Leica LTM New Find - Leica II Sleeping Beauty

Leica M39 screw mount bodies/lenses
C

cassel

Well-known
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Joined
Oct 12, 2008
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759
Look what I found!

Seems to have been unused since the 1980's. Shutter still fires very sluggishly and its dirty BUT I think a good CLA will wake it up just fine.

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Nice! Antique store find? Looks like its been sitting on a shelf for a decade or more.
 
Even if it needs a shutter-tune by an expert like my 1933 III did, it is still a bargain and a lovely old camera. It looks like it is extremely well-kept and has had relatively low use.
 
Nice find. Too bad it has stupidly been kept in a leather case. The verdigris spots on the camera and lens and the milky stains on the leather turn the fungus alarm bell on.

The shutter release guard is missing but nowadays it's become easy to find some copycats of the original part (nickel finish).
 
The camera was in the case for a LONG time but I've seen (smelled) worse. Really just a couple of small green spots. Everything is stiff but functional:

  • Lens was difficult to unscrew (got it off though)
  • Lens aperture is like molasses, focus is stiff, and it won't collapse or extend hardly at all
  • BUT no fungus or obvious damage to the glass!
  • Shutter fires at 1/60 but drags- I'm not going to risk damage by firing it further
  • Viewfinder and rangefinder windows cleaned up great and the RF works accurately :)
  • Rewind extends OK and spins
  • A - R lever works
  • Ordered a Nickel-Plated release collar from "Nobby-Sparrow"



While watching TV last night, I carefully went through my cleaning protocol for old cameras. It looks WAY better! Quite pretty, actually...:)

I will post another glamour shot or two

I have more to share about the story as well...
 
Here she is - all cleaned up - and sporting a Summitar I picked up this last summer!


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Camera was "Once Upon a Time" used at a research lab at Univ. of Penn back in the 1930's until WWII:cool:
 
Thanks everyone-
I'm excited about this one- wasn't looking for another camera but it just sort of crossed my path:cool:

I'm taking the camera to Seattle later this week to arrange for a service for the Elmar lens and body :)
 
Camera Techs in Ballard does not want to fix it. Hmmm... I wonder where I should send it? I’ve used Stephens service in California and Blue Moon (rainbow) I Portland . What would u do?
 
Here's the research on the previous owner that I was able to discover:

The leather case and the inside of the baseplate have the name "A. R. Apgar" along with additional information that links up with the following information available online-


10.14.4.6.2. ALBERT REMSON APGAR, JR.,
b. 5 Jul. 1906 Lancaster, PA., d. 2 Mar 1983 Anacortes, Washington. unm. He attended the University of Pennsylvania and during W.W. II he enlisted in the US Navy. He served in Europe and England. After the war he went to work for the Government in Washington, DC, in the office of Procurement in the Bureau of Standards. After his retirement in 1967, he moved to Friday Harbor, Washington. He was an active member of the San Juan Historical Society and the San Juan Yacht Club.

Albert Apgar Jr’s uncle Charles was the father of Virginia Apgar - the inventor of the APGAR test for new babies (so she was his cousin). ;)

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