The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

M9 rangefinder misalignment

markowich

New member
i just realized a strange misalignment of the rangefinder of my M9. the images inside the rangefinder patch cannot be brought to coincide anymore, they show some vertical displacement, i.e. one image always stays slightly above the other. this happens with all the lenses which i have with me on my trip to india (35mm LUX, 50mm LUX, 90mm Cron and 21mm Bioogon) and at all distances, from close up to infinity. if i pull the focus such that the two images inside the patch are exactly vertically displaced (with no lateral displacement) then focusing is accurate.
has anyone here had a similar M9 problem?
cheers from hyderabad,
peter
(copied from the Leica forum)
 

horosu

Member
It's not strange: you have a vertical misalignment of the rangefinder. It happens. Fixinf it requires one to remove the red dot on the front of the camera and the turn (with a special tool) one screw such that the two images align correctly. It can be done by yourself or by a Leica repair technician.

Cheers, Horea
 

markowich

New member
It's not strange: you have a vertical misalignment of the rangefinder. It happens. Fixinf it requires one to remove the red dot on the front of the camera and the turn (with a special tool) one screw such that the two images align correctly. It can be done by yourself or by a Leica repair technician.

Cheers, Horea
thanks! sounds like an inexpensive repair.
peter
 

thrice

Active member
Hi Horea,

Thanks for the link, I will probably get one of these as I'm very handy. I fixed the front-focusing issue with me M9 by adjusting infinity and focus throw. Spare dots are only $20 in Australia.

Cheers,
Dan
 

jaapv

Subscriber Member
Hi Horea,

Thanks for the link, I will probably get one of these as I'm very handy. I fixed the front-focusing issue with me M9 by adjusting infinity and focus throw. Spare dots are only $20 in Australia.

Cheers,
Dan
If you remove the dot carefully (twist a bit with your thumb and then work it with two toothpicks until it slides off) you can reuse the dot multiple times.
 

Paratom

Well-known member
I would rather send it to Leica.
I once thought to have fixed a focus issue with Allen key after some time it turned out to not be great and I sent it to Leica.
You have guarantee anyways. So if you can live some time without the m9 why risk damagig something?
 

markowich

New member
I would rather send it to Leica.
I once thought to have fixed a focus issue with Allen key after some time it turned out to not be great and I sent it to Leica.
You have guarantee anyways. So if you can live some time without the m9 why risk damagig something?
i am not very confident in my technical-practical skills. it will go to leica as soon as i am back home from india.
peter
 

KurtKamka

Subscriber Member
Peter, make certain that you post some images from your travels. I can't remember if you still have the S2 with you or not ... no matter as it is a part of the world that should represent itself with either systems.

Kurt
 

markowich

New member
Peter, make certain that you post some images from your travels. I can't remember if you still have the S2 with you or not ... no matter as it is a part of the world that should represent itself with either systems.

Kurt
kurt,
will do asap. the S2 was used by my better half (some complaints but overall satisfaction with it). off to europe tomorrow,
peter
 

thrice

Active member
If you remove the dot carefully (twist a bit with your thumb and then work it with two toothpicks until it slides off) you can reuse the dot multiple times.
I've noticed that, my camera is DIY black dotted.
 

mjm6

Member
Has anyone on this forum used the tool? I need to realign vertically, and I'd prefer not to send the camera off to do that, and be able to do it again in the future as well.

I've done older RF cameras in the past (IIIF, Canon RF, Mamiya 6), but not an 'M' camera. Is there any magic to the adjustments, or is a (quite mechanically inclined) person going to be OK with the effort?

Thanks,

---Michael


In case you like to repair things, here is (a copy) of the special tool: http://cgi.ebay.de/Vertical-Line-Fo...-2-M4p-M6-M7-MP-/170399164715?pt=Film_Cameras

Kind regards, Horea
 

jaapv

Subscriber Member
Remove the red dot by wriggling with your thumb and working it with two toothpicks until it slides off. You can see the fork and hole for the tool. Apply a miniscule drop of acetone to the glue holding the fork to soften it. (DONT'T SPILL!!). Insert the tool, aim at a distant object and adjust. Leave a few minutes for the glue to harden. Reapply dot.
 

mjm6

Member
Thanks Jaap. I'll pick up one of those. The link above to the ebay listing; is that the only option other than the 'official' tool?


---Michael
 

jaapv

Subscriber Member
The tool is extremely simple. It is just a small screwdriver with an excentric extension lug to fit in the hole. Basically you could file down a smallish screwdriver. I don't know the exact dimensions, however.
 
Top