Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2011/03/11
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I couldn't afford a Leica until I was in my 30s, but they were dearer here. Leicas have always been more expensive, I am far from convinced that a few hundred cameras becoming available would significantly influence prices. I can't imagine the M6, M7 or new MP cameras to be collectible and if you look at -all- the pre M6 cameras, including viewfinderless ones, the total production is around 460,000 cameras. That is less than 2 months production of just the Canon rebel dSLR... There are thousands of times more CaNikon digi SLRs on the market than Leicas. There just are not many of them, collectors or no. Blaming collectors for Leica prices is a common error though. In fact it is just a very limited supply feeding substantial demand. IMHO FD On 10 Mar, 2011, at 20:43, Philip Forrest wrote: > I don't know where one can find a rigid Summicron, 35 Summaron AND 90 > Elmar for $500 total. Maybe 10 years ago but not today. Please let me > know! hahahaha. I've been looking for another rigid 'cron for about a > year and the least expensive user I've found so far was just over $500. > Missed that one by a few minutes. Summarons go for between $300 and > $800. 90 Elmars run about $100. > I haven't seen a $500 M body that didn't need significant repair in > years. Maybe the odd yard sale find that we only hear about on the > internet, but realistically speaking, if one shops around for a month > or two and buys the best working user bargains you can, the would-be > Leica shooter is still in around $2000 for a M body and 3 lens kit. > > As for the collectors, I know one man who has 11 M3 bodies in vaults. > Those re just his M3s. He has a collection of every other production > Leica made and a few bodies apiece. There is no reason for that, small > run production numbers or not. If all of the cameras in vaults suddenly > appeared for sale at reasonable prices, the price of our regular pool of > used gear would have to go down. > I see this every day with fellow students who ask to borrow my M4 and a > lens. A few of them desperately want to get into Leica but they just > can't afford it. They're not poor, either. Most of them are waving > around D300s and EOS 5d IIs with pro level lenses on them but can't > justify the still high prices on used, sometimes beaten Leica gear. > > Phil Forrest