New M6 & Cron owner seeks hood advice

[BennyBoy]

I recently got to such a point of frustration with my other 35mm rangefinders that I splashed out on a used M6 classic and Summicron 50. I'm stupendously happy with my purchase and have no clue why I didn't make the purchase much sooner.

So far I've only one very minor quibble with the set-up, and this is the reversible hood/cap combo that came with the cron, I'm no gear expert so have no clue what version this is (S/N is 3481133), but I find the hood/cap combo very cumbersome to use and a little 'tight'. Is there an alternative I could try that may make life easier for me? Am I just being a bit too overprotective of my gear?

 

[BennyBoy]

I did some searching and now know that my M6 was made in 1988, and that the Cron is 5th version made in Germany. Is there a metal hood/cap combo available?

 

[aizan]

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Metal-39mm-...4687467QQihZ004QQcategoryZ78999QQcmdZViewItem

maybe the heavystar?

link corrected. he's got a ton of stuff...

 

[BennyBoy]

Did some more searching about and HU12585 looks like the metal equivalent of the plastic 12538 hood I have, is the metal 12585 easier to remove, the detents on this plastic one are a little limpet like...

 

[Michiel Fokkema]

Hi,
I used to an have plastic and a metal hood for the 50. In daily use it didn't matter much. The metal one of course did feel better. But the plastic did well also.
cheers,
Michiel Fokkema

 

[jayjee]

I'm in a bit of the same situation except the only cap i have for my 'cron is for the hood and not the lens itself. I never use the hood as it make my kit seem conspicuous. So I have to remove the hood and cap everytime I want to shoot. It's getting to be a nuisance and I've only had this lens for a couple weeks. Anyway, I think I just need a lens cap so I can leave the hood at home.

 

[Pablito]

otoh, I replaced the plastic hood with a metal one and I found it fit much better - much easier to put on and take off, especially when a filter was on the lens.

 

[BennyBoy]

The lens front element is about 6-7mm recessed from the lip of the filter ring on my copy of the lens, so I'm not sure there's a huge flare issue anyhow, so in light of the comments about the metal hood being much the same mechanically as the plastic one, a clip on cap could be useful - I shoot with a 13131 UVa filter attached all the time anyhow.

(EDIT)

Pablito posted as I was typing... would be nice to hear some more opinions on the metal hood...

 

[payasam]

I'll only re-state the old rule: There is no photograph which cannot be improved by the use of a hood. It's all the more true if you use a filter always.

 

[Dogman]

I use 12585 metal hoods on both my 35mm and 50mm Summicrons. I never reverse the hoods, even in storage (although they hardly ever get stored since they are almost always in use). I never use front lens caps--I use B+W UV filters.

 

[BennyBoy]

I think I'll order a metal hood.

 

[pfoto]

You can get a non-vented metal hood from eBay dealer heavystar as well:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140143445055

Some of these hoods are not the best quality though.

Since you have a UV filter permanently on the front, maybe the best solution is the little metal Leica hood for the current Elmar-M 50mm/f2.8. The Leica part number for that hood is 12550. It's very inconspicuous (those big vented hoods look ridiculous IMO) and will provide nice additional protection for your lens. 🙂

 

[John Elder]

I have looked at the hood 12550 and I don't know if it is meant for anything other than the new 50 elmar2.8M. You might experience vignetting with a 50 cron at f2.

 

[Doug]

I've had my 12585H since about 1966 (along with the 8 element v1 35 Summicron), so this popular item must have an impressively long production history. Excellent hood.

 

[BennyBoy]

Lots of options, thanks for the information everyone.