Re: Special M6's

[Stephen <cameras@jetlink.net>]

Pixoptik@aol.com wrote:  (snip)

>  The crux of the matter (which is obvious to even a newbie like me)
>  is that this is the "Leica Users Group" and some of us are extremely
>  biased to just that & have no tolerance for the collector or
> especially
>  the collector of "Specials", which certainly won't be used.

Well I can't speak for anyone else, but I love collectibles, and hate
the "special" M6's or R's.  It's not that I hate collectibles, it's that
I hate pseudo collectibles that take advantage of the naive.

Leica started first and foremost as a camera maker.  Leicas later became
collectible by accident, not by design-----because their quality of
construction, workmanship, and optics were universally appreciated.
Through screw mount and M production, they remained the best of the best
of their type with  the combination of technological leadership with
quality.    Even the most common  Leica, the M3, will fetch very
handsome prices if in truly like new condition.

Once Leica's fortune's began a downturn thanks to the market success of
Japanese SLRs, it was all Leica could do to simply survive.  They began
to trade on their reputation by making a series of instant collectibles
for the gullible.    While it might make sense to make a 50th or 75th
commemorative camera, why a "Danish Royal Wedding" and the like for any
reason except to fleece the naive from their wallets?  How long will it
be until the marketing geniuses at Solms proudly release the "Not So
Royal Wedding" M6 or the "I Got Fleeced at Solms" R8?

It would be a far better situation if Leica returned to their old
standards  by making  common cameras worth collecting because of their
quality, rather than the "special edition" cameras  claimed to be
collectible due to their rarity.   Rarity alone does not make a Leica
valuable or desirable, as the deluge of special editions is  proving.

Regards,

Stephen Gandy