I mistakenly left the camera on in my bag, and upon changing the battery I noticed that the lightmeter doesn't work. It shows a left red arrow that does not change with lens selection or shutter speed.

Any ideas?

The camera is a m6 ttl .85

-- Jordan Levitt (nyroadrocket@nyc.rr.com), September 08, 2001

Answers

There may be another reason but what you describe happens if you forget to take off the lens cap.

-- Tim Gee (twg@optushome.com.au), September 08, 2001.

I have tried with multiple lenses, caps off. I am thinking the meter is just not reading the light source.

-- Jordan (nyroadrocket@nyc.rr.com), September 08, 2001.

Sounds like a tech's job to me.

-- Tim Gee (Twg@optushome.com.au), September 08, 2001.

Your battery is low. Replace the battery again. The meter will not work properly (just as you described) when the battery output is less than 2.7V. They normally are rated at 3.0V. I had the similar experience and learned the hard way (by sending it to Leica service center) that it was the batteries I bought new that were faulty (sitting on the shelf for too long). My camera was OK.

-- Damond Lam (damond_lam@hotmail.com), September 08, 2001.

I'm a new M6TTL owner and had two meter/battery mishaps in as many days. First I couldn't get the left arrow to stop blinking. I was flabbergasted for literally five minutes, pointing the camera frantically at various very bright scenes, I had no idea what was wrong - the lens cap! Doh! Second mishap: on my first road trip vacation with the new camera, stopped at a gas station in Conifer, CO, pulled out my M6 hoping to catch some candids at the pump, and no meter! Apparently it had been sitting upside down in the back seat, pressing on the shutter release, thus draining the battery. Luckily there is a Radio Shack in Conifer. Replaced the battery and all was well, but now I've learned my lesson about always turning the shutter speed dial to "OFF". Live and learn...

-- Ken Geter (kgeter@yahoo.com), September 09, 2001.

My experience has been it is necessary to clean the battery contacts with a cotton swab once in a while. I had a problem with my meter not working with a fresh battery and was told by a Leica person to clean the contact with a dry cotton swab. It worked! It might also be a good idea to clean the battery also since oils from your fingers may possibly interfere with the contact.

-- John Alfred Tropiano (jat18@psu.edu), September 10, 2001.