Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2010/03/02

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Subject: [Leica] Zeiss Wide Angle 35mm f/2 Biogon T* ZM
From: mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:58:02 -0500

> Tear sheets and credits suggest "published professionals using Leicas," 
> which
> is an even more infinitesimal proportion of the population than "people who
> make a living shooting Leicas at weddings."  Guess they don't need to stock
> that many loaners.
> 
> Is that elitist?  That's the same way that NPS is (or was...).  But Nikon 
> USA
> has a seven-business-day turnaround for hoi polloi, which means that if you
> aren't in the cool kids club, covering the repair period with rentals is 
> not
> astronomically expensive.
> 
> But the idea of repair backups at Leica itself is a little bonkers - since 
> we
> are paying for all of that exquisite quality control.  If there is a true
> defect in a $7K camera in the first month that requires more than an hour 
> to
> fix, the customer ought to be given a new one - and the old one fixed at
> Leica's leisure and relegated to B-stock or demo or whatever.  Or the 
> customer
> should be credited toward a better model.
> 
> And as far as people who drop, dent, scratch and break things 
> out-of-warranty,
> Leica USA should stop being such a dog in the manger with those repairs and
> reestablish a few factory-authorized service centers (I'm not talking about
> semi-sanctioned ones like Goldberg and Krauter).  Leica has claimed that it
> does not make money on repairs - but surely it must, since it tenaciously
> hoards repairs to the point it cannot do them in a timely fashion.
> 
> Dante
> 
> NO ARCHIVE
> 
> On Feb 28, 2010, at 2:16 PM, Jeffery Smith wrote:


You lost me at the part where if  you have exquisite quality control then
that negates all use for repair backups. I'm not sure that logic and the
real world backs that one up. Things go out the factory door perfect but
will break anyway. Mysteriously. Gremlins. Or they get caught in the door.
I don't think that reflects in the real or surreal world of high end cars or
watches and whatever else people can find to spend a whole lot of money on.
Audio gear?  Cedar coat hangers? You spend thousands instead of hundreds and
you get a problem they just hand you a new one?
This may very well be true as the only premium items I have experience with
in the world is camrea gear and that's Leica M glass.
If your Rolls backfires I bet they just roll out a  new one.

Is how many loaners a particular camera company stocks for whoever an issue
for me? If my  camera breaks? Is this  a deal breaker? I wish!
"Camera" is never in the singular for me. Its a plural thing. Backups,
second cameras is a thing I take for granted if I really need the thing to
come out today and can't rig up a thing where I can come back the next day
with a different camrea I have it on me. As does any photographer.
A 7 grand M9 sure is daunting but what is more daunting and photographers
like Ted know or any photographer is you really need for sure a lot more
than one. I think Ted's used to buying cameras in threes.
7x3=21


[Rabs]
Mark William Rabiner





In reply to: Message from dstella1 at ameritech.net (Dante Stella) ([Leica] Zeiss Wide Angle 35mm f/2 Biogon T* ZM)