Month: June 2024 (Page 1 of 3)

–Kenny drove me to the Folsom farmers market. Got melons, tomatoes, doughnut hole peaches.

–Watered/fertilized plants on back patio.

–“Silca” hose and chuck came in. Doesn’t say Silca anywhere; chuck says Euroline. Hose seems much higher quality than the ribbed, stiff ones I have on all five pumps. Took me a while to figure out it’s kind of a spring-loaded quick-release reversible chuck for Schrader and Presta. Advertised as aluminum, it’s clearly brass with chrome plating. I like it, I think–haven’t actually tried it yet. Ordered a second one–the last available in the U.S. Tough get, as they say.

–Red Baron pizza for dinner.

–Played with cameras. Gave up on the Canon again. Colors out of the camera just don’t seem great. Likely because I was comparing it to the SL2, which, like M9’s, really saturates the greens in the abutilon. It can be dealt with in Lightroom, but I guess I’d rather tone down the SL2 than juice up the Canon.

–Silca pump heads came in. They had no logos engraved and were too small–they were a loose fit in the hose. Started a return on eBay, got a long nasty letter back from the seller about how they were genuine and I just need to use smaller hose. Nope. Wrote them and said I’d cancel return if they sent me a couple of bigger heads. Haven’t heard back.

–Oz flipper with speed holes came in. Not as shiny as some of the videos, but darn nice.

–Took the InnerLight on a 14-mile ride west on the ARP.

–Took Grace shopping at Smart & Final.

–Red Baron pizza for dinner.

–Dug out the Canon R5 again. First, I mistakenly mounted the Zeiss 85mm on the camera using the Praktica adapter, and took a couple of nice sharp abutilon shots after dark. Then I mounted the (proper) Pancolar lens on that adapter, and the lens is so soft and useless it would hardly focus, and the shot was crap. Learnings: (1) The Canon is far from dead. Turns out the two knobs were good for ISO and shutter speed; (2) it has two levels of magnification (I’ve only been able to access one on the SL2 lately; even if I find the second it won’t be as powerful as the Canon max); (3) think hard about that M42 Pancolar 80 (whatever) in my eBay watchlist: it could be a thousand bucks down the tube for another ultra-soft lens.

–17th Silca pump came in. Found some flat black spray paint I didn’t know I had and touched up the base. Took it apart, put it back together: best-feeling pump I have. None of the farty stuff, just dead smooth and strong-feeling. Might have to spend another $300 and get a SuperPista tube for it.

–Final coat of paint on the pump tube was a disaster–mottled, lumps, runs. Stripped it all again, put it together. I just don’t have the patience to paint.

–Started painting the Silca pump tube with Krylon gloss black lacquer. Much better than the yellow paint–no drips or runs. After 5-6 coats it’s still kind of rough, so I might have to reort to some sanding.

–Glow-eyed turtle came in. I swapped out the solar control module with the triple frogs, and it seemed to work. We’ll know more when it gets dark.

–Sent off the CL that won’t turn on to Leica.

–Got some peanut butter/chocolate-dipped cookies at Bel Air.

–Took a shower, and shaved with the big Merkur razor: surprisingly smooth and close. I should use it more.

–Finally gave up on the Leica SL. SL2 focus magnification is so much higher (15x vs. 10x maybe; the web is silent on this) and the viewfinder is so much brighter.

–Tried to paint the Silca pump tube Krylon Sun Yellow. Total disaster. The paint from a foot away hardly showed up on the tube, and from six inches it globbed and ran. I had to go to Home Depot and get some paint stripper. It’s back to normal matte black now. I might try a gloss black Krylon, since I have some, or take it to Powder Coat-It and see what yellows they have.

–Went to UPS and picked up yellow Krylon spray paint.

–Made an offer on an expensive Helios 85/1.5.

–Took some pics. Learned (again) that the front patio at midday is a really challenging exposure. M11, SL and SL2 showed almost no difference between spot, center, multi or highlight-weighted metering. The only way to get a decent photo is to put the meter on spot, aim at the glaringly-bright leaves, half-press the shutter, then re-compose and shoot. Having fun with the SL. TL button is menus; BL is focus magnification (short press) and ISO (long press); TR is review (play); BR turns on focus peaking (it stays on) (short) and metering modes (long).

–Jack’s Urban Eats (takeout) for dinner.

–Went to Dr. Cripe to have temporary crown replaced with permanent one. All good.

–Leica SL came in. Perfect as advertised. The unmarked buttons will take a little getting used to, but I think I’m going to enjoy it.

–Took Grace to the optometrist on Sunrise, where I got my glasses, for some progressive lenses.

–Went to Bel Air for pizza, milk, cream, cream cheese, dessert.

–Dead Leica CL came in from MPB Camera. Did I think they were fools? Tried everything, cannot revive it. Frustrating: it’s black, very handsome, and in perfect shape–except for a large ding on top. I’ll send it off to Leica and see what they say. Inconceivable (he said) that it could cost as much as the Paul Smith CL repair, which involved replacing the whole (special) top.

–Tombstone pizza for dinner. Much like Red baron, except the pepperoni isn’t hot.