returning the camera.

Cheers,
Dez
 
- battery check doesn't work and I've tried nearly every diff kind of battery set up that I could think of..never moves
- Tried the trick with the meter arm movement, and nada.. or at least I can never see any movement. When i open the lens at various times though, I can see the arm has had slight movement ..it sticks up just a smidgen.

That'll learn me.
 
Ouch! That does not sound good at all. Were you able to check for sure with an LTM adapter? Sounds like a situation for return for sure, maybe a complaint to ebay that the camera was not as advertised will get your shipping cost back- no seller likes to get negative feedback.

Cheers,
Dez
 
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