Repairing your Leica can breathe new life into an incredible film camera.
Leica cameras a renowned worldwide for their incredible optics as well as their precision engineering, of which the M-Series, especially the M2, is an excellent example. When repairing your Leica, here are a few tips to guide you on the way.
Only Take Off What Needs To Be Taken Off
If you're repairing your shutter curtain, for example, you need not disassemble the whole camera. Rather, you need to take off the back plate and the shutter, diagnose the problem, repair or replace the shutter, and put it back together. Taking off only parts that need to be removed will save you time and keep you from forgetting put things back together.
Diagram The Disassembly
As you take apart your Leica M2, draw a diagram to show you put it back together. While you may have no doubt that you can remember every step, drawing a diagram is a great fallback. This way, you won't end up with four screws and a viewfinder, asking yourself where they go at the end of reassembly.
Be Gentle
Take care to be gentle with the camera --- it may seem invulnerable, but it's not. Take special care if you have to remove the wind lever cover screw on top of the film-advance lever. This screw is right-hand threaded, and may be very tight.
Know What You're Repairing
Before you take your Leica apart, know what you're attempting to repair. Try to troubleshoot the problem with the camera together so you don't waste time guessing and checking different avenues of repair. This also means that you should review the M2 repair manual, linked in Resources below, before repairing the camera.
Have The Tools You Need
Have a basic set of camera repair tools on hand. These specialized tools are indispensable, as some M2 parts cannot be disassembled without the specialized tools in a camera repair tool kit.
Collect Your Parts
Using either a wide piece of tape, a bowl or a cup, collect your parts in one place. This keeps you from losing critical springs or screws.
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