Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/08/01

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Subject: Re: Wezlar/Solms quality.
From: "Stefan Kahlert" <uzs13b@ibm.rhrz.uni-bonn.de>
Date: Fri, 1 Aug 1997 16:04:29 +0000

> While the Leitz family owned Leica, they were dedicated to making the
> best cameras.  After it was sold, they were dedicated to making
> money--or at least trying to.  This fundamental change of  attitude
> colors all of their products and services.   Had this new attitude been
> with Leica from day 1, the  Leica  "mystique"  and reputation for
> quality would never have existed.

Dear Stephen, 

I am not willing to join the (to me useless because unproofable) if 
Leica-quality really went down that remarkably after they went into 
the new facility. After all I am quite thankful that the new 
management knows how to earn money with cameras and how to survive in 
the market. There is still enough new equipment sold so that the 
prices for used Leicas don't go through the ceiling (imagine the 
price for a used M4 if Leitz ceased producing M-cameras back in the 
80s or after the M5-crashdown [when they ceased for a while]).
Our Leicas can still be serviced and the recently released lenses 
are a step ahead optically. And as much as I understood most of 
comments on that issue the usability of the system is better than it 
ever was. 

For a Leica-user things could have developed _much_ worse even if the 
changes in the cameras interior may break a collectors heart.
The recent M6 may not be build to the old standards but at least 
the Leica is still with us.

Leica isn't the same as back in the 50/60s but then: who is?

best wishes
- --
Stefan Kahlert 
Wissenschaftliche Abteilung
Medizinische Poliklinik der Universitaet Bonn
uzs13b@uni-bonn.de