Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/09/25
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]A few answers: Joe Sobel asked: > 1. If Leicas have a theoretically unlimited life, even if digital > did not take over, would prices eventually come down on used gear anyway > - it would seem that with an unlimited number of M6s to be produced, > there would be a glut.>> No Glut: the rate at which Leica collectors are produced has always greatly exceeded the rate at which the cameras were produced... > 3. If an M3 had no framelines, would the field be equivalent to a 40mm lens? Not Quite. But what you see when you move your eye from side to side until the 50 mm frame lines disappear does approximate the 40 mm coverage. > 5. Just what is Vulcanite and how do they apply it so evenly at the > factory? Is it a liquid which is then embossed while on the parts?!>> > Check the archives on this one. It's a pre-formed shell of now unavailable composition material that was bonded to the body by heat (hence "vulcanite"). > 6. Is it really easier to load an M3 than an M4? Yes, but it helps to have more than two hands. The optimum number of hands is 8: 1 hand to hold the camera 1 hand to hold the film canister 1 hand to remove the top of the canister 1 hand to remove the film from the canister and then hold the film 1 hand to remove and hold the camera base-plate 1 hand to remove and hold the take-up spool 1 hand to insert the film tongue into the take-up spool 1 hand to open the back door (which has fallen closed as you did the above) Most people lack eight hands, so they either seek help, stuff things into various orifices, or drop the film canister, the top of the film canister, the base plate, or the take-up spool. Of course this M3 procedure is (as you note) far easier than the one on the M4 in which you have to accomplish essentially the same thing in the dark and inside the camera body since the take-up spool cannot be removed... Hope this helps, Mike Quinn