(Before you begin, yes this is the same topic that I posted over at FM, but many of you are not over there, so...)

Well, I finally found the courage to do it. My recent discovery and modification of the Minolta MC Rokkor-PG 58/1.2 pushed me over the edge.

I originally planned to use "Glad Press'n Seal" as masking material, but it did not "seal" the way I needed it too. Instead, I used green painters masking tape. I found it just flexible enough and just tacky enough to do the job. It is also just rigid enough to hold the mirror in place on its own, which was great because I was apprehensive about sticking something in the mirror box to prop the mirror up. I didn't want *anything* to touch the shutter.

I left about 1/8" of mirror sticking out beyond the masking tape. The mirror was about 2/3 to 3/4 "open".

I was too cheap to spend the $80 on a Dremel, so I bought some mini files of various shapes and a small "grinding stone" drill attachment. I stuck the grinding stone on my 850rpm cordless drill and went to work. It was slow going, as expected, but I didn't mind taking my time with this project

I used one of the files to work away at the plastic frame and then used the grinding stone to work at the mirror, alternating back and forth, because the plastic frame tended to gum up the grinding stone. I did not measure how much I took off (I just eyeballed it). When I thought I had taken enough off, I vaccumed everything thoroughly and kept vaccuming the area as I removed the masking tape carefully. Not much dust got inside at all and what was there was obvious and very simple to remove with a statically charged brush. There was no trace of dust or particles on the shutter.

Once complete, I immediately tried my Super-Takumar 50/1.4. I knew that it was just barely hitting before, so I figured it would be fine now. I was correct! No problem at all.

Next, I tried the Rokkor 58/1.2. Clunk! Uh oh. Hmmm... it certainly does protrude quite a bit more than the Super-Tak. So, I took my file to the back of the Rokkor and reduced the metal ring around the rear element so that it is nearly flush with the glass. Tried it again. Perfect. Click, click, click.

Not sure if this means I am home free with all the Leicas, but I can't afford them anyway. The mod was a bit nerve-racking, but I certainly wouldn't hesitate to do a bit more grinding if I fall in love with some lens that causes issues.

Time for a gin & tonic