Why are Leica Lenses Difficult to get?

[Humood]

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I am in the process of picking up my first M, a black M9 from the dealer in Dubai, they only have ONE LENSE! a 24mm Lux 1.4 I have searched the web and had a look at online retailers they all seem to be out of stock of most leica lenses! is this a leica policy? to keep us waiting for their products? The local dealer here in Bahrain is hopeless

[bill]

Try searching for a "lens" instead...

 

Alternatively, you could:

 

- buy secondhand

- pre-order

- contact some of the dealers who advertise here

 

Regards,

 

Bill

[mumu]

forecast for the next delivery is december - january. They are complete out of stock at the moment.

The production is running with full capacity from Monday to Saturday for Lenses from the S-Line and the M-Line.

[MarkP]

Did you take the 24 f1.4 Lux?

 

 

My local Leica dealer tells me that the shortage of lenses is contributed to by Leica having expected sales of 1+ new lens per M9 sold, but sales & orders have been 3+ lenses per M9 sold! Furthermore, M9 sales have been much stronger than initially anticipated.

 

Can anyone confirm or expand on this?

 

Mark

[mumu]

.......

 

 

My local Leica dealer tells me that the shortage of lenses is contributed to by Leica having expected sales of 1+ new lens per M9 sold, but sales & orders have been 3+ lenses per M9 sold! Furthermore, M9 sales have been much stronger than initially anticipated.

 

Can anyone confirm or expand on this?

 

Mark

 

that is right!

[SJP]

If it was a commodity no-one would Leica.

[earleygallery]

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is this a leica policy? to keep us waiting for their products?

 

Damn you've sussed them! Yes Leica have a warehouse full of M lenses of all types that people like you are chomping at the bit to spend hard cash on, but it's their Germanic sense of humour - they're sitting on it all, denying it exists and having a good laugh at your expense. Oh isn't it their expense?

[dpattinson]

Try second-hand, I'm pretty sure both Red Dot and Aperture will ship overseas. Both have online inventory. There really is very little reason to buy lenses new unless you can't find the one you want second-hand.

 

Red Dot Cameras - Leica Cameras, Leica Binoculars, Metz Flashguns, Manfrotto Tripods, Leitz

Leica - Aperture uk

[alexmann]

I don't think you can tell any inventory from the Red Rot web site, nor from Robert White. You must email them and ask for one. Otherwise get your name on the waiting list(s) for the lens(es) you want. As Alfred Schopf, chairman of the board of Leica Camera AG, states in the November edition of LFI magazine, "Various components, like optical glass for example, have a delivery time of six months and more. Hence the general production cannot be arbitrarily scaled. Our lens production requires experienced hands, which cannot be found in any numbers outside our factory." and; " Generally speaking: for us, quality is far more important than fast market success, which often requires a compromise in quality. Hence, I am happier with dealing with customers' frustrations about delivery times than possible quality shortcomings."

So, due the the huge demand for Leica products, specifically the M9, plus the fact that they originally supposed, due in part to the depressed global economy, that they would sell far less than they have, demand exceeds supply and that supply cannot easily be significantly scaled up. We have to wait, sadly. But when it arrives it will be worth it.

Regards

Alex

[eleskin]

Humood,

 

Many Leica lenses are of such high quality, I would bet you would be happy with some of the excellent used choices I see on Ebay all the time. I bought a used Noctilux on Ebay and I am very happy (that lens I would imagine would be hard to get at the moment from your source in Dubai. Tell me what you are looking for and maybe I can give you some ideas). My lens inventory is the following: 15mm Voigtlander Super Wide Heliar, 28mm Elmarit, 35mm Summicron (v4, Canada), 35mm f1.2 Nokton, 40mm Nokton, 50mm Summicron (late), 50mm f1.0 Noctilux (late), 50mm Summitar (old classic with swirly dream like bokeh), 90mm Tele Elmarit, 135mm Elmarit, 280mm Telyt.

 

So ask me which focal length you are interested in and maybe I can find something.

 

Ed

[Humood]

Thanks a lot for all of you who responded, I have tried calling Red Dot in London, they seem to be out of stock of many lenses I even called the Myfair Store, same story! I hope to get my M9 and the lens by next monday and I shall definitely have a look at the second hand market! And yes, bill, (No 2 above) I did try "lens" it worked on non-clickable sites! so thank you.

[RobertJRB]

Thanks a lot for all of you who responded, I have tried calling Red Dot in London, they seem to be out of stock of many lenses I even called the Myfair Store, same story! I hope to get my M9 and the lens by next monday and I shall definitely have a look at the second hand market! And yes, bill, (No 2 above) I did try "lens" it worked on non-clickable sites! so thank you.

 

Maybe I'm a bit spoiled, but in the direct area of Amsterdam there are several shops with enough stock. My favorite shop (Nivo Schweitzer) even has the 50 nocti 0,95 on stock. Also zeiss ZM. Voightlanders (and leica) can be bought from Henny Hoogeveen in Noordwijk (Netherlands)

 

I'm pretty sure Henny Hoogeveen sells all-round the world. Don't know if Nivo Schweitzer does, but why not??

 

entree

nivo-schweitzer.nl

[Guest BigSplash]

It seems to me that if you want the very latest offering such as 35mm or 50mm ASPH LUX then the high demand has meant these are difficult to locate exstock anywhere.

 

If however you are new to Leica and have no lenses for a new M9 then buying RECENT large aperture M lenses (ie not 2010 new lens releases) I think you have a great opportunity on the secondhand market to get hold of ASPH lenses.

 

You could enjoy a TriElmar (WATE) or an 18mm, 21mm, 24mm or 28mm , plus say a 50mm Lux Cron or Nocti (f1) plus say a 90mm Cron or ASPH ....many if not all can be found secondhand in mint condition from reputable dealers as mentioned above at good prices.

 

You also could go for old lenses that are rather famous and cheap: 35mm, 50mm 90mm (f2) summicrons have been around for several decades and are excellent today, offering a certain character that distinguish them from the latest lenses. This is not to say that they are of lower quality by the way, just different.

 

Maybe you should try a few at a dealer and use that experience to fine tune what to buy.