Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/03/21

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Re: "viewfinder"
From: Walter S Delesandri <walt@jove.acs.unt.edu>
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 1999 07:22:13 -0600 (CST)

Gary,
That was the title of a recent article in Dirck Halstead's 
e-magazine......it caused quite a stir in the 'fanatic' 
community, but was about the artificial 'inflation' caused 
by the scarcity of cameras when 'speculators' buy 50 or 100 
Leica pieces (I've seen it....a safe with 100+ bodies, at 
least 200 lenses...)

His point was that Leica would be expensive, based on quality 
and scarcity, but only about 1/3 or so the price if bought 
and sold by 'users'....

I hate to put numbers on it, as someone did here on the LUG, 
but here's my .02.....if you own more than two or three 
bodies at a time, or 'duplicate' focal lengths, you "probably" 
are a collector...now, I can see someone having a model 
II or something on the mantel, or an old "beater" that one 
carries in the trunk as a spare, but rows and rows of non-user
stuff?....that's a 'collector'/'dealer'!

I'm not talking about pre-war/'special' models, etc......
The 'collectors' should preserve these for historical significance..
But M2/M4/M6/common lenses/etc....esp. non-mint.....these 
should be out there in the hands of photographers....
His example (in the e-zine) while in a toung-in-cheek article, 
was sound....if not for 'collector frenzy', the M-bodies 
would probably sell for $3-600 used and the lenses similar...
that would be in keeping with inflation, based on their 
used-status-plus-desirability as users, etc... I agree with 
this...although believing in "free-enterprise", I don't know 
what would happen....but the market is not 'free' and 'stable'...

Obviously, my message was also toung-in-cheek, but I >DID< sell 
some excess gear a couple years back, for below 'market', to 
get it in the hands of users...it was doing NO good in my 
closet, as I had newer gear that I was using....

Walt

On
Sat, 20
Mar
1999, Gary Todoroff wrote:

> From: Walter S Delesandri "
> 
> >"First, let's KILL all the Leica collectors..."
> Hey Walt -- this is group that deals with _cameras_ such as the M1. You
> obviously need to find the group that deals with the M1 Garand.
> 
> Gary
>