Leica Scratched Sensor Glass?

William Lewis

All-Pro
Location
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Name
William Lewis
Later this year I hope to buy a Leica M digital. As a result, I keep an eye on auctions just to have a good idea of what is out there and what the prices are looking like.

I saw an auction on ebay for a M Monochrome for much lower than usual. This was due to these scratches on the glass covering over the sensor:

s-l1600.jpg



For me at this time the question is academic - but what kind of impact would scratches like this have? Is this going to significantly degrade image quality or is it like the "cleaning marks" most lenses pick up that have little to no impact on the photographs? The seller claims no impact on his shots at f/2,5, f/4 and f/11 by using Summarit-M 90/2.5.

Just curious to see what anyone might say about this for future reference.

William
 
Later this year I hope to buy a Leica M digital. As a result, I keep an eye on auctions just to have a good idea of what is out there and what the prices are looking like.

I saw an auction on ebay for a M Monochrome for much lower than usual. This was due to these scratches on the glass covering over the sensor:

View attachment 252381


For me at this time the question is academic - but what kind of impact would scratches like this have? Is this going to significantly degrade image quality or is it like the "cleaning marks" most lenses pick up that have little to no impact on the photographs? The seller claims no impact on his shots at f/2,5, f/4 and f/11 by using Summarit-M 90/2.5.

Just curious to see what anyone might say about this for future reference.

William
Which Monochrom (CCD/ CMOS)? If CMOS, I'm guessing the vendor has factored in the cost of a sensor fix and it'll work fine after that.
 
The ad says Model 10760 which is apparently the CCD version.
Ah Right, well of course the issue is whether the original sensor's been replaced by leica then isn't it. If it hasn't, there are one or two independent non Leica providors in the states that will fix that, the cost I think is circa $1,000. Even if the scratches don't show in the images atm, if the sensor hasn't been replaced, it'll likely have to in the future. Actually while I think about it, it does seem to be the case that the cheaper price reflects the non replacement of a sensor.
 
Ah Right, well of course the issue is whether the original sensor's been replaced by leica then isn't it. If it hasn't, there are one or two independent non Leica providors in the states that will fix that, the cost I think is circa $1,000. Even if the scratches don't show in the images atm, if the sensor hasn't been replaced, it'll likely have to in the future. Actually while I think about it, it does seem to be the case that the cheaper price reflects the non replacement of a sensor.
In my opinion, whilst having to jump through hoops to fix this situation, it may well be worth it. From what I've seen, the M10 Monochrome images seem to be so plain.
 
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