Just saw a guy trying to fix a Leica with a butter knife at a flea market in Austin

I was at the Barton Creek market last weekend, looking for old lens caps, and I saw a vendor with a table of 'as-is' cameras. This guy picks up an M3, flips it over, and just starts jamming a butter knife into the film advance lever slot. He was trying to pry something, I guess. I watched for a full minute before I had to walk over and gently tell him that wasn't a great plan. He said, 'It's stuck, I'm just loosening it up.' The sound of metal on metal still haunts me. Has anyone else had to stop a total stranger from destroying a classic camera in public?

3 comments

3 Comments

quinnm7726d ago

Are you sure it wasn't an M3 with a self-timer?

jessem5926d ago

Wait, are we sure it was a butter knife? I've seen people use flathead screwdrivers for that kind of thing, which is still a terrible idea, but at least it's the right shape. A butter knife is way too thick and soft, you'd just mash up the edges of the slot. That sound must have been awful, like nails on a chalkboard but for camera nerds.

oliver85526d ago

That was an M2, not an M3.