Does this Black M3 look phony to you?

[bob338]

this looks to me like the serial number is crooked and the wrong font. any chance it's real??

http://cgi.ebay.com/Black-Paint-Lei...209248078QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item200209248078

 

[Avotius]

Looks fake to me. The font just doesnt look right at all on the serial number. Maybe the result of a messy job painting the numbers in after repainting the body, also the top plate may be one of the blanks that show up every so often that was engraved with a number.

 

[Keith]

The pics of the camera have been taken with a really strange light ... the whole thing has an eerie golden glow which doesn't do it justice whatever it may be!

 

[xayraa33]

it is hard to tell from the photos, it could be a bad repaint or a phoney black one, serial numbers could be re- stamped to make it fit the known number block for black paint ones.
since it is a gamble, I would avoid this one for now.

 

[HuubL]

The number is in a different font than the original Leica font. M3 should be in a larger size than the numbers and the spacing is way off! It even looks as if it is photoshopped in that single picture showing the top. Definitely fake!

 

[nobbylon]

fake! the paint even looks like it's been done over chrome hence the weird look to it! wrong font.

 

[edho]

Looks fake to me. Besides, a real black paint M3 is in no way at this price.

 

[pvdhaar]

According to the seller 'camera seems to have been restored or redone.'.. That gives it away, doesn't it?

 

[wpb]

It has to be a re-paint. It has the quick load system added to it and the user even went through the trouble of putting on the decal. It was a camera that was set-up to be used. No way could the original paint stand up to that kind of use without being worn in the "usual" places.

 

[greyhoundman]

Normally I don't post in Leica threads.
But the white lettering paint has three different brightnesses.

Below the Lecia it is dim and tinted as old paint gets. The Leica is brighter. The serial number is so bright that it has to be new paint or PS trickery.

 

[spyder2000]

I find the lightning bolt on the shutter speed knob and the "B" in red to be interesting. And yes, the s/n font is hinky.

 

[HuubL]

I asked the seller if the number was really etched into the top plate. He responded to a possible buyer from Indonesia.... No, won't sell to there

 

[clicker]

It's a fake, no doubt about it.

 

[bob338]

what a shame, someone bought it.

 

[Bill Blackwell]

what a shame, someone bought it.

... and paid far too much for it! That has to be the worst repaint and fake sr. number engraving job I have ever seen on a Leica M!