M8 reasonable price?

santino

santino

FSU gear head
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Hi!

How much is a second hand M8 worth nowadays? I plan to get one in the near future and it seems to have a price range between 1800$ to 2200$. Would 2000$ be fine from a Leica dealer plus a one year warranty (in really good condition, box and all papers in chrome - I'd like to get a chrome example).

Thanks in advance!
 
I was thinking about getting the M8 too
before the announcement of Pro-X1...

Now, I want to see a comparison between them
 
santino said:
Hi!

How much is a second hand M8 worth nowadays? I plan to get one in the near future and it seems to have a price range between 1800$ to 2200$. Would 2000$ be fine from a Leica dealer plus a one year warranty (in really good condition, box and all papers in chrome - I'd like to get a chrome example).

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

Having just bought my M8 about a month ago, I can say you're looking at around $2000 for a decent user if you're patient in your search. I did a lot of looking and saw prices from $1900 up to $3k depending on the various factors that those sorts of things depend on... I bought the $1900 one with 14,000 clicks on it and a couple small scratches on the LCD.

I think you'll find it difficult to find one with a warranty at that price. I'd definitely choose a place that has a generous return policy, given the cost of repairs and the fact that the cameras are a few years old now.
 
santino said:
Hi!

How much is a second hand M8 worth nowadays? I plan to get one in the near future and it seems to have a price range between 1800$ to 2200$. Would 2000$ be fine from a Leica dealer plus a one year warranty (in really good condition, box and all papers in chrome - I'd like to get a chrome example).

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

I'd say yes, definitely.
 
Bought one in October for 2250. With 170 actuations! Sadly after a dozen shots I got the dreaded drive blocked shutter failure. Running first firmware version, must have had it on continuous. eBay seller agreed to pay for repair. 450 bucks later it came back just after Xmas. I now have a 1 year warranty after Leica touched it. I really lucked out!

Look for vertical lines and take some long exposure shots.
Obviously RF alignment & actuations are definitely a factor in price.

Been dying to tell my story!
Good luck searching!
M8 is a great camera
 
Used Leica prices vary somehow from country to country. Buying on (ex.) ebay may be interesting for some, but I guess many prefer to see and try such a valuable camera before they buy it, at a local store.

My experience is from the Italian and Norwegian market and suggests that for 2000 US$ (1570 Euro) you may definitely get a nicely used M8s from a privat seller without any other garantee than the original leica one, if still running. But you're most unlikely to find any decent M8 from photo dealers for the same price. Probably 2200 $ up is what you'll have to pay, specially for one with garantee.
 
Are 7.000 shutter actuations fine or is it already too much?
I wonder how many shutter actuations a M3 can survive (after 50 years)
 
santino said:
Are 7.000 shutter actuations fine or is it already too much?
I wonder how many shutter actuations a M3 can survive (after 50 years)
Click to expand...
I would say that's a pretty low number. Particularly since I thought mine was "low-mileage" at 14,000+ clicks.

After doing some looking online, I see a number of failures at relatively low numbers, as well as plenty of shutters that seem to last much, much longer. I'd say it's a roll of the dice. I, for one, hope that I got an M8 that was made after they figured out whatever early shutter problem they had.

At this moment, mine is at 15,338 clicks.
 
santino said:
Hi!

How much is a second hand M8 worth nowadays? I plan to get one in the near future and it seems to have a price range between 1800$ to 2200$. Would 2000$ be fine from a Leica dealer plus a one year warranty (in really good condition, box and all papers in chrome - I'd like to get a chrome example).

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

From my point of view 2000$ is cheap. In my country, without any warranty, and from a private seller (non-leica dealers), they run about 2500.
 
Let me introduce to all of you the bathtub effect. http://www.weibull.com/hotwire/issue21/ht21_1.gif

The bathtub represents the shape of a graph representing the failure of any given 'system' or set of products over time. The initial products released have a higher failure rates due to the fact that many problems which had not been foreseen, result in a higher incidence of failures. The higher failures later on in the timeframe are the result of normal product wear.

To minimize your chances of a defective camera, pick one with a later serial number and a moderate number of actuations (rather than low number)
 
well the serial number starts with 333**** so it seems to be a later batch, right? (as far as I know the M8 started with 31**** and so on)
 
FWIW, I may be about to find out the current market value... as I am seriously considering, maybe, possibly, perhaps putting my M8 on the block! :(
 
santino said:
well the serial number starts with 333**** so it seems to be a later batch, right? (as far as I know the M8 started with 31**** and so on)
Click to expand...

Correct, the 333*** serial numbers were the later ones. Mine is supposedly one of the last M8s before the M8.2, and it is a 333- series.
 
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