Camera West, Rancho Mirage, CA

[earful]

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provided me with a brand new 50mm summilux asph - it arrived yesterday. i decided i did not want to pay a premium from a private seller and asked to be placed on their waiting list. in february i missed a phone call which i later determined to be from camera west. in mid-march, another call came in. camera west was notifying me a week in advance of arrival at their facility that they had some 50mm summiluxes coming in and asked if i wanted one. i said yes.

 

no deposit required to be on their waiting list, though i had purchased a used 50mm summarit earlier and my credit card number was on file with them. price including fedex 2-day to hawaii: $4054.72. (by the way, fedex is not my preferred shipper, as they don't deliver on saturdays. my lens arrived in hawaii on friday evening and wasn't delivered till monday afternoon.)

 

today i noticed on the stevehuff site at least two people on the west coast advertising brand new 50mm summiluxes for sale in the $4500 range. presumably this is before paypal or other fees and shipping. so i assume lenses arrive and are being siphoned off for resale. in addition, the smaller shop i deal with in new york has yet to receive a black 50mm summilux, though they did receive a silver one quite awhile ago and i turned down the opportunity to purchase it.

 

so 1) supply seems to be more regular, i.e., february and march batches at camera west, 2) the larger operations appear to be more likely to be supplied first and more consistently and 3) if you have the patience and want a lens, i can certainly recommend camera west.

[ymc226]

I also have had a very good experience with Camera West. I am on the other coast but called around and placed my name on several waiting lists for the new Noctilux around October.

 

Not having any history with them and having bought mostly from the East coast, I was happily surprised that it was CW that came through with the lens last week. They mentioned that they received 2 Noctiluxes. All in all, very satisfied.

[Printmaker]

Camera West gets most of my business. Sean is upfront and honest. Highly recommended.

[darylgo]

I received my 50 lux from CW last week and second your high recommendations. In recent months I had also purchased some used equipment having spent several hours in the store and then by phone. They always have taken the time to search out an item whether in person/phone call. Very nice and friendly.

[SteveYork]

They are good folks based on my one experience. I purchased a used camera from them years ago, had a problem and in the end was satisfied. At one time their used prices seemed high, but now with the sky rocketing that has taken place, they don't seem so bad.

[kokoshawnuff]

I've been to both of their stores (one up north near stanford and the one mentioned here in the desert) and the sale people have always been curious and seemingly knowledgable. I prefer not to pay state sales tax on high priced items so I haven't purchased anything expensive from them, but wouldn't hesitate to do so if I was in the 49 other United States.

[CalArts 99]

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I bought a Schneider view camera lens from them and it was in immaculate condition (they called it 'excellent' condition.) There wasn't even any dust in-between the elements. Maybe it hadn't been used (?) The transaction was smooth and painless.

 

btw, as far as in-state sales taxes in CA go, one does have to report internet purchases that have not been taxed by the vendor on their annual state income tax return. It's called 'use tax' and is based on the sales tax of where you live (LA County, etc..) My accountant has me fill out the form each year on out-of-state purchases for products used within the state. He said the state is really clamping down on this and can ask for credit card records. And if you're a business there is a set amount of outside purchases you can make without filing a special form in addition to the annual declaration on your tax return.