[Leica] Was Leica's Advertising Budget - Now personal M8 experience

[cummer at netvigator.com (H&ECummer)]

Hi Geoff,
I am very happy that you have a problem free M8. I was not so lucky. I  
had the opportunity of trying the M8 in August of 2006 when Tom A was  
testing one of the LHSA prototypes in Vancouver and Henning loaned me  
his vast arsenal of M lenses. I was so impressed that I sold my Epson  
RD1 the week after I tried the M8. It was my third RD1. Each unit I  
received was plagued with different problems, viewfinder  
maladjustments (on every camera I touched and that was more than a  
dozen) clumps of dead pixels, fried dials etc - that is old history we  
don't need to plough again.

When I first raised the M8 viewfinder to my eye and the rangefinder  
was accurate and the frame lines straight I felt I had "come home". My  
first M8 lasted 5 months and then in Ontario's Lake country I got the  
dreaded "shutter failure" notice on the LCD. I sent the camera to  
Solms by courier. We need not dwell on the fact that DHL lost it for  
one month in transit, (that story is well known on the Lug) and  
receipt of my new camera is recorded in the Steve Barbour's photo  
folder of LUG faces. The replacement camera lasted 23 days and then  
developed a blue vertical line of dead pixels about 1/3 from the right  
side of all pictures taken at all speeds and all ISO's.  So, back to  
Solms it went for the replacement of the CCD. In all this I was polite  
with Solms and their service to me was exemplary.

So, I have had two cameras fail in my personal experience. That has  
not happened to any of my Canon or Nikon cameras. Yes, I am still  
shooting with the M8 because the images are so good - but each time I  
pick up the camera there is that nano second of doubt.

Will it work??

Cheers
Howard
>
> Date: Thu, 27 Nov 2008 12:40:05 +1000
> From: "Geoff Hopkinson" <hoppyman@bigpond.net.au>
> Subject: RE: [Leica] Leica's Advertising Budget
> To: "'Leica Users Group'" <lug@leica-users.org>
>
> Hi Jim. I understand. My post was to publicise my own experience.  
> Naturally
> you are perfectly entitled to hold your own view! Of course, I knew  
> what you
> shoot with and was gently trying to say that it's a bit tough to be  
> negative
> about the camera based on what someone else says rather than any  
> personal
> experience. M8 knocking is almost a sport on-line.
> More often than not we read reports of problems but less from the  
> people who
> are pleased and have problem free Leicas. So we end up with perhaps an
> unbalanced impression in the on-line forums which is detrimental and  
> unfair
> for Leica.  The squeaky wheel syndrome and all of that. It would be
> instructive to know what the satisfaction rate is amongst the LUG M8  
> owners.
>
>
> Sorry to hear that your R2a needs repair. I only know four owners  
> and you
> are the third to say that their camera broke! The other guy sells  
> them for a
> living.