stephengv Posted April 4, 2015 Share #1 Â Posted April 4, 2015 Advertisement (gone after registration) I'm planning to buy a new 35mm Summicron ASPH, how do I know if the said lens is made in the new factory in Wetzlar or still in the old factory in Solms? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 Hi stephengv, Take a look here How to know if Lens is Made it Solms or Wetzlar?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
jdlaing Posted April 4, 2015 Share #2 Â Posted April 4, 2015 Probably by the date the person signed the card for last inspection. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted April 4, 2015 Share #3 Â Posted April 4, 2015 What difference would it make ? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted April 4, 2015 Share #4 Â Posted April 4, 2015 Check for traces of icing sugar in the lens (the shine a torch through the lens trick). I hear that Leica are not allowing staff to eat strudel in the new factory due to past complaints about products made after the lunch breaks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herr Barnack Posted April 4, 2015 Share #5 Â Posted April 4, 2015 Buy the Safari set, just to be on the safe side. Getting the olive green M-P to go along with your Wetzlar made 35mm Summicron ASPH is something you will just have to live with. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NB23 Posted April 4, 2015 Share #6 Â Posted April 4, 2015 What difference would it make ? Â It's a Leica thing you wouldn't understand. It has more to do with the ego, not really about photography. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overgaard Posted April 4, 2015 Share #7  Posted April 4, 2015 Advertisement (gone after registration) I'm planning to buy a new 35mm Summicron ASPH, how do I know if the said lens is made in the new factory in Wetzlar or still in the old factory in Solms?  It's most likely made in Solms unless very new. But then again, it is not as simple as that.  Most of the Leica products are made in the very high-tech factory in Porto, Portugal that used to be a watchmaking facility till the 80's. It was recently rebuilt into a complete new factory.  As far as I know, only the cine lenses, Noctilux and 50 APO are made in Wetzlar now. All products, however are going via Wetzlar for quality control, and it is also in Wetzlar they do repair, cleaning and service.  The Solms factory was productive till a year ago. You can get an idea here: leica.overgaard.dk - Thorsten Overgaard's Leica Pages - The Story Behind That Picture 119 - "Inside The New Leica Factory in Wetzlar"  As for the very nice factory in Portugal, here is a picture enclosed of the entrance to the factory (opened in 2013).  In the past Leica had the factory in Canada. It was established after World War 2 to avoid a similar threat to Leica with just one factory. It was sold some 15-20 years ago, but served as production facility for many years.  The 75mm Summilux is a lens that was developed and made in Canada (where the famous lens designer Mandler worked and was head of optics development), then later the production of it moved to Germany. So this lens you can get as both Canadian and German, and generally the German is considered "more valuable" though there is no actual difference in optics. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/243184-how-to-know-if-lens-is-made-it-solms-or-wetzlar/?do=findComment&comment=2792732'>More sharing options...
Bill W Posted April 5, 2015 Share #8 Â Posted April 5, 2015 What difference would it make ? NONE Made in Germany!!!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mornnb Posted April 5, 2015 Share #9 Â Posted April 5, 2015 Does anyone not think it is a tad racist to judge products by the country they were made in? Why would Germans be better factory workers than Canadians or for that matter Portuguese? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
adan Posted April 5, 2015 Share #10 Â Posted April 5, 2015 The 75mm Summilux .... you can get as both Canadian and German... Â And sometimes both in one lens - since sales of this very pricey and exotic lens were not rapid, and thus many of the parts (glass and metal) assembled in Solms had been machined/poured/ground in Canada years before the switch. Â I believe the Canadian factory (as Hughes Leitz Optical) was providing some of the Noctilux f/1 glass long after Leica no longer owned the facility. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overgaard Posted April 5, 2015 Share #11 Â Posted April 5, 2015 Does anyone not think it is a tad racist to judge products by the country they were made in? Why would Germans be better factory workers than Canadians or for that matter Portuguese? Â It's more a marketing thing, I think. Positioning. Â A Swiss made watch is a real watch. German cars. Columbian coffee. French wine. Cuban cigars. Danish design. Italian opera. Â The 75mm was redesigned a little when they moved the production to Germany, but not optically. It made it a few grams lighter. Â Photographically speaking I would prefer a Canadian made (because that was where Mandler was), in terms of collecting "original Leica" I would go for the German. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted April 5, 2015 Share #12  Posted April 5, 2015 The 75mm was redesigned a little when they moved the production to Germany, but not optically. It made it a few grams lighter.  The focusing contact was changed. I do not know why, or whether either is better. Mine, version 1, is so right-on I feel almost blessed.  http://www.digoliardi.net/75mm-summilux-differences.jpg  And of course, the lens shade was changed so that the original V1 shades are hideously expensive. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herr Barnack Posted April 9, 2015 Share #13 Â Posted April 9, 2015 Does anyone not think it is a tad racist to judge products by the country they were made in? Why would Germans be better factory workers than Canadians or for that matter Portuguese? Â I can see no reason for throwing the race card here - it's just that for some, M lenses made at Leica's world headquarters carry a bit of romance that the others don't. Â My f/1 Noctilux was made in Canada, which matters not a whit to me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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