Leica II camera users.(interesting website)

[L39UK]

http://www.bey-yul.net/

This website with examples of the use of the Leica II camera will be of interest to all Leica II devotee's myself included.
The Leica II is a very underated camera and good examples can be sourced at very reasonable cost.They are excellent cameras for users who like a simple pocketable "Barnack" camera that makes the user take a more leisurely approach to photography.When the Leica II is fitted with a nice clean early Elmar or Summar it is capable of giving superb results.
Its a nice change to use a 70 year old simple precision miniature camera instead of the latest digital creations that have so many features that are not required and never put to use.

Could forum members using a Leica II camera provide photo's and details of their Leica II and their experience using it and some examples of colour or black and white photography taken using this excellent camera.
Do you use early uncoated lenses or later coated lenses.
Does anyone own and use the 50mm f2.5 Hektor ?.
Does anyone own and use a NICKEL 50mm f1.5 Xenon ?.
Other websites of interest to Leica II users would be welcome.
Regards,
William

[John Robertson]

My first and now only screw Leica. chrome 11, #275373 (I think) bought in 1970 in a pawn shop for £20. Serviced by Leica when I was at the Leica Schule in 1972, needed a new shutter dial (chrome had lifted), but they only had one with a 1/1000 speed on it, so they added that speed to the camera, technician said it is now technically a 11a !! In near mint condition, and if I ever sold it my son would disown me!! He now uses it regularly.

[Erik van Straten]

http://www.bey-yul.net/


Could forum members using a Leica II camera provide photo's and details of their Leica II and their experience using it and some examples of colour or black and white photography taken using this excellent camera.
Do you use early uncoated lenses or later coated lenses.
Does anyone own and use the 50mm f2.5 Hektor ?.
Regards,
William

I am a devoted Leica II user. It's only drawback is that it's a bit noisy, because there is no shutter brake in it.

I have no. 74.510, black/nickel and no. 185.800, a postwar coverted black/chrome Leica Standard. I use this last one mostly with an SCNOO rapid winder. I use Elmar, Hektor, Summar, Summicron, Nikkor f2 and Color Skopar f2.5 50mm lenses and Elmar, Summaron and Ultron 35mm lenses.

This picture is with no. 185.800, Color Skopar f2.5 and SCNOO.

Erik.

[Erik van Straten]

This is with a Summicron 50 collapsible.

Erik.

[jarski]

Two Leica II's here, close serials and probably from 1932. the other was recently CLA'd by Will van Manen Kamera-Service and I really like how it works now. other is on "reserve", and would need CLA as well. for the lens, three collapsible: an old Elmar (which I especially like of old looks photos come out), Summar and Summitar.

never felt much urge to get newer Barnack, features (to me) arent that much better that would justify reason to get one.

[L39UK]

here's my Nickel Xenon 50/1.5...

contrast is awful...sharpness ok.

http://www.antiquecameras.net/leicaxenon.html

Dan

Thanks Dan,
I thought that it was your lens that I once read about but couldn't find any link to your original article. I have posted a link to the photo of your Leitz "Nickel" Xenon on my other thread "LEITZ "NICKEL" 50mm f1.5 XENON. (http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65537)"

Your lens must be extremely rare as even "Rogliatti" in his book "Leica & Leicaflex Lenses" quotes that it was only available in chrome finish.Leitz were always willing to supply their customers needs and for Leica users who had bought and were using early black and nickel cameras and who had the money to purchase this expensive new high speed standard Xenon lens for these customers I am sure they would have provided a "Nickel" version.
Kindest Regards,
William

[Meleica]

William - I should elaborate.... the lens has a chrome body with a nickel head. Everything original and all parts matching.... See attached. It was mounted to a Leica IIIc K camera.

Best

Dan

[L39UK]

William - I should elaborate.... the lens has a chrome body with a nickel head. Everything original and all parts matching.... See attached. It was mounted to a Leica IIIc K camera.

Best

Dan

Dan, thats very interesting about it being found fitted to a Leica IIIcK.Tom (Leica Tom) is very interested in these Leica IIIcK cameras and is in the process of writing a book on them.
It will be interesting to hear what he has to say about your interesting discovery and he might even want to contact you about this very rare lens.
Regards,
William

[LeicaTom]

William - I should elaborate.... the lens has a chrome body with a nickel head. Everything original and all parts matching.... See attached. It was mounted to a Leica IIIc K camera.

Best

Dan

Now is`nt that the wildest looking thing I`ve seen in a while, hmmmm #491xxx number is like built 1939 to? Could be an early "wartime" construction, was it on a camera that you own?
If you have a number of that IIIC K please let me know, I can see if numbers can be run and I might be able to shed more light on this, that`s got to be the strangest nickel plated lens head I`ve ever seen and that it was put to a chrome barrel, very interesting.

Does it take decent photos? Is the lens barrel meters or feet?

Tom

[L39UK]

Hello Tom,
From the photograph of the lens barrel the last two markings on the distance scale are 20 / infinity so the distances scale must be in metres.
Regards,
William

[John Robertson]

[QUOTE= It's only drawback is that it's a bit noisy, because there is no shutter brake in it.


Erik.[/QUOTE]

Must only apply to early ones, mine is dated 1938, and has a shutter brake.

[Erik van Straten]

Must only apply to early ones, mine is dated 1938, and has a shutter brake.

I know there is some kind of brake in the later ones, my 185.800 too has this thing, but it is as noisy as my 74.510. Compared to an M or a IIIg, Leica II's are really noisy. The sound in itself is nice, but these camera's are by no means silent.

Erik.

[john neal]

Hi William,

Long time no see. I have two of these, both in black and from 1932, both in the 8x,xxx range (I don't have them to hand). Both have uncoated 11 o'clock Elmars, one of which seems to be a "short" one. My regular user is in great mechanical condition as it was flash converted early in its life and the conversion produced a light leak - it was thrown in a drawer for years until I bought it a couple of years ago and had the socket removed. The other is a beauty that seems to have survived really well.

It's interesting to compare the minor differences in build - the earlier one has a green lens in the RF window, so I get a sort of ORAKU (?) effect, the later one does not. The later one has a small light baffle over the drum gears, while the earlier does not. Apart from that, all looks to be pretty much identical. The serials are about 3000 apart from memory, so it's interesting to see how the product gradually developed. I can also compare to my 1933 III which, of course has the slow speeds, but not much else in the way of "improvement".

I'm off to London for the weekend, and will be taking a II plus a couple of lenses with me :D

Here are a couple of II shots that I don't think I have posted at RFF before - the first from the Natural History Museum (Summar on XP2) and the second from the woods near my house (Summitar on Kodak VR200).

[L39UK]

Hello John,
Very nice photo's John many thanks for posting them.Is your Summitar a coated or uncoated lens?.
Hope you enjoy your week-end in London with your Leica II.Post some of your results when you get them processed.It's many years since I was in London and I only venture away from home these days in the warmer (usually) Summer months to Cornwall on holiday.This year the weather in Britain has been very poor nothing but rain,rain and more rain.Even the Autumn colours on the tree's up in the North-West are still not showing,and most are still in the green stage.Probably the frost will kill them off before they show their usual rich Autumn tints.
Best Wishes,
William

[John Robertson]

The ones with a brake sometimes develop a squeak as you wind, if you put a trace of very light oil on the spring which rubs against the brake disc (under the bottom cover) usually cures this and makes the camera a little quieter.

[Dfin]

Erik, your photos are of Crystal Palace park & pool, am I right? 25years ago we lived on the corner of Camden Hill & Woodland Rd. and spent a lot of time wandering around the parks and gardens of the area. Thanks for posting the the photos, they brought back a lot of pleasant memories. The only trouble is, I now am lusting after a black Barnack.

[jolefler]

That IS a nice site. Which 50 does he use?

I have a tuned up J3 on my II, sometimes a Sun Optics 135. The II is my daily carry camera for its rugged simplicity. The shutter noise is music to me, kind of like glass-packs on an American V8.

If I have the opportunity to shoot for a purpose, I use a III with Leitz glass...35 Elmar, 50 Summar and 90 Elmar.....few Leitz filters and a NOOKY when desired. Must be gettin' old ....nooky was ALWAYS desired a short time ago,

Jo

[Erik van Straten]

Erik, your photos are of Crystal Palace park & pool, am I right?

No, you're not right, I'm afraid. My pictures in this thread were both taken in Amsterdam, at the zoo (Artis) and at a swimming pool.

Erik.

[john neal]

William,

Here are some shots from last weekend using my II - a mix of Summar and CV 35mm f2.5, and I decided to shoot colour for a change. I'm sure you will be able to spot which are which. To answer you question re the Summitar - ir was coated, but has gone to a new home (I must be mad selling a good one!).

As you can see, we ran into some folk preparing for the London to Brighton run with their 104 year old cars, one of which is steam powered!

[john neal]

We also went to the British Museum, Tate Modern and, of course, a couple of pubs!

[Dralowid]

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=60845&d=1213797222

This, (see above) recently produced this (see below). Surely there is not much that is a satisfying as a II (albeit converted) and a cleanish Elmar.

Michael



64873

[L39UK]

Hello John, Some very nice photo's, very pleased you enjoyed your week-end visit, many thanks for posting some results.Great shots of the Vintage cars and if petrol gets any dearer I wouldn't be surprised if we don't get some steam power back !!!
Can't beat the old steam railway locomotives of my childhood days.
When I was going on holiday this year look what arrived on the opposite platform (see photo).It brought back memories of my boyhood trainspotting days back in the 1940's and 50's.

Michael, Thats a very nice converted Leica II synch you have and should give you excellent results with that nice Elmar.When it was sent to Leitz for conversion in the early 1950's it would have had a new top-plate and a new shutter fitted and flash synchronization together with a full overhaul.It looks like the 11 o'clock Elmar lens on your camera was also given an updated spec.
Great photo of the yachts - is it on the Solent ?.
Regards,
William

[DeeCee3]

My goodness, what a lovely sight! I'm a long-time LMS buff over here in the Colonies and never expected to see a shot of The Princess Elizabeth all decked out in crimson lake and straw looking as beautiful as the day she left the shops, here on the RF forum. Thank you, William, for shooting it and for posting it.

dc3

[Erik van Straten]

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=60845&d=1213797222

This, (see above) recently produced this (see below). Surely there is not much that is a satisfying as a II (albeit converted) and a cleanish Elmar.

Michael



64873

Truly strange how this Elmar has an 11 o'clock focusing lever. Or isn't it screwed in truly home? No, the lens mounting ring isn't placed right. It should be placed a quarter turn to the left.

Erik.

[cadfael_tex]

Hi, second post on the site, excuse the intrusion. I've toyed with the idea of getting a rangefinder but cost has kept me out. I've seen Leica II's in a price I could afford from time to time but resisted because I read somewhere that they were hard to use (load film etc).

So, would a Leica II be a good first rangefinder. I have manual focus experience with a Nikon F2 slr.

Thanks,
Tony

[John Shriver]

Once you trim the leader, they are not that hard to load. Yeah, it does take a few minutes.

Any of II, III, IIIa, or IIIc are good economical choices. Black painted cameras have more collector value, so a chrome one is usually the better buy. Since most II's are black, that can make them pricey.

Newer models add features. III adds slow shutter speeds, higher magnification rangefinder (more accurate). IIIa adds 1/1000. IIIc has a cast body, more accurate, more precise, more durable.

There's two approaches. One is to buy one that's recently been through proper service, and has a bright rangefinder, new shutter curtains, and accurate shutter speeds. Other is to buy one as cheap as possible that isn't trashed, and send it out for an overhaul, say to Youxin Li.

Note that a screwmount Leica is (until you learn some short-cuts) a "slow working" camera compared to a Nikon F2. The M Leicas are much faster to use, but cost more.

[cadfael_tex]

Thanks for the reply John. What do you mean by slow working?

[john neal]

William,

Thanks for your thoughts - maybe steam could make a comeback after all! Nice railway shot too - reminds me of my younger days waiting for Evening Star to come through Coventry (I didn't realise then that she was the last steamer built under the old BR structure).

Erik is right about Michael's camera - I wondered for a while how it was possible to have an 11 o'clock red scale Elmar ;)

[Dralowid]

''Erik is right about Michael's camera - I wondered for a while how it was possible to have an 11 o'clock red scale Elmar ;)''

Well spotted!

This pic was taken before the camera was sorted. The alteration (by someone) had been quite deliberate but it is all back to where it should be now!

Maybe the original owner still yearned for his first Elmar...

Michael

Picture was Chichester Harbour.

[PaulRicciardi]

Thanks for the link, really enjoy the work posted there
I've been considering adding a II to my shooting setup as I love the ergonomics of the Barnak cameras but chrome makes me not want to shoot with my IIIa much. I was wary of the II because of the lack of slow shutter speeds but after seeing that site I think I'm just going to bite the bullet and get a black II sometime within the next few months.

Really appreciate this being posted, was inspiring work.

[john neal]

Paul,

I like them so much that I have two. If you feel you really need the slow speeds, you could go for a black III (the same, but different IYSWIM), I have one of those too.

Shooting with either is a pure joy.

Prices for black bodies seem to be on the up, so I would say jump soon ;)

[jolefler]

Just curious.....why have I seen WAY more black II's rather than chrome II's? I would think rarity would go with the chrome...

Jo

[john341]

I had a Leica II back in 1963 with an uncoated elmar lens. Took reasonable pictures but the Biotar on my Exakta produced much better. Bottom loading cameras..what were they thinking?

[Dralowid]

John mentioned : 'It's interesting to compare the minor differences in build - the earlier one has a green lens in the RF window, so I get a sort of ORAKU (?) effect, the later one does not.'

I'd always thought this was something to do beam splitters being replaced (whatever) but having had a good look at an early accesory rangefinder and early II, I can see that it is indeed the case. Do we know when they stopped using the green glass?

Michael

[Erik van Straten]

In my early rangefinders and Leica II's the glass is not green, but yellow. I think with the introduction of the Leica III the yellow glass was deleted. The ORAKO (orangefilter to be used on the right - seen from the front - rangefinder-window) was introduced in 1936. Leicas II from the period after the introduction of the Leica III are quite rare. Does anyone have one? Numbers above 108700. Does it have the yellow glass?

Erik.

[ishutterbug]

Here's my ii (1937), No. 263xxx. No yellow glass. Don
http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-collectors-historica/63050-leica-ii.html#post716947