![\"Leica\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tazmpictures.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/Leica.jpg?ssl=1\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThis is the camera I picked up on eBay. \u00a0it’s a Leica IIIc, made in 1941. \u00a0I thought I’d gotten a pretty good deal – my McKeown’s guide lists this particular model as being worth $300-$450, and the lens is maybe another $80. \u00a0This particular camera is not in ideal shape – the covering is cracked and coming off, the lens aperture adjustment is pretty gummed up and hard to work – but otherwise it looks pretty good, especially considering that cameras of this time frame often have chrome issues due to wartime shortages in Germany at the time. \u00a0But it represents some of the finest workmanship in camera manufacturing, and I was excited to run some film through one.<\/p>\n
But what makes this particular camera special is the shutter. \u00a0It appears that serial numbers 362,401 thru 379,225 were produced with either one or both shutter curtains made from some sort of mystery red cloth reputed to have been an experimental material received from Kodak. \u00a0The Leicas use a shutter made of two pieces of cloth that move from one side to the other when released, and the space between them (based on your shutter speed settings) is what allows the film to be exposed to the light. \u00a0During the war, Leica apparently used this red material until they ran out of it, and then switched to black parachute cloth. \u00a0Later, when owners would turn their cameras in for repair, Leica would replace the shutters for some reason. \u00a0So of the 14,000+ cameras made in this way, relatively few survive today. \u00a0Consequently, the value goes up to $600 or more.<\/p>\n
The cool thing about buying old cameras of this quality is that they retain their value. \u00a0So you can buy one, use it for awhile, and if you get tired of it, sell it for what you paid (or more).<\/p>\n
So I took mine out for a spin….and here is how all pretty much all of the pictures turned out:<\/p>\n
Needless to say, Leicas that take pictures like this tend not to retain their value as much! \u00a0 Having paid $400 (I’m guessing you were wondering), I went back to the seller, who had claimed the shutter was operational, and we negotiated a partial refund of $100. \u00a0It’s hard to say what’s fair – but I’m guessing that, accurately listed on eBay, the camera would have gone for no more than $200-$300, purely as a “shelf queen” collectible.<\/p>\n So what is wrong with the camera? \u00a0Is it salvageable, or will it be consigned to a bookshelf forever? \u00a0A bit of web searching revealed the likely problem: the shutter that is supposed to cover the film when the camera is in its “cocked” position is full of tiny holes. \u00a0So with the help of\u00a0this website<\/a>, I decided to go in for a closer look:<\/p>\n This camera loads from the bottom, so\u00a0taking it apart was the only way to get a closer look at both sides of the shutter curtains. \u00a0This is the front of the shutter that sits in front of the film when the camera is not cocked:<\/p>\n I was surprised to see, when I flipped it over, that it appeared someone had already tried painting some sort of black substance over the back of the curtain, and it had flaked off in several places. \u00a0Also, some parts of it scraped off sort of like wax – almost semi-liquid. \u00a0It looks like black paint.<\/p>\n When I cocked the camera, I could see that the other shutter curtain is also red, but the red side faces the other way (toward the back of the camera). \u00a0And some sort of gummy substance had been spread on that as well (glue?)<\/p>\n And the forward-facing side of that shutter is cream\/manila-colored, just like the other shutter (where the black paint has peeled off) and someone appears to have attempted daubing paint (?) on this side to repair pinholes as well.<\/p>\n The good part about taking apart a Leica IIIc like this is it allows you to shine a light through the shutter, and really see just how much is reaching the film when it should be fully covered. \u00a0The first photo is the shutter curtain that shows when the camera is not cocked – the repair job that was previously attempted appears to have worked, as light only gets through in the places where it has flaked off. \u00a0So maybe a touch-up with a similar substance would do the trick?<\/p>\n The other shutter curtain, however, was in horrendous shape – and fully explained why I had gotten the pictures I was getting. \u00a0I include another photo below for reference, with the contrast amped up a bit so you can see the areas where light is being let through more clearly.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n