"Thalt Shallt Cap " ...

[Steve Karr]

So my normal grab in the car camera is my M6TTL with a 50mm Canon 1.2 / Red filter.

I throw it on my seat & for safety I cover it with my Cowboy hat. Well today my hat somehow moved and the sun got hold of it.

Burned a hole in the curtain.

Now I know for a fact I'm a retard, but has this ever happened to you too?
Just a little?

Chime in !!!

Steve

 

[ItsReallyDarren]

I've had a couple close calls when I picked up the camera and to my horror saw the lens was set wide open as it sat towards the sun. No pinholes have happened yet but I when I think I'm not going to use the lens I automatically stop the lens down around f/11.

 

[Shac]

Sorry to hear that Steve - I live near Vancouver on the Wet Coast of BC, what's this "sun" thing😀?

 

[xxloverxx]

Was gorging with Zorki C in one hand…had a few times where the lens very nearly pointed right at the sun (and it was a clear day).

I'm actually suspecting a pinhole on the bottom left of my curtain but have yet to confirm it (some photos have some marks at the top right that look like they may be a pinhole (or 5…), but it's not consistent across rolls, so I'm inclined to think it's just a bit of light)

Now some of my Zorki 4 photos have 4 dots at the top…looks like they could be pinholes, but some photos have 2, some 4 and some none. The holes are about 2-3 perforations apart…not sure what this is all about. Checking the shutter with a torch in a darkened room (with the lens off) showed nothing.

 

[dof]

You forgot to put a "Not yet!" option in the poll.

Sorry to hear about it Steve.

 

[thomasw_]

I am very careful about this because, yes, I did learn the lesson the expensive way ;/ Sorry for your trouble...

 

[wlewisiii]

Ditto on the "Not Yet" That and the "Thank goodness for metal shutters!" option.

 

[Blind_spark]

I have a Canon P, which as many of you know has metal curtains. I still cap the camera or place it nose down to prevent pinholes, a habit from when I owned a IIIc Leica. Still kinda miss that camera, for it's quirks. =\

 

[coelacanth]

Sorry to hear the trouble, Steve.

I'm very careful, but use no cap so I'd vote "not yet" if I had the choice. 😛

 

[DNG]

When I take my M5 out, I keep it in a small camera bag in the car, and I always use my the palm of my hand over the lens while I walking. I pay attention to where the sun is, and don't shoot facing the sun, always at angles to the sun. Call me crazy 😎


So far, So good.... Knock on Wood !!!

 

[gb hill]

No but I promise you that I've done other stupid stuff to make up for it. Most recent is a quick grab of my QL-17GIII the strap grabs the gearshift thus me dropping the camera on the floorboard & the rear door pops open exposing 1/2 a roll of film to the sunlight! It was Portra NC160!

 

[Jason Sprenger]

Not yet, but then it's not likely with an M8.2 or ZI that I often use these days.

Nevertheless, I find carrying a small bag (Domke F-5xa or F-5xb) tends to keep my more vulnerable cameras, M2 or FED-2, protected.

 

[Brian Legge]

One of my first trips out with a Leica iiic I set it down while changing lenses. I think I left it facing up on an extremely bright day for about a minute while I fumbled around with a lens. I think the old fragile curtain burned in a few places right then as I didn't have any issues on the one roll I shot before that.

Lesson learned. I fixed it temporarily myself but... Now I have to decide if I want to get this one properly repaired or if I want to sell this and do it with one in better condition. In any condition, I'm hooked on screw mount Leicas. Leading that was worth it.

 

[Steve Karr]

So I'm the only one so far ... Geez?

This was more of a Heads Up than anything, so Keep 'em covered.

Anyone have a 55mm Leica cap for sale?

 

[oftheherd]

I've had a couple close calls when I picked up the camera and to my horror saw the lens was set wide open as it sat towards the sun. No pinholes have happened yet but I when I think I'm not going to use the lens I automatically stop the lens down around f/11.

I thought leaving it on a larger aperture was the correct move. Won't the smaller aperture make it more likely for the lens to be able to focus a spot on the curtain?

 

[Steve_F]

I don't believe in tempting fate so 'other' suits. If there was an option for:
"I haven't done it yet but I'm sure one day I will because I'm not as smart as I think I am".
I'd have gone for that.

Steve.

 

[robbeiflex]

+1 for the ZM, it's very very difficult to burn a hole in a metal shutter!

 

[erik]

Not a shutter, yet, but I did melt a Diana on the passenger seat once. Not at all the same but a bummer none the less.

 

[Leica All Day]

Hey Steve, I burnt a hole in a shutter curtain within the first 2 years of owning my m6ttl......thanks to the passport warranty Leica fixed it for free.....To be honest, before it happened, I had no idea that it could happen.....now that I am aware of it, I haven't done it since...


I forget who told me about making these things (could of been Sherry K.)...but I prefer these over lens caps

here is a link to a thread....something I made for my lenses so I don't burn a hole in the curtains

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94346

cheers, michael

 

[crawdiddy]

Hi Steve. I had always heard about the shutter pinhole danger, and thought-- "yeah, right!"

But, I also have an M6, and I happened to use my Jupiter-8, late version, which has no aperture clicks. I was using it in the back yard, and since the sun was bright, it was stopped down. But, when I rested it on the patio table face up, it was easy to turn the aperture to wide open.

And when I processed the film, every frame afterward had a bright white circle.

Btw, I patched the hole (actually 2 holes, since the shutter curtain consists of 2 layers of cloth) with Liquid Electricians Tape.

Some say to use Shoe Goo. Well, I never found the Goo in any color other than clear, and that wasn't good for patching a light leak.

So, I recommend Liquid Electricians Tape. It's preferred by all the Liquid Electricians (don't get me started about the gaseous electricians).

I applied several thin layers from the front and back, and let them dry for 24 hours before winding the shutter.

Good luck, and don't despair. I consider the wounded, but now repaired shutter a battle scar that gives my M6 character. It's been tested, and it survived.