CLA Cost- Extreme pricing differences

I just got an M2 back from YouXin and he was superhonest, patient and actually pretty generous as well. I recommend him.
 
enochRoot said:
what is his contact information? i have never heard of him. does he have a website?
I'm very glad to hear he's back. He has a tremendous reputation. He does not hava web site as far as I know, and the last email address I have for him is wye7 AT yahoo DOT com.

If anyone has an updated address for Youxin please don't enter it as a literal, he will get spam from it. Please use a format similar to the one I used above. Thanks.

 
Thanks for all these great responses. As several of you stated, it is probably in the little details, small items like screws replaced, and name recognition.

I also suspect DAG or Sherry would have a larger stash of Leica parts.
 
DAG did an excellent CLA job on my Minox BL. He wants to work verses emailing you. Heard good things about David Yau too. :) :)
 
DAG and Sherry K get higher prices because they are both formerly factory-trained by Leica. If people like Youxin are masters then DAG is a PhD :p I've so far used DAG for all my repairs. I like his poilte manner and professional attitude, and his work has always been first-rate.
 
there should be more than a handful good and competent CLA technicians out there, as it would not be realistic to expect just a few named above to service all those M bodies ever produced, it would be wrong to idealize just a few famed ones. Imagine all those Wetzlar factory workers who built the M3/2/4 who are forever nameless, anyone of them should be as good as DAG/Sherry Krauser.
 
There should be a lot more competition, but there aren't any young people going into the business, for obvious reasons. It's also a niche market. Leicas are some of the few film cameras worth enough to justify high repair bills. With most digital cameras you're better off throwing the camera away because the latest model is better faster and cheaper than what just broke.

As I mentioned before, there is no mystery to repairing a Leica. In fact, it's rather more straightforward than servicing a lot of other cameras.

As far as parts are concerned, Youxin has lots of them. I saw them.

I don't think that Don Goldberg or Sherry Krauther are bad or do bad work. They just charge more and take longer than Youxin.

You can have your oil changed at the dealership's service department or a factory authorized repair shop or you can go down to the local mechanic and have it changed there for a lot less money. Your car won't know the difference. On the other hand it might matter more to you than it does to the car. MBAs in marketing are paid six figure salaries figuring out and capitalizing on the psychology of consumers.

Whatever makes the customer happy.
 
JJW said:
You can have your oil changed at the dealership's service department or a factory authorized repair shop or you can go down to the local mechanic and have it changed there for a lot less money. Your car won't know the difference. On the other hand it might matter more to you than it does to the car. MBAs in marketing are paid six figure salaries figuring out and capitalizing on the psychology of consumers.

Whatever makes the customer happy.

I might equate having the light seals replaced on a Nikon FM with getting my oil changed, but a complete overhaul on a Leica I would equate to having the engine and transmission rebuilt on a Mercedes. That's not something I would be comfortable trusting to the self-taught guy down at the corner Shell. But maybe I've been brainwashed by MBAs.
 
Back
Top Bottom