Corrosion on REPLACED sensor?

[allycrighton]

Well, got it back, FINALLY. And after paying a small fortune in Customs and VAT which I will have to try and claim back as it should have been VAT exempt, and a value mistake on VAT. Thing is, in the time its been away I've become addicted to an M6. To sell or not to sell!

[lhotse]

(repost from l-camera - so apologies if you've seen it there - hoping to get some more thoughts from the RFF community)

Hi all,

I'm hoping for a little advice re my Leica ME. Please note this is not an attempt to complain - I know that some of my choices have put me in this situation.

- I purchased my ME from a friend not long after he bought it in March 2013 (he returned to his Nikon gear). I loved the camera.

- In September 2015 it suffered a pixel defect whereby the images showed a vertical line, I returned it to my local dealer in Australia - camera clinic - who after sending it to Solms reported that it was also suffering from sensor corrosion. Leica replaced the sensor free of charge.

- Not long after it was returned I bought a Type 262 which became my primary shooter. I loved the camera.

- The ME sat in my dry cabinet and was only shot 2-3 times as a back up over the next couple of years. I then traded the 262 for an M-D. I love (present tense) the camera.

- Fast forward to the start of this year - I moved to the UK and last month sent the ME to Ffordes to trade toward some new lenses.

- On receiving the camera Ffordes informed me that the new sensor had also corroded, but they would send it to Solms to be looked at.

- Today FFordes contacted me to tell me that Solms will replace the sensor for £1193

As it stands, I see a couple of options....

Option A: Pay for the repair then trade the camera for the £1300 FFordes are offering - hence getting £113 for the ME

Option B: Get the ME back without repair and run it into the ground until corrosion becomes so bad that it needs to be thrown away (or better yet, give it to a friend - telling them about the sensor obviously).

I am currently leaning towards option B - but am I missing something here?

Any suggestions / thoughts greatly appreciated.

Thanks for looking

[k__43]

Originally Posted by lhotse

(repost from l-camera - so apologies if you've seen it there - hoping to get some more thoughts from the RFF community)

Hi all,

I'm hoping for a little advice re my Leica ME. Please note this is not an attempt to complain - I know that some of my choices have put me in this situation.

- I purchased my ME from a friend not long after he bought it in March 2013 (he returned to his Nikon gear). I loved the camera.

- In September 2015 it suffered a pixel defect whereby the images showed a vertical line, I returned it to my local dealer in Australia - camera clinic - who after sending it to Solms reported that it was also suffering from sensor corrosion. Leica replaced the sensor free of charge.

- Not long after it was returned I bought a Type 262 which became my primary shooter. I loved the camera.

- The ME sat in my dry cabinet and was only shot 2-3 times as a back up over the next couple of years. I then traded the 262 for an M-D. I love (present tense) the camera.

- Fast forward to the start of this year - I moved to the UK and last month sent the ME to Ffordes to trade toward some new lenses.

- On receiving the camera Ffordes informed me that the new sensor had also corroded, but they would send it to Solms to be looked at.

- Today FFordes contacted me to tell me that Solms will replace the sensor for £1193

As it stands, I see a couple of options....

Option A: Pay for the repair then trade the camera for the £1300 FFordes are offering - hence getting £113 for the ME

Option B: Get the ME back without repair and run it into the ground until corrosion becomes so bad that it needs to be thrown away (or better yet, give it to a friend - telling them about the sensor obviously).

I am currently leaning towards option B - but am I missing something here?

Any suggestions / thoughts greatly appreciated.

Thanks for looking

Leica has a trade in for these cameras I think. Ask them directly.

1300gpb for a working ME (no corrosion) seems like a bad deal too.

[willie_901]

I vote for Option B.

Continue to store the camera in a dry box.

Use it when wider lens apertures are appropriate.

I would take a test image (clear blue sky or plain white wall) at F 16 to evaluate the current level of corrosion. I would repeat this in three months to estimate the rate of corrosion.

If the corrosion level is low, it may be practical to create a PS action or LR Preset to automatically clone out the affected regions.