Re: [Leica] the new kid on the block and question #1

[Mark Rabiner <mrabiner@concentric.net>]

GERALD HAUSSLER wrote:
> 
>      LUG nuts;
> 
>      after lurking here for several days, this seems like a place where i
>      could learn from and occasionally contribute to so...onward. by way of
>      introduction i pay the light bill by toiling as a computer geek and
>      have been shooting 35MM since '71. got my first DS M3 a few years
>      later, but didn't start using leicas as the primary platform until
>      about 5 years ago. i shoot mostly music from clubs to major festivals.
>      'encyclopedia of the blues' (university of arkansas press - 2nd
>      edition) contains the largest single sample of my work, about 50
>      shots. i'm known for making obscure references, which is sometimes
>      mistaken as elitist and a sense of humor so disfigured it can only be
>      identified by it's dental records. now that you know more than you
>      need...on to question #1.
>      i've always wondered what the difference between the 90MM tele-elmarit
>      and the 90MM elmarit was. can anyone relate the digest version ? also,
>      i was told in the not too distant past (chatterton ?) that the
>      tele-elmarit is spot welded together and can't be disassembled for
>      maintenance. is this true of all vintages ? i'm considering a 'tele'
>      and the price is right, but it "...needs to be cleaned..."
>      any help greatly appreciated. question #2 to follow.
> 
>      regards
>      jerry haussler
>      p.s. anyboby going to the photo show this weekend ? (s.f. bay area)

Having a tele-elmarit  a few years back for a year was the worst
disaster of my photographic life/career. I went into denial that a lens
from leica could be such a lemon. Why did I get into Leica in the first
place? But it was and when I finally got the modern version it might
have been twice the weight, but it made up for it buy the exquisite
quality of its pictures.
I won't be trading it in for the new Summicron even thought is is
certainly better its also bigger and I have loyalty or nostalgia for MY
lens. I'll get the new 135 and I think I'll be in that league and I
don't have a 135 anyway.
As your new to this you'll find much background of some of what I'm
saying and much needed info from Erwin Puts who is on the list and has a
website. He has an article on the 90's. Opposed to his and my opinions
on the state of the 90's are others on this list who just love their
little tele-elmarit's. To each his time warp continuum.
(I of course could not say Erwin is of the same mind as myself on all
issues as I can only speak for myself.)
Mark Rabiner