Canon L2 or VL2

[Jonathan-sv]

Hello,

I had always assumed I had a Canon L2 camera, but I began to have doubts when I thought about fixing the unreliable slow shutter speeds and began looking into how hard it was to access that part of the shutter. The camera is stamped L2 on the bottom baseplate, and has the number 527683 on the top plate. It doesn't seem to agree with what I can find on the net, and specifically at

Canon Rangefinder Cameras

Canon rangefinder camera models and history

leica-copies-japan.com

The camera has a metal shutter, a self timer, and has flash synchronization with two settings, FPM and XF (which I assume is for electronic flash and bulbs). The top of the camera is consistent with an VL2, as are the serial numbers according to the Peter Dechert database (start at 527000). Selectable flash sync, a self timer, and a metal shutter shouldn't be on an L2.

It's 140 x 31 x 76 mm. Do you think this is a VL2, but with an L2 baseplate? That's the only place that indicates it is an L2. Are the baseplates for these cameras interchangeable?

BTW, it's a bit chunkier than a Leica IIIA, about Leica M size.

Jonathan

 

[reddesert]

From the page you linked, under "Odd Spec L and VL cameras":

https://leica-copies-japan.com/Canon.html#oddspec

Their theory is that cameras with a mix of parts / features may have been sold to Canon employees who were able to customize their cameras from the parts bin. I think that sometimes it probably happens that cameras (and other devices), perhaps especially near the beginning or end of a run, may be assembled with a mix of parts. And these kind of discrepancies are only noticed for objects (like Leica copies, collectible cameras or musical instruments or whatever), where decades later someone is still paying a lot of attention. (IOW I suspect their theory has merit but without the "employee discount" appendix.)

 

[aw614]

I had a regular L2, with a metal shutter, who knows whether it was changed during service or it came like that. The rangefinder patch was a warmer yellow hue, and it had no self-timer. Bottom plate was labeled L2.

 

[reddesert]

I have an L2, and I had to get it out to look, it has a cloth shutter, no self-timer, x-sync only, and a yellowish rf patch, which I believe makes it a bog standard L2; I had never really considered anything else until this thread brought it up.

The L models, V, VI, and 7 are all mildly bigger than an "Barnack" / Barnack-copy. I think the baseplates are about the same size- which doesn't necessarily mean interchangeable. Some of them are taller than the others, certainly the 7 is taller than the L given the larger viewfinder, which makes it feel a little bigger.

My L2 has an issue where the fast speeds are fine, but the slow speeds don't close the shutter until you let the release up. So for ex you might be able to use the slowest speeds with a cable release and a quick finger. I think this is a known issue on some "Leica-style" focal plane shutters; I looked into it a little but not far enough to figure out what to do about it.