Just taken the plunge!

[aether]

Well I have just taken the plunge and thrown some money at a Leica CL with the Summicron 1:2/40mm. Though this is not my first RF (I had a Fuji GW67 in college) I am quite excited at the prospect of it arriving and seeing if I can still take a picture without the little window at the back supplying those handy little 'polaroids'.

I would just like to thank you all for the useful info and advice floating around here that helped me in deciding to go down the CL route.

[maddoc]

Welcome to the forum !

... now you only need a couple of rolls of film and you can start the journey (with film) ! The CL is a nice take-everywhere camera and the Summicron-C a fantastic lens.

Post some photos !!

Cheers,

Gabor

[thomasw_]

Nice little kit! Welcome to RFF. Be careful when loading the CL not to stress the film uptake tulip. I learned this through the way of pain

[aether]

Thanks for the welcome, I grabbed it off ebay so a few nervous days till it gets delivered and then I'll be trying to figure out how to load the film! I just downloaded a PDF of the manual so it should be straight forward... I hope!

[sonofdanang]

Congratulations and welcome. You will not be disappointed with the CL - in some ways it is the perfect 35mm RF: Smaller than any other M body with the exception of the Minolta CLE and the 40mm summicron is a superb lens. The whole thing fits in a jacket pocket. A small jacket pocket. And the Head Bartender here has a selection of excellent lenses for the thing - at very reasonable prices too. I use a 28/3.5 (tiny, with excellent performance) and the 12mm Heliar.

A hint for film loading: I put a small fold in the last quarter centimeter of leader, emulsion to emulsion, to help the film stay 'hooked' on the take-up spool. That little piece of plastic is the fragile part but I've fixed mine with crazy glue. Apparently Sherry Krauter has a metal insert that can be retro-fitted during a CLA.

[BillBingham2]

Welcome and congratulations on making a great choice. The CL is a wonderful camera, a true Leica that will serve you well for many years.

B2 (;->

[aether]

Cheers for the tip with the take up spool, I have read that these get quite brittle. I have been told that the camera is in excellent condition and that the viewfinder is bright and the meter works. Buying of ebay I can only hope this is the case and I don't end up being stiffed and having to send it away for service straight away!

[__hh]

Originally Posted by sonofdanang

A hint for film loading: I put a small fold in the last quarter centimeter of leader, emulsion to emulsion, to help the film stay 'hooked' on the take-up spool. That little piece of plastic is the fragile part but I've fixed mine with crazy glue. Apparently Sherry Krauter has a metal insert that can be retro-fitted during a CLA.

That was a very good tip, thank you for that. I have also gone down the compact leica path, but with the CLE option... see here http://rangefinderforum.com/forums/s...45#post1033545

My first film loading was a bit scary as I did notice how fragile the film take-up spool was.

Thanks again.

Hung

[vrgard]

Congrats on the CL. It's a great little camera and that Summicron 40 is an exceptional lens. Lastly, while everyone is right to suggest you be careful with the tulip take-up spool, you don't have to be paranoid about it either. Enjoy the camera, take lots of pics, post some here for the rest of us to enjoy, and if you do ever have any trouble with it then Sherry Krauter can set things right.

-Randy

P.S. And welcome to the forum!