Leica LTM Getting my first Barnack tomorrow!

Leica M39 screw mount bodies/lenses
Roberto V.

Roberto V.

Le surrèalisme, c'est moi
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Nov 2, 2009
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Long story short: I met a man downtown when I was shooting with my M4. He recognized it and we talked a bit about Leicas. A week later I saw him again and offered to buy his Leica gear from him. It was a long story, but in the end he "sold it to a friend" and now his friend supposedly doesn't want it anymore, so he's selling it to me (I think he just kept it himself and is bumping up the price, guess my 'uninterested' approach wasn't convincing enough). Of course, he bumped the price up by $500 :eek:. Still, it's a great deal and I'm picking it up tomorrow. I think it's a IIIC. I didn't check it carefully in order not to look too interested, but IIRC, it didn't have the ASA reminder on the knob, and it had the little index ball in the slow speed dial, so, IIIC?
Anyway, it comes with an Elmar 50mm 3.5, Summitar, Hektor 73mm 1.9 in its box (!), Telyt 200mm f/4, Visoflex+viewfinder, bellows, never-ready case, plus another one for an M (M3 I believe), a Weston meter, cable release, VIOOH viewfinder, and a NOOKY close focus adapter.
I feel like a kid before Christmas! I'm gonna go to sleep early to wait less! :D
I'll post pics of the kit tomorrow afternoon, and pics taken with it as soon as my scanner and chemicals arrive.
Finally I'm going to be part of the Barnack club!

Cheers,
Rob
 
CONGRATS Roberto...Tres,Tres Fab
You will LOVE the Barnack Experience

Great set of lenses...YAY !
 
The Barnack will take a little getting used to but, I love shooting with mine partly because it's pretty amazing that a camera over 50 years old is still capable of making great pictures. I like the feel of it and it's classic look. You got a great kit, enjoy it. Jim
 
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Thanks everyone! I'm sure I'll love the camera. I shot and wound a couple of shots with it to check the shutter 3 weeks ago, and it's incredibly smooth! The guy says he got it CLA'd here in Monterrey, Mexico, but i don't know if that's true. I mean, seriously? a Leica CLA in Mexico? But it might be true for all I know.. there are a few Leica collectors in the country.
I just watched a movie (Delicatessen, great movie, MUCH recommended) to pass a couple of hours, and now I'm going to bed. I'll update you guys tomorrow.

Also, I was just thinking... A year ago I wouldn't dream that I'd have a Leica in the near future, much less two! How quickly things change! I've been lucky with the deals I find.

Cheers,
Rob
 
Melvin said:
That Hektor 73mm alone goes for $1100-$1500, according to this website. What a steal!
http://www.antiquecameras.net/leicascrewlenses.html
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I know, actually it's been selling for even more lately, that's my main reason for buying the kit. The whole kit without the hektor wouldn't be a good deal at all for the price i'll pay, but with the hektor, I basically get everything else for free once I sell it. And it's the all-black paint version too!
 
helenhill said:
CONGRATS Roberto...Tres,Tres Fab
You will LOVE the Barnack Experience

Great set of lenses...YAY !
Click to expand...

I can't wait to shoot the Summitar, the pics you posted on the Summitar thread are amazing. The elmar had been on my list for a while, too. I ordered some adapters from Fotodiox, to use the lenses on my M4 also. I made a cardboard template for the film leader and cut a roll of Arista Premium 400 (Tri-x) and Legacy Pro 100 (Fuji Acros, so I can shoot with my favorite films as soon as I get it :D
 
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Ok guys, this is it! In about 30 minutes, I'm heading downtown to meet with the guy and buy the camera :D I'm VERY excited.

barnwulf said:
The Barnack will take a little getting used to but, I love shooting with mine partly because it's pretty amazing that a camera over 50 years old is still capable of making great pictures. I like the feel of it and it's classic look. You got a great kit, enjoy it. Jim
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Yeah, I imagine I'll have to use it for a while to get used to the VF/RF. When I handled it, I didn't really figure it out, but I just looked through the VF/RF for a few seconds. I didn't want to look too interested, otherwise the guy might have raised the price even more. And my old cameras never stop surprising me. My Contaflex (1953) is still as capable of making a great picture as my Canon SLRs. My M4 is on a whole different level though, and she's almost 41 years old (May 1970).
 
Be careful your on a slippery slope......I loved my first IIIc so much now I have a IIIa, IIIf and a IIIc (k) stepper. Barnacks are my favorite 35 bar none.

What a deal!! Good luck!
 
Not exactly blown away. I'm returning it to the seller in a few hours... Turns out the camera was a mess, the RF is extremely dim, impossible to focus, and the slow speeds stick open. The lenses all had haze, the Summitar had fungus, The VIOOH had a TON of haze too. It was all a mess. I wouldn't keep it even if he gave it to me for $500
 
That's too bad. BUT- the 73/1.9 is worth more than $500 by itself. Youxin Ye has replaced the beamsplitter in 3 of my Barnack Leica's, and a Leotax D-IV. The D-IV was in a storage shed for over 30 years, and he made it perfect. Haze is the norm for a Leica lens, and it usually cleans up well. If the Hektor is part of the deal, and you can get it for $500 or so- worth considering.
 
Brian Sweeney said:
That's too bad. BUT- the 73/1.9 is worth more than $500 by itself. Youxin Ye has replaced the beamsplitter in 3 of my Barnack Leica's, and a Leotax D-IV. The D-IV was in a storage shed for over 30 years, and he made it perfect. Haze is the norm for a Leica lens, and it usually cleans up well. If the Hektor is part of the deal, and you can get it for $500 or so- worth considering.
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I'll try to get the Hektor separately if possible. The whole kit was well over 500 though, so the rest is going back.
 
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