Re: [Leica] How are the serial numbers structured?

["Mark Kronquist" <mak@teleport.com>]

Quick and dirty (like all things Leica all is not as it always seems)

Serial Numbers...serial numbers appear to be assigned by
batch...sequentially

Camera numbers started at 100 (or 104 or 105) and pretty much (except WWII)
go from there just add one

Lens numbers started at about 95,000 or so (the first lenses weren't
interchangeable and didn't have a separate EXTERNAL serial number) and have
run historically about 1.5x the body number...

body number 2,000,000 probably comes with a lens somewhere within a 100,000
or so of 3,500,000...

However not all assigned serial numbers were used. Leaving gaps especially
in the 1970's...

And then there are * (duplicate) numbers.

For example I have a 90mm f2.0 Summicron M that I use with the serial number
2624894*. Most believe that * after a serial number indicates that the
original with that number was lost, stolen or destroyed.

Then there are 'a' lenses and bodies...'a' serial numbers normally indicate
non-working dummy cameras and lenses...some of which have been built up into
working models

Then there are the 50,000,000 serial numbers on M prototypes

Then the Elcan numbers  91-073  who knows how they work

Then the 00000250 numbers which are also prototypes

And, of course, even though Leitz made the M Rokkor 90mm...its serial number
seems to be out of the standard range as well...

Alas

Hope this helps

Others know much more

Mark



- -----Original Message-----
From: Andrew M. Moore <dmm@bronze.lcs.mit.edu>
To: Leica Users <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Date: Monday, September 21, 1998 2:52 PM
Subject: [Leica] How are the serial numbers structured?


>How are the Leica serial numbers structured?
>The obvious answer is "just add one"!  But that's not what I mean.
>
>Does each Leica lens "model" have its own set of serial numbers, or are
>the numbers truly unique amongst *all* the lenses (and all focal
>lengths, all generations, etc.) that Leica has ever produced?  Asked
>another way, can there be a 50/2 Summicron-M with #3701234 and also a
>35/2 with the same number?
>
>And how about the bodies -- do bodies and lenses also share (or not) the
>same pool of numbers?
>
>Has this numbering scheme changed at any point in Leica's history?
>
>Andrew
>
>