M2 frameline and RF patch brightness

[geometry&c]

About six months ago I dropped my M2 and the rangefinder got misaligned. Only just got around to getting it repaired and while the rangefinder is spot on, the RF patch and the framelines seem to be a fair bit dimmer than I remember. Is there anything that may have caused this or is my memory deceiving me? I'm getting annoyed when I'm shooting it as it's so much harder to focus than my Hexar RF.

[Shutterspark]

I can't think of any single thing that would make both the patch AND the framelines dimmer without affecting your focusing, except perhaps if during the repair your frame mask was replaced and the "new" one is dirty, or maybe some oil/dirt got on to your original mask, if it was left intact.

If it was replaced, it won't have been a new one since new M2 masks don't exist. Who did you send it to?

[paradoxbox]

the rf patch brightness and the frameline brightness are controlled by different things, the frameline masks are lit by the frosted white window so it's possible that something is blocking the window (or it's dirty). the dim rf patch could have been caused by poor repair work. damaging the small mirror that reflects the image into the beamsplitter for example will cause an annoyingly dim but still useful rf patch.

in the worst case scenario it's possible your repairman swapped out your viewfinder mechanism for another one he had laying around....but that is just paranoid talk and pretty unlikely especially if you trust your repair person.