Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/01/25
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Stephen Gandy wrote: > Ted I agree with most of what you say, but this is hardly an "either or" > world. When Leica does make some sort of major M6 update, it's hard to believe > today's mechanical M6 would be discontinued. Why not both cameras in the Leica > lineup ? > > However something is broken, but it's not the camera -- it's the lack of black > ink in Solms. Something has to change, or everyone on this list will eventually > become collectors of a discontinued camera. Leica's losses can not continue > forever. With the most serious rangefinder competition Leica has had in 40 > years, how can Leica not introduce new models to counter the competition and > hopefully help gain back profitability? > > The "Ain't broke and needs no fixin'!" argument at Leica makes no sense to me > when the little boat is slowly sinking in a sea of red ink. Something has to > be done, and it needs to work. > > Stephen Gandy > > Here's where I jump off the bandwagon. I honestly don't care whether Leica Camera A.G. is in business next year or not. If they go out of business tomorrow, there are (and will continue to be) tens of thousands of M2, M3, M4(-2/-P), M5, M6 bodies on the market or ready for market. There are probably hundreds of thousands of lenses of all vintages and focal lengths. There are a number of highly skilled, dedicated, independent repair people. So what if the Leica M becomes the Rolleiflex of 35mm? The cameras and lenses will continue to function, will continue to be repairable, and will continue to be for sale on the used market for decades. Oh, but the prices will skyrocket! I bet not. They may go up for a time, the same way some pieces go up now when some group of collectors suddenly decide that a particular serial number block of M3's represents the finest camera ever built, so they MUST be taken out of use and put in a vault. Heck, those jerks die too, and then their long-suffering families sell those useless, musty old relics to some estate liquidator for a song. BINGO, more fine, perfectly functional Leicas for the marketplace. The market will stabilize, and lots of perfectly useable, reasonably priced cameras and lenses will continue to change hands. This is the Leica USERS group, right? It's not the Leica investors, sympathizers or sycophants (well . . . .) group. At least not for me. If Leica can figure out how to maintain its niche in the 35mm marketplace, more power to 'em. If they fold, so long, it was nice to know ya. But I have a hunch that my M6's and lenses won't turn to dust the day they lock the factory gates. And I won't stop using them, either. Rob Schneider