think maybe I won't cut leaders anymore

[SteveM(PA)]

Leica iiif rd/st...
During the heat of my 1st grade daughter's basketball game, I needed to reload, but knew I forgot my little scissors, so I thought I'd try the other technique some of you guys use. Took off the lens, cocked shutter in T-mode, and just stuck my finger in there and guided the film over the shutter frame. It dropped right in, like it's never dropped before. And this, after I suffered over a haiku about cutting film leaders yesterday, and that muse doesn't come around much.

 

[fredus]

what exactly do you do ??

 

[SteveM(PA)]

just load the film with the regular leader. Guess I should have said "release" the shutter in T-mode, so it stays open. Drop the film in and you'll know it hasn't dropped the whole way. Take the lens off and you'll see your film there, hanging on the edge of the shutter frame. Just poke it a little with your finger, and your spools drop right down into position. Take it out of T-mode, shutter fires, carefully advance, good to go! What I used to do was the 24-hole on top, 2-hole on the bottom, Hail Mary method.

 

[wilt]

Leica iiif rd/st...
During the heat of my 1st grade daughter's basketball game, I needed to reload, but knew I forgot my little scissors, so I thought I'd try the other technique some of you guys use. Took off the lens, cocked shutter in T-mode, and just stuck my finger in there and guided the film over the shutter frame. It dropped right in, like it's never dropped before. And this, after I suffered over a haiku about cutting film leaders yesterday, and that muse doesn't come around much.

Did you get any comments from other parents watching the game? 🙂

 

[SteveM(PA)]

Did you get any comments from other parents watching the game? 🙂

Yes, the parents next to me thought it was a camcorder (????). I've noticed that women, generally, seem enchanted by the camera, and I'm generally snubbed by the dslr crowd, as if I'm some poor soul. I've been using my Jupiter 9 on it. Next week, now that I've repaired my Imarect finder, I'm taking my giant chrome Canon 135, that should stir things up a bit, until I get a 400mm Telyt for my Visoflex

😛

 

[peter_n]

I think to be able to enchant women and rub the dslr lot the wrong way is an excellent position to be in... 😉

 

[Ronald M]

Even easier. Place a business card where the film goes. The film will slip in between the card and shutter. Remove the card, tension the film by rewinding til taught, then advance.
When you see the cassette spool move, you know the film is moving.

Put the bottom back on and check the rewind for a few frames.

 

[aad]

I've never had any luck with the business card thing-but I ALWAYS do the shutter-on-T deal, and I also do a little reverse-wind on the takeup spool to start. Drops in so quick, it isn't much slower than my Pentax SLR-and more reliable.

I tried trimming leaders. I thought it was very fiddly.