Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/08/30
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]During my visit to the E. Leitz, Wetzlar factory in 1962 or 1963, I was shown the assembly of the Leica M cameras, amongst other things. The person showing me around was Bob Schwalberg, an American working, at that time, for E. Leitz, Wetzlar and New York. Of special note was the fitting of parts and componants. If I remember correctly, Bob showed me small boxes of parts marked with (I believe) minus and plus numbers (or signs). This, he indicated, were parts that were hand-fitted to make certain that there was always a perfect fit. A plus part would be fitted to a minus componant, for example. The Leica was virtually hand-made. I have not visited the Leica factory since my last visit in 1966, in Wetzlar. Some day I'll search my negatives, as I remember shooting some pictures in the factory, and never printed them. Is my observation no longer the case? Ed Meyers