CLA costs

[bgb]

Hi Folks,

I'm looking at a Leica in what could be very used condition and I'm wondering what the CLA costs might be ... yeah i know it's hard to say but if i was to buy it how much extra should I allow? ball park figure? roughly? Assuming it needs no repairs for busted internals 🙂 $300?

Here it is ...
http://www.trademe.co.nz/a.aspx?id=215938888

Is it even a good idea to buy one like this ... should i wait for a very nice one to come along
All comments welcomed ... yes really 🙂

Cheers,
Brian

 

[maddoc]

Well ... it looks like that camera has seen lots of use. Some dents and signs of wear. What strikes me most is that the Elmar (judging from the photo) seems to have haze and from the description "camera has not been used or looked after for several years) I would assume gummed up grease in the mechanics and some haze in the VF also.

$300 might bring this camera back to work if nothing is really broken but if new shutter-curtains are needed and parts of the mechanic to be replaced ....

Without inspecting it or the right to return it I would not buy it.

 

[bgb]

Cheers Maddoc, I have been bitten badly buying cameras from people who have little knowledge of them ...it's getting to be a bad habit 🙂
Like most of us the idea of finding a gem makes us do silly things ...

 

[wontonny]

I paid $250 for a routine CLA, nothing special done.

 

[nobbylon]

Buy one from this forum. That way you will more than likely know what you are getting.

 

[Tom A]

It does look a bit tired and well used. However it is a complete kit with both the 50mm and the camera.
Usually a basic clean, lube and adjust costs between US100-$150, If the curtains are "shot" add another $140-160 to that. The good thing is that if you get it below the $500 - you can get it "re-vitalized" for another $150 or so (curtains good) - you have a nice working, single stroke M3 with a # over 1 million. The lens can be cleaned and the good thing is that the Elmar 50 is not difficult to clean.
To put it in perspective: at last Sunday's Swap meet here I picked up a M3 DS (#808xxx - cant remember the rest) with a 50f2 Summicron collapsible with the correct hood. The lens is pristine - the former owner obviously kept the UV filter on it at all times. The body was sluggish, advance was stiff from disuse but the finder was clean and clear as was the rangefinder patch. The local "tech" was at the meet so I just handed him the body and asked for a CLA. We decided that the curtains looked greyish but showed no signs of pinholes so they could last for some time. Otherwise the service will cost around $140 (all figures in Canadian $ with 1C$= US$ 0,82). Total outlay for me is so far C$ 640= US$ 520.
Body has meter marks on it (and a dead MC meter on it too), but otherwise OK as a user.
I would consider it a decent buy, not dirt cheap but on par what it should be in a private deal.
This should give an idea what you are getting in to. It is nice to buy the mint or new stuff - but it is much better to buy good user stuff and just stock up on film instead.

 

[bgb]

Only trouble buying one from the forum is that the price will be in US dollars or euro.

our currency is not worth the paper it's printed on and one New Zealand Dollar is about ........ $00.57 US cents

Might still be worth a look

Thanks

 

[maddoc]

Tom, a very good advice and what you say makes perfect sense to me.

My only concerns are: IF (!!) a) somebody has some experience with mechanical Leicas b) can inspect the camera / lens in person c) has a direct contact to a good (!!) camera technician then this somebody can easily get a good deal. Otherwise it is more a kind of gambling, IMHO ...

 

[bgb]

i have asked the trade if he will allow me to inspect it, or more to the point a Technician to check it out ...
gonna cover my ass on this deal 🙂

I have never owned a Leica ... and I WANT ONE 🙂

 

[HuubL]

- you have a nice working, single stroke M3 with a # over 1 million.

Tom, the camera is an M2. If it were an >1 miliion M3 it would make it more interesting, but an M2... 😉

OK, I see the price is in NZ$. That makes $400 about EUR 170. I could imagine the set would go for around EUR 350-375 here in Europe, perhaps EUR 100 more if the sellers could check out that everything was fully functional, and the lens and imarect had only external dust.

 

[JohnTF]

Camera looks very rough, both in terms of use, and in storage, it looks as if it has been damp.

I always question when some group puts up a camera like this, with the usual disclaimer that they know nothing about it, then put a reserve on it.

This holds you to some price they determined, probably by a Google search, but releases them from any responsibility.

Once I figured out the price in USD, the current bid made more sense.

That said, if it was cleaned up, it might be worth what it takes in bid.

I am thinking no more than $250-$300, if you have access to good service.

A friend in Atlanta just bought a black M4 in nice shape with a CLA and warranty, from a dealer here for $700, and the local shop sold a not too bad user M4 with 28mm for $1000.

I would also ask what the reserve is, have no idea why sellers keep it a secret.

Regards, John

 

[bgb]

Some traders are just trying to play a little game ... it's called give me money for junk!

Seller is not interested in letting the winner inspect the camera by using 'safeTrader'

I'm not interested in giving someone money for a camera that might be very sick.

Next please 🙂

 

[JohnTF]

There seems to be a lot of very good stuff out there, and someone brings in a set of Leica M gear at every show. I sometimes buy a box of stuff, keep what I "need", and sell off the other, hopefully at enough small profit to pay for the piece I really want. Of course, I think I have a drawer full of the stuff I am still waiting to cash in. Theory seems OK.

OTOH, doesn't everyone need three M3's? ;-) "Baby, if God don't like ugly, you're bound for hell" Dave Bromberg, as I recall. Am not sure if this "Baby" is gonna walk again, or end up as parts. I mean, a well used Leica, with some character, humming along nicely, this ain't.

Maybe someone will take it home and make it better?


Regards, John

 

[richardl]

I would use only a 1st tier Leica repair person. I have never paid less than USD 300-400 for a real CLA (i.e. service camera to factory spec). To read more about the abundance of CLA fraud see: http://www.zeisscamera.com/services_cla.shtml

 

[bgb]

Highest bid was $777.00

Reserve was $900.00

Ouch!

 

[Roger Hicks]

I would use only a 1st tier Leica repair person. I have never paid less than USD 300-400 for a real CLA (i.e. service camera to factory spec). To read more about the abundance of CLA fraud see: http://www.zeisscamera.com/services_cla.shtml

Dear Richard,

Indeed, there are distressingly many people who do a 'CLA' that consists of sloshing it out with lighter fluid and then spraying it with large quantities of unsuitable oil.

I have always preferred the old British term, 'strip, clean and overhaul', because that's what you really want. And it's going to cost you.

Tashi delek,

R.

 

[Gumby]

The British term is quaint, but makes me think of a naked repairman. 😱

I'm not sure, though, that it implies anything more than CLA. How about this as an alternative:

Clean, Lubricate, and Adjust To Manufacturer's Specification (CLATMS).

It doesn't roll off the tongue like "CLA" or "SCO" but at least it includes the standard to which the work is to be performed.

 

[HuubL]

Dear Richard,

Indeed, there are distressingly many people who do a 'CLA' that consists of sloshing it out with lighter fluid and then spraying it with large quantities of unsuitable oil.

I have always preferred the old British term, 'strip, clean and overhaul', because that's what you really want. And it's going to cost you.

Tashi delek,

R.

Don't know. Not sure if a naked repair man would do a much better job...

 

[newspaperguy]

A little OT, but a 'user' Canon 7 that I purchased off this list - the
seller said it had a few problems, but he had fixed them. He had...
for over a month. Then it took about $170 with Eddy Smolov to
make a 'working' user out of it.

 

[Roger Hicks]

The British term is quaint, but makes me think of a naked repairman. 😱

I'm not sure, though, that it implies anything more than CLA. How about this as an alternative:

Clean, Lubricate, and Adjust To Manufacturer's Specification (CLATMS).

It doesn't roll off the tongue like "CLA" or "SCO" but at least it includes the standard to which the work is to be performed.

CLAIMS is certainly accurate and comprehensive, and should be adopted forthwith. But naked repairmen notwithstanding, 'strip' (the camera, not the repairman) does imply a higher degree of getting the camera apart than seems to be the case in some 'CLAs'.

I may be biased. My father was a steam engineer, and taught me that if you want to make sure something is inside spec, you need to strip it down first, and sometimes to measure critical dimensions as well as visually insoecting the parts. (Pause for understandable s******s.) I'm not sure that all so-called CLAs include the necessary degree of disassembly.

There's also the point that you can sometimes get 'inside spec' for a while by (for example) over-tensioning a spring to overcome the resistance of dried lubricants, even though this will accelerate wear and the demise of whatever is being overhauled. Perhaps, therefore, SCOMS might be better: Strip Clean and Overhaul to Manufacturers' Specification.

Edit: THERE'S political correctness for you. The word 'sni**er* (the asterisks are Gs) is what got asterisked out.

Tashi delek,

R.