Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/05/11
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]In a message dated 5/11/02 8:53:34 AM Pacific Daylight Time, cmbrow@wm.edu writes: << I routinely use a IIIf black dial, often with a collapsible Summicron on it. The issue with the LTM bodies, I think, is that you must virtually count on having it CLA'd immediately. R. Mueller in Toronto serviced mine a few years ago, replacing the shutter curtains at the same time. I was astonished at the difference in the brightness of the VF, the quietness of the shutter, and so on. It performs as new. They really are a lot of fun. I look forward to securing one of Tom A's LTM Rapidwinders, which will make for an awesome little package. >> Chandos, I now have lived with the prototype "Barnack" winder ( IIIf/IIIc/IIIg) for a couple of weeks. This one is completely untreated with insides in gleaming alloy and unpainted steel. So far so good! It works very well and except for some minor redesigns, it should be ready to go into production this summer. One of the reasons for building a prototype is to find out what can go wrong, or what needs to be modified. The lever track needs to be slightly longer, the lock needs a different disc and the current returns spring is a bit to strong, but that's it. Not bad for a first try. The screw-mount Leicas has some idiosyncrasies that are specific to them. One is that the shutter can be released even when the camera is only cocked halfway. This means that you have to pull the trigger until the camera's shutter mechanism stops the advance. Or you can end up getting overlapping exposures (this is a function of the camera, not of the winder, as you can induce the same effect by advancing the film partially with the knob-advance). This is one reason for extending the track in the winder slightly to give it a safety margin. The lock needs to be redesigned to allow the disc to turn 180 degrees, rather than the 90 degrees of the M-Rapidwinder. I have also found out that the Rapidwinder for the LTM is far more sensitive to the condition of the cameras advance mechanism than the M6/M7/M2 Rapidwinders. If the LTM body is stiff or "balky" in the advance, this translates into a stiffer leveraction of the winder. I have a small selection of IIIf's and IIIc's that are used for testing, a couple are old and cranky, and that is immediately noticed when you put the winder on it. The "Barnack" winder has a tripod bushing, centered under the lens, rather than the offset on the regular baseplate. Physically, it is the same height as the top-plate of a IIIf although it looks a bit bigger, mainly due to the fact that it is the same height across, whilst the top-plate has all kind of different "levels" on it. It is amazing to watch all the stuff that has to turn when you advance a IIIf, the shutterspeed dial, the rewind-knob, and even the release button rotates. Gears galore inside! The LTM really needs the baseplate winder, as it is virtually impossible to advance the film without dropping the camera from the eye. Now, the loading is another matter altogether! I am already at work designing a replacement ABLON filmcutter template for the LTM users. The original ones are now overpriced collectibles and I think I can improve upon that design anyway. It will still take a couple of month to fine-tune the design of the Barnack Rapidwinder, but at least it now exists in the "flesh" so to say and it works well. The sun is shining and I am now heading out for yet another test-shoot with said prototype. Red Dial IIIf with a 25/4 Snap-Shot Skopar on it and Fuji ACROS in the camera. The fact that we now can get modern, high-quality lenses for our old LTM's is an added bonus too. The little 25/4 Skopar is one of the sharpest lenses that I have encountered and it is a perfect match "tri-pack" of portable equipment. A 15/4,5 Heliar, the Snap-Shot 25 or a 21/4 and then a 50/2 Collapsible Summicron (or the 50/2,5 Color-Skopar) and possibly a 90/4 or f3,5. The whole package can be carried in pockets rather than in a bag. Not a bad way of whiling away a sunny Saturday! All the best, Tom A Tom Abrahamsson Vancouver, BC Canada www.rapidwinder.com - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html