My $75 light meter that only works when it wants to

Picked up a used Sekonic L-308 at a camera swap in Portland last month for $75. First roll came back perfect, I was thrilled. Second roll it gave me readings that were two stops under, every shot looked like a cave painting. Turns out the battery contact was corroded, I cleaned it with a pencil eraser and now it's fine, but I lost a whole day of shooting at the coast. Anyone else had a cheap meter do something weird like that, or is mine just haunted?

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campbell.logan16d ago

That corroded contact got you good. I had a $20 light meter from a garage sale that would work fine until I drove over any bump, then it would read like it was trying to capture the inside of a coal mine. Had to slap it on the side every time I got out of the truck at a shoot. Yours at least had a clear fix, mine just wanted attention. Coast light is tricky anyway, but two stops under on a whole day is brutal. Glad the eraser trick saved you from buying another one.