Showerthought: I used to think a cracked ground glass was a quick fix, but a Leica M3 taught me otherwise

Last week, a local shop sent me a Leica M3 with a cracked focusing screen. I figured, no big deal, I've swapped a dozen of these in other cameras. But the M3's screen is held in by this tiny, spring-loaded metal frame that's a nightmare to get back in without scratching the new glass. I spent two hours, ruined a $80 replacement screen, and almost lost the tiny spring into the mirror box. What changed my mind was watching a 20-year-old video from a retired repair guy in Germany. He used a strip of thin tape to hold the frame open while he slid the glass in. Tried it on my second attempt and it clicked right in, no scratches. I guess some old tricks are still the best ones. Has anyone else found a better method for those vintage Leica rangefinder screens?

2 comments

2 Comments

mary30929d ago

That tape trick sounds way too fiddly to be reliable.

charles_knight28d ago

Honestly, that whole story is such a good example of how the simple fix is often the best one. Modern solutions can overcomplicate things that old hands already figured out.