Re: M6J >< M6

[Lucien <100774.527@CompuServe.COM>]

Hubert Nowotny wrote:

>"stable" is meant as "less vulnerable". The interior mechanism is of 
>increased solidity (e.g. the mechanism which creates the shutter 
>speeds). I didn't see that myself as I didn't open the camera. The 
>technician who told me that did. He has seen and repaired many 
>M and other cameras, lenses etc.. He's trustworthy.

>Maybe its written down somewhere that everything is equal. It's 
>simply not true, however. Surely the principle of the M6J is the 
>M6, the difference in many places is  _how_  it's made.

>You'll always find people who'll tell you "there's no difference but in 
>the price". (Choose a subject you like most. The answer is the same.)
>Chances are high that those people never touched the 
>items they're talking about ...

>More quiet: Take it and feel. Release the shutter. Take a M6 
>afterwards, do the same. The M6 - all of a sudden - appears to be 
>more "noisy", more "shaking" when the shutter is released. That's 
>meant by "smoothness" - and that's important for the "feeling" and, 
>especially, when taking pictures at available light ...

>Please note that we are talking about measurements with _really_ 
>fine scales! I'm definitely able to take photographs at available 
>light also with "normal" M6es - and I love to do so. But - there 
>exactly is the difference we're talking about.

>Whenever there are two products which offer - in principle - the same 
>thing discussions start "is the quality difference worth the price 
>difference". When you fall in love with a rare Leica lens and you 
>_want_ to have it, it's easily possible that you had to pay a fortune 
>to fulfill your dream. Was it worth the difference? Thousands of 
>dollars? The answer is different, individually. 

>Did _I_ fall in love deep enough to be as stupid as to pay the 
>difference? Or, put in other terms, is the performance difference 
>worth the price difference _for me_? 

>As both differences, in price and in performance/quality
>are suffered and felt differently from one individual photographer to 
>another. Some people don't see a difference at all. It's all small 
>boxes ...

>Why don't we all use Lomos? Drive Ladas? Where is the boundary?

>That's the stuff that debates are made of. It's great to do the 
>debate (if you are in the mood for that). But we won't answer the 
>question one for all. As there is no answer one for all. Never. Period ...

>(And that's one point which makes life worth living, BTW ...)

>However, there's not too much use in creating of or debating about 
>myths. There have been 1600+ M6Js and that's it. There are far too 
>few M6Js to make up a mass movement ...

>AND: The M6 is a fine camera, don't forget about that!

Hubert, 

I fully agree and suspect that more buyer of the M6J are also user that whe may
expect at the launching (still a minority sadly, thank's).
I use it a lot, each week-end, but I hope Leica has all the spare parts .....
I also have a regular M6, who don't give me the same pleasure (I have sell and
buy back three times a M6 (second hand))
But I stick to my M3, M4, M4 black paint(well worn and brassy) and M6J.
I have the same feeling with my Super Angulon 21mm F3,4 >< Elmarit 21mm F2,8.
I hope that the new Elmarit 24mm will be more like the Super Angulon.

At the same time they have launch the M6J, Leica Camera assembled some (+-300
ex) Summilux 50 mmm 1,4 chrom on brass (the previous model) together with the
traveller M6 chrom. That lens was in the M6J class . (Not the M6, the leather
who cover it was really poor, I sell it immediately with all the stuff they
force you to buy with it).

All this is not really serious, I know, but It's so fun to have a hobby, like
using and collecting well made cameras and lenses by a maker who still try to do
a good job.

Who will fall in love with a Nikon F5 anyway. (But a black Nikon SP, with 50 mm
1,4 !!!)

(O.K., O.K. the Nikon F5 is a great camera, that's not the point.)

Lucien