Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1996/11/06

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Subject: Re: 90/2.8 -M v. 75/1.4 -M
From: "Charles E. Love, Jr." <cel14@cornell.edu>
Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 00:24:34 -0500 (EST)

At 08:51 PM 11/6/96 +0100, you wrote:
>Charles E. Love, Jr. wrote:
>
>> Isn't it interesting that, at these stratospheric prices, lots of M lenses
>> have cheap plastic hoods that are hard to get on and off--e.g. the 21 2.8
>
>I'd rather have a hood that's hard to get on and off than one that's 
>easily to remove and falls of at the slightest knock.
>About the plastic, well yes I do argee with you. But on the other hand I
>don't think it's possible to make a metal lenshood in Leica's
>rectangular shape and still keep the price reasonable.
>
>Bert
>
Leica's prices aren't "reasonable," by any stretch of the imagination--if
you cannot afford to put a decent hood on a $2000 lens, something is wrong.
Also, there are lots of cheaper lenses (non-Leica) that have decent hoods.
For example, I have Pentax 67 lenses, and the hoods are much easier to use
and better built than the Leica M 21 and 28 hoods; some are even metal!
Leica itself has built some pretty good ones too--e.g. the old R 19 2.8, and
the current Summicron 35 F2.  My objection isn't to the plastic, but to the
low quality, deformation,  and overly tight fit of the 21 and 28 hoods, as
well as the original 75. I think the theory behind the wide angle hoods is
good--the spring and slot business, making them lock on--but the execution
is poor on the 21 and 28, excellent on the old R 19.   The original  hoods
for the 21 and 28 were so thin and flexible that they deformed when I tried
to put them on and off--the redesigns added some ribs to make them somewhat
stiffer, raising their performance from "F" to "D-" in my book.

Sorry for the waspish tone of this--but cutting corners on such an expensive
and generally well-made product does irritate me!

Charlie

Charles E. Love, Jr.
517 Warren Place
Ithaca, New York
14850
607-272-7338
CEL14@CORNELL.EDU