Minolta CLE Metering Pattern

[mrcorr]

It's not too difficult, everything can only fit back together in one position so there's no chance for misalignment. You don't need to touch any of the delicate rangefinder components while doing this either. The hardest part is probably getting the top cover off I would say.

 

[hap]

My finder starting to look a little hazy......so probably profession job and at same time cla.

 

[Monz]

I have successfully repaired my CLE with the dancing meter problem by cleaning the contacts under the shutter speed dial. The key is to also clean under the little plastic board that the metal prongs slide over. This component is not soldered to anything at all and has a ribbon cable that’s just sandwiched by a small piece of rubber underneath. My theory is that it can lose contact over time as the rubber ages. All I had to do was remove the board and clean under it with some electronic contact cleaner and make sure the ribbon cable was seated correctly when putting it back together. Since doing this repair the camera has worked flawlessly.

Here's a picture of the component with some notes.

Thank you for this information and picture. My CLE occasionally exhibits the dancing LED phenomenon. I'll have a go at cleaning the contacts and see what happens.

 

[Guth]

My CLE exhibited the dancing LED issue upon arrival. That was a few years ago, so my recollection of exactly what was required is now a bit sketchy. I do know that I had to partially disassemble the camera in order to clean the contacts that reside under the shutter speed dial assembly. I referenced the information provided on this site, in order to disassemble the camera to the point where I could clean the contacts.

 

[intangiblethings]

I recently cleaned my contacts and it's actually crazy how such a simple/easy fix solved everything.

I am by no means good with taking apart things but it's a simple process. Just take note of what goes where/what setting you're on as you remove.

I didn't have the spanner so I used some tweezers and used my finger as a way to maintain distance to unscrew the shutter.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Hi all,

I've been shooting with a CLE for the last few weeks and can't seem to understand the metering pattern. I have some shots that are perfectly exposed and some that are blown out highlights with no shadow detail. Does anyone know what the metering pattern is on the CLE? I've searched through countless forums and read the manual, but can't find anything. Is it center-weighted or average over the spot pattern?

Thanks in advance.

If your highlights are blown out (overexposed) and your shadows have no detail (underexposed), then your problem is not the camera's metering system. You're photographing scenes with too much contrast.