The best light meter for street?

[fotopom]

Hi all,
I shoot traditional black and white manual rangefinder street pictures. Up to the present I have been using my Granddads Westonmeter II which works well metering off my hand. However the other day its needle got stuck, I nocked it and it came good, but I'm afraid it bumping around in my pocket is slowly killing it. Granddad would much rather see it die in battle but I don't want to kill such a beautiful antique. Therefore I need a new or reasonable second hand meter, preferably something that works well in low light but probably not a spot meter for my style of shooting (through that would be good for when I do landscapes). It also need to be small and indestructible.
Any suggestions, what do you guys use? am on a bit of a budget.

Dan

[jd callow]

I think a good spot meter is the best thing for street or anywhere you can't get into the scene to meter. Gossen sbc is an excellent all around meter.

[Colin Corneau]

Spot is pretty specific - not sure it'd be as quick as an incident.

[mrred]

Your brain. It works faster and is usually more accurate. Sunny 16. It won't take long to get used to it.

[jmcd]

I don't know any meter that does well being knocked around, but I suppose some are more durable than others. With the Gossen Luna Pro you can choose incident or reflective at a moment's notice, and the dial is large and easy to read, much easier than a Weston II. Really, the Gossen is such a great meter.

I also use a Weston IV and V, and these are easier to read than the Weston II. But the Gossen gets the most use, by far.

The Voigtlander VCII is very small (fits on your hot or cold shoe) and super accurate, and could also be a winner.

[jmcd]

And if you do like your Weston, there is no need for it to die, as these are still being repaired by Quality Light Metric, where they check and address the following points: calibration, balance, jewels, switch, hairspring, front glass, pointer, coil, selenium cell, resistor, and more.
323-467-2265, in North Hollywood, California.

[2F/2F]

A mixture of sunny 16-based exposure (AKA educated guessing) and a Sekonic incident meter with a direct-reading high slide is what I would suggest.

[cmo]

Use a lightmeter that can be used with one hand, it's much, much better than holding the meter, pressing a button and using the other hand to turn a wheel. Many modern Sekonics and Gossens have much better ergonomics than that. Incident metering is my standard method, too.

[eddym]

If you're metering off your hand now, then you are reading incident light. So you might as well get an incident meter. I agree with 2F/2F; a Sekonic incident with the slide kit is a great option. It's simple, uses no batteries and it fast to use. Only downside is that sensitivity in low light is not that great.

[fotopom]

Thanks guys. Love the look of the Sekonic as it resembles my western meter, Gossen looks a little confusing but i'll be sure to keep an eye out to have a look at one. I would love a spot meter, but not for street -as I like my combination of sunny 16 and hand metering. I do have an old SEI comparison meter for landscapes, but am having no luck getting hold of the Led conversion kit, I think the website is abandoned

Dan