Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/03/15

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Subject: Re: [Leica] RE: Preferring an M3 was: M6 as jewelry
From: Marc James Small <msmall@roanoke.infi.net>
Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 12:36:22 -0500

At 11:33 AM 3/15/2000 -0500, BOB KRAMER wrote:
>5.  There really is a silky smoothness to the operation of an M3 that is a
>true pleasure to experience, that doesn't seem to be there with an M6.
>
>6.  The M3 is built like a tank.  I bet it would make an excellent weapon if
>one were attacked on the street.  <g>


These two statements are actually contradictory.  The reason for the
smoother film-advance of the M3 and M2 cameras comes from the use of brass
gears in the film wind-on mechanism.  Leitz found that these wore out with
time, so they went to steel gears, which are not as smooth -- the brass,
being relatively soft, "laps in" over time to make a wonderfully fine fit
of gear-tooth on gear-tooth, while the harder steel takes a LOT longer to
wear in this way -- but which last indefinitely.

The difference is probably not of much interest to most of us -- I recall
the MBTF was something like a million exposures on the brass gears, and 10
million on the steel gears.  But a professional might well take a million
exposures in ten years or less, so it did matter to that part of the market.

Marc

msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +540/343-7315
Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!