Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/02/04
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]At 05:16 PM 2/3/01 -0500, Dante A. Stella wrote: > >How could the certificates be anything more than a marketing gimmick? > >Contrary to what Jim Brick said, it's not okay to ship lenses with black specks >and chipped screw holes, especially when they are flagship products like the >90/2 APO Summicron. While I agree with him that these are optically >insignificant, there is no excuse to ship a new and very expensive lens with >them. It's probably the blacking from the inside of the lens barrel. > >Sorry for the analogy, but target pistols come with test targets - why don't >Leica lenses come with test negatives? I don't remember saying that it is OK to ship a lens with specks in it or chipped screw holes. What I said is that none of these will detract, in any way, from the lens' performance. I have never looked through any of my lenses at a very bright light. I have never inspected them for chipped screw holes. Basically, I look at any new lens I get, without much of a fuss, and if it focuses smoothly and the f/stop ring is smooth, I take it, photograph through it, and that's it. In 50 years of photography, I have had, at least, over 100 new lenses for all different formats. I have never sent one back or had to exchange one because of "obvious" problems. Perhaps I am unbelievably lucky, but I tend to think that I just don't go searching for little things that are of no photographic consequence. As I said, I've never shined a bright light through any of my lenses and I have never inspected a lens close enough to detect chipped screw holes. And I'm not about to start now. I suspect there are numerous others out there (Ted, Tom, ???) who, like me, basically use it if it works. When stuff gets through QC with minor imperfections, it simply reaffirms that QC is human rather than robotic. Jim