[Leica] FS: Elmarit-M ASPH 24mm f2.8 -- $1,100

[Bmceowen@aol.com]

Elmarit-M ASPH 24mm f2.8 for sale. Excellent-plus overall condition* (read on 
for more information on this point). Includes hood, 49mm Heliopan UV filter, 
rear cap and Leica 24mm brightline viewfinder. Optics are perfect and the 
resulting images are stunning! (I assume you've read the reviews of this lens 
- -- WOW!)

$1,100 + shipping.

I also have a second finder, the 25mm finder for the Voigtlander/Cosina lens 
which I will sell for $50 to whoever buys the camera. (No, I don't want to 
sell it separately, at least not until the lens is sold.) 

OK, so here's the bad news:

This lens was dropped ONCE -- from about 2 feet (from the floor of my van to 
the street). Don't worry, the plastic hood took the impact. The lens works 
fine, produces fantastic photos and there are no visible signs of damage. BUT 
. . .  there are a couple of things you should know before buying.

1.) The corner of the hood -- the part with the little cut-out portion -- 
broke. In effect you've got a three cornered hood (though truth be told I 
doubt that cut-out provided much protection from flare).

2.) I can't swear that the fall caused this but I suspect it did -- the lens 
has a VERY SLIGHT amount of play in the front cell. You can grab the front 
portion of the hood in your hand and it will rotate about one millimeter in 
relation to the back of the lens. You can not take it any farther or 
dissemble the lens. It just has a little play in it. 

I  e-mailed Sherry Krauter about this and she said she'd charge $50 to fix it 
- -- though she encouraged me to spend $75 and have a complete CLA done on the 
lens. If the lens does not sell in the next week or so that's what I'm going 
to do. So NOW is your chance to save a little money on this lens. 

The play in the lens doesn't seem to affect performance at all. I'm sure you 
could go years without addressing it. If I were keeping the lens that's what 
I would do. But I'm downsizing my Leica gear (replacing the 24mm and 35mm 
with a 28mm) so I need to sell. Once the lens gets back from Sherry the price 
goes up at least $100. Buy now and save a few bucks.

One other thing you should know -- the Leica finder is fine but like a lot of 
their new plastic finders the foot has come loose and has been repaired with 
Superglue. It works fine but you can see evidence of the glue job when you 
look at the bottom of the finder.

With a damaged hood, play in the front cell and a Superglued finder this lens 
sounds like it's a mess but it's not. It looks perfect and performs 
flawlessly. It has NOT been abused. It just took that one hit. The lens is 
fine. 

I can supply photos of the lens and I'm willing to stand behind it. If you 
buy the lens you're free to take a couple of days to check it out. Shoot some 
film. If you decide you don't want it, send it back for a refund. I'm a 
motivated seller. Here's an opportunity for you to get a wonderful lens at a 
great price. 
- --
To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html