Important Leica Questions Answered by Your Forum Friends

black tape leica

A “stealthy” Leica M4-2, all taped up

This from www.rangefinderforum.com:

Q. What tape is the best to cover up the logos on the black Leica M6? It’s purely for aesthetic reasons. I neither think that it will keep away robbers or make me invisible. But I just hate how the logos ruin the perfect design and how if one wants a black logo-less Leica with a light meter ones cheapest choice is an MP which is just too expensive for me right now. Sadly there are no replacement covers without logos so tape is the only solution. I could blacken the white typography and change the logo but I don’t want to lower the resell value.

So which tape is the best? Electrician tape seems to have the most similar color and texture but it also leaves residue. Does it permanently damage to paint/coating? Or can it be cleaned without any damages? I heard that gaffers tape doesn’t leave residue but the texture makes it stick out too much. Any other suggestions?

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A. I’ve always used a black Staedtler Fiber Tip Pen – Permanent ink. It covers the white text and red dot up well, and can be removed at any time without any damage to the white paint underneath , with a bit of alcohol.

A. This tape is the best for the M6: http://www.findtape.com/product129/P…aper-Tape.aspx It won’t leave any residue and despite the material it’s made out of (impregnated paper) it will stay on for a long, long time (and just replace it if ever needed.) It’s a perfect match for Leica’s black anodized zinc top plates. Electrical tape is too shiny (although it matches the black paint cameras a bit better.) You can also remove the paint in the engraved lettering as has already been described above, but then when it comes time to sell the camera you might have to fill in again with white lacquer paint (which you can buy here: http://www.micro-tools.com/store/P-L…ick-White.aspx

A. I use “Matte Black Japanese Washi Masking Tape” and it works very well. I’ll post some pics soon.

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