Lets hear about your most amazing Leica bargain!

[Ronazle]

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Around the summer of 1974 I bought a 28mm Summaron and 90mm Elmar for $125 total. The purchase was from a money lender in the vicinity of Sukiran, Okinawa. Both lenses were in fine shape and are occasionally (the F:/5.6 Summaron anyway) used today. ron

[frozenace]

thanks wattsy for your support.

 

back then the pound sterling didn't slump that much, so the prices would have been cheaper, I'd think.

 

The previous 35/2 I had and sold had a list price of 999 on the label on the box.

 

maybe I'll get myself a 35 lux asph some day...

[Robert J]

At a used furniture store I found a 3.5cm f3.5 summaron lens,a 90mm f4 collapsible elmar lens,a 135mm f4 elmar lens,a 135mmf4.5 hektor lens,a visoflex I with 5x magnifier,bellows I,a metz 45 ct5 flash and a braun flash all for $125.00.All lenses and the Visoflex are M mount.

At another place I got a mint condition leica copy,a Tower type 3 with 50 mm f2 nikkor lens and eveready case for $2.00.

[LMBSGV]

Summicron DR without the goggles for $206 on EBay.

[earleygallery]

I saw an old camera in a charity store years ago when I was a kid, before I knew what a Leica was. I had enough pocket money to buy it but the previous owner had ruined it by scratching their initials HCB into the chrome

[wildlightphoto]

The dead R8 that came with my backup DMR. I fixed it in a few minutes by untangling the shutter blades.

[gwelland]

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I bought an almost like new M8 for $1395 back in March, plus just missed another at the same price last month.

[greyelm]

Its only small fry but I got a free Leitz SHOOC 13.5cm Viewfinder when I bought a cheap Fed 3 on eBay. Trouble is I then had to buy a 13.5cm lens for my Barnacks.

[IIIf]

My most amazing bargain was not a purchase but a gift. When I first started with my current employer (in 1979), there was an older fellow who was our financial officer. he was a WW2 veteran and a former member of Bomber Command. Being a flying fanatic, we spent some few hours discussing Lancaster bombers, etc. Until one day he noticed my camera and then we branched into discussing cameras. He mentioned having purchased an old Leica in London during the war. He brought in to work the following week and I provided some background on the history of the brand and where his camera fit into that series. About a year after he retired, he dropped by my office, one day unexpectedly. Dropping his old Leica on my desk, he said it had finally stopped working and he had bought a replacement. Knowing that I had fixed cameras for others, he told me that if I could fix it, I could keep it, but if I ever sold it, I was to give him half the value. Needless to say, I still have that Leica model C and it has worked well for me these last 25 years.

[thompsonkirk]

My best bargain is one you can have too – the 40mm Summicron C for about $300-400 (mine was $300). It's a lens of amazing quality without too much contrast & is my favorite on M9, where it matches the 35mm framelines much better than a 35 does. And there's an enjoyable irony in using a $300 lens on a $7K camera so that the latter can perform well.

 

Kirk

[JMacD]

Best bargain I ever heard of was a friend who bought an M8.2 new from amazon then two weeks later, learned the M9 was being introduced, and returned the M8.2 to amazon within the 30 day return policy. Got delivery of the M9 two months later from Amazon.

 

Same person got a WATE with finder on Craig's list for $2,200 from someone who must have lost everything to Madoff.

 

Me? No bargains. I sold my 75mm lux one year before the M8 was announced. Three years later bought the 2.5 for what I earned from the sale of the 1.4.

 

Well, I should mention buying a WATE for a 30% discount and before the price went up was nice.

[EJohnE]

Two years ago I bought from a retailer the following for $1395Aust (abt $1250US at current rates):

R8 body, motor winder, 28mm, 50mm ROM, 100mm Macro, SF20 flash, filters galore. All lenses had Leica pouches. The lot was in excellent order, and in a Pelican fitted case.

(I managed to wreck the R8's shutter, but that is just too bad).

 

On the other hand, in the mid-80s on a Saturday morning, I found I had no cash to buy the then desirable cigarettes, so I hocked a Leica IIf with a 5cm f3.5 Elmar for $10. I was offered more, but as it was just until Monday, $10 was enough. I kept putting off retrieving it until it was too late, and it had been sold as unclaimed. Idiot!!

 

John.