Vulcanite replacement of my M4-P ... [pics]

[tenderobject]

tenderobject,

from your description, the vulcanite starts coming off your M4-P at the same place as in the case of my M4-P.... The rust you describe, sounds like residuals of the resin. Either larger brown spots or areas, with some powder-like grey residual, I guess ? I scratched the grey powder-like residual with a sharp knife carefully away, sandpaper might be useful also.

The griptack is thinner compared to vulcanite but the grip is better. I can try to take a close-up photo later this week, where you can better see the thickness of the griptack.

All in all, I like the new covering. It wasn't to expensive and it fits my needs. 🙂

Cheers,

Gabor

hi gabor,

you are right! 🙂 i'll wait for some images next week 🙂 hope the griptack is much better than the original vulcanite in our m4-p though i still prefer the feel of the vulcanite since its thicker..

i love this camera.. but she needs some fix soon.. the rewind shaft/fork is broken ekk.. i didn't knew leica put plastic parts on our m4, m4-2, m4-p! after a good CLA will put a new leatherette as well! 🙂

 

[fbf]

I just finished mine... took about 3 hours. I was lucky to find the ZAR paint remover as Morgan recommended. However, it didnt' really work as showing on his website. It did soften the vulcanite and made it easier to "peel" off but it requires efforts. The ZAR did do a great job removing the old gunk.
I will try to post some pictures later tomorrow. It looks a lot better than before I have to say. 😀

 

[JohnTF]

The Methylene-chloride paint remover is very strong, burns skin, and is terrible to breathe, I used a lot to strip old doors and woodwork, plus some on cars.

Have no idea if they still sell it, it was common for a long time, but always nasty stuff. If you just bought paint remover, that was it, in the old days.

Sounds as if you have the makings of a new show-- "This old Camera". ;-)

Am trying to figure what to put on my Standard, the covering is half gone, and not too much to work around, but the covering is very thin.


Regards, John

 

[fbf]

The ZAR has no odor. I did put a mask on though...just in case 😀 oh, and heavy duty gloves...

 

[maddoc]

To put on a mask and wearing heavy duty gloves was a good idea, also only using this kind of paint stripper outside and not in a closed room without sufficient air circulation ...

Show some photos of your camera and if possible of the stripping process.

The ZAR has no odor. I did put a mask on though...just in case 😀 oh, and heavy duty gloves...

 

[fbf]

This is what it looks like.

 

[Mister E]

I can't find a paint stripper worth anything here. I'm trying to do my M4 and there's no ZAR available in Japan! The stripper I bought is not breaking down the gunk under the vulcanite at all.

 

[maddoc]

"But, I was not able to find any paint-stripper of this kind but instead a helpful hint at Asahi-Aki's web-site who recommends using a paint-stripper made by Holst (famous company for car-paints) and available in car-shops (AUTOBACS). This one is free from Methylene-chloride, BTW !"

↑↑ .... As I wrote in my original post 🙂

Meanwhile I would not use paint-stripper anymore but remove everything from the body shell and then slowly heat the shell up to around 140 degrees and then remove the softened vulcanite

 

[nksyoon]

I asked my camera technician to strip my M3 when he did a CLA, he told me he used a normal hairdryer to warm up the vulcanite which could then be removed easily.

 

[Mister E]

"But, I was not able to find any paint-stripper of this kind but instead a helpful hint at Asahi-Aki's web-site who recommends using a paint-stripper made by Holst (famous company for car-paints) and available in car-shops (AUTOBACS). This one is free from Methylene-chloride, BTW !"

↑↑ .... As I wrote in my original post 🙂

Meanwhile I would not use paint-stripper anymore but remove everything from the body shell and then slowly heat the shell up to around 140 degrees and then remove the softened vulcanite

I already have all the vulcanite off, it's just the gunk below it that is more persistent. I'll stop by Autobacs, I was looking for that write-up on Asahi-aki's site, but didn't see it. I did read your post.

 

[Clovis]

This guide isn't be Aki, but it references MEK for removing that gunk that remains after the vulcanite is off.

http://www.fogfeet.com/installation.html

 

[Mister E]

Maddoc, this one?

 

[maddoc]

this one !! If the residuals on the camera-body are persistent let it work over night and remember - if you work outside in a non-cheated area - that the chemical reactions are slowed down in the cold (and the stripper becomes more like a syrup).

Take lots of care that this stuff doesn`t get inside your camera ! The fumes (entering the camera through the small opening at the lens mount locking button) melted the locking-hook of a plastic Leica body-cap (was there for protecting the camera).

Maddoc, this one?

 

[Mister E]

I'll try to be super careful. I have most of the camera ready now, just need to get the last bit off.

 

[Mister E]

Maddoc, I owe you a beer good buddy. That Holst stuff worked perfect. Best of all it's a gel just like cameraleather recommends. It only took 30 minutes to finish the camera with it. Whatever I used last night was complete garbage. Did you use anything to clean the camera before you put the leather on it? I'm not sure if this paint remover leaves anything behind.

 

[maddoc]

Glad to hear it worked and that my recommendation was helpful ! 🙂

I cleaned everything (metal-surfaces) with cotton-tabs (Q-tips ?) damped with Isopropanol. I used the same Isopropanol (applied with Q-tips again) also to "wet-mount" the griptack. Drying takes some time but the self-adhesive layer is easily to adjust this way.

 

[Mister E]

Glad to hear it worked and that my recommendation was helpful ! 🙂

I cleaned everything (metal-surfaces) with cotton-tabs (Q-tips ?) damped with Isopropanol. I used the same Isopropanol (applied with Q-tips again) also to "wet-mount" the griptack. Drying takes some time but the self-adhesive layer is easily to adjust this way.

Sweet, I did that and here is the end result:


Cleaned Ready for Levant Black Leather by NateVenture, on Flickr


Freshly Installed Levant Black Leather by NateVenture, on Flickr

 

[maddoc]

Perfect !! Both, preparation and final camera, look as good as it gets. 😎🙂

 

[Mister E]

I only wish I knew about this Holst stuff yesterday. Thanks again for the information!

 

[maggieo]

Gorgeous results, Gabor!