i havent seen that as an option on the part of leica's site where you can design your a-la-carte, but that would actually make buying one more attractive for me........
Yep, pop the batteries. But honestly, if you don't want the onboard meter, why not get an older M2 or M3?
yeah i just realized after some research on the mp classic that their price would probably be about the same anyway, a-la-cartes are so expensive. or i could just get a black m4, which coule be even cheaper!! that's actually what i want, and what i'm trying to get to with a meterless MP....
Jati, Sandy Ritz at Ritz Collectibkles has a lovely black paint M3 for $20,000 -- sounds like a deal.
A couple of US dealers seem to be doing the MP classic kit for about $4000. Another option is to have an M2/3/4 refinished in black (and serviced), total price maybe $2,500?
"can you get a non-metering body as an a-la-carte option for MP?" Even if you could, why? I could understand if they have a distracting meter guage in the finder, but I don't believe that's the case with the Leicas. Isn't the metering totally invisible when it's not powered on?
I was told by a Leica rep that if you remove the batteries it will void your warranty, but they do have a don't ask don't tell policy.
"Paul, does $20,000 mean 20 thousand bucks?? Not a very good deal, is it? ;-)" That is for a near mint original BP M3 in the original box. A well worn original BP M3 would still sell for about $7000-$8000. The original black paint M3 is one of the most sought after Leica collectibles.
Just get an M4. When you're looking through the viewfinder, you can't tell whether it's black or chrome.