trex1 Posted October 27, 2008 Share Posted October 27, 2008 When I lived in Santa Barbara, there was a camera store in Montecito. Someone had consigned an M6, a 28mm a 50mm f1.0 and a 90mm summicron, all mint for $4K. I wanted to buy but did not have the cash on hand. When I went there the next time someone had snagged it The guy that worked the counter was fuming because the clerk had sold it. Apparently he wanted to sell it for much more, but something got mixed up. Anyway I think those 1.0 Summiluxes are worth a pretty penny now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted October 27, 2008 Share Posted October 27, 2008 <P>It's not a rangefinder, but I got a Leica Minilux at a flea market for 2GBP ($4). Summitar 40mm, mint condition, full working order. The seller thought it was a Russian P&S.</P><P>It's not a camera I especially wanted, but for the price of a roll of film, I thought, why not.</P><P>Resale values of Miniluxes are not great, but I may try trading it for something more useful.</P> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_goutiere Posted October 27, 2008 Share Posted October 27, 2008 In 1980 I managed to buy a Leica M2, 35mm Summicron with case for $100.00. I still have the camera but not the lens. This was a pretty good deal even then, but all my other Leica acquisitions since were not nearly so good. The camera has been all over the place since then. Has had the bejabers beaten out of it, but still functions as well as my much newer M4-P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_taylor2 Posted October 27, 2008 Share Posted October 27, 2008 Early '90s, attended an estate sale at a very modest home. The camera equipment being offered was being held back from the sale until a "camera appraiser" had inspected the lot, and he was not expected until late afternoon. I was offered a look and found: an enlarger in the Leitz style but not labeled as such, a generic copy stand and some torn operating manuals. Things began to look up when I then found a mint FULDY and magnifier, a LTM 90 Elmar with minor corrosion and a 35mm d'ode LTM. Lastly, a grey IIICk, grey vulcan cover, "K" on the second curtain, and Summitar. The lettering on the body had yellowed, but paint was virtually untouched. Body had been adapted for the SELSY flash, also included, which bore the same serial no. as the body. $600 for the whole lot, before the appraiser arrived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilkka Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 A little bit battered Leitz tabletop tripod with large (actually the medium sized) ball head for about USD30. Still in regular use 20 years after I bought it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_neuthaler Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 MINT Leicalex Standard, Version II, for $150; MINT 21mm 1:3.4 Super Angulon R with MINT 21mm Leitz metal finder -- both for $600.00; MINT "50 Jahre" Leicaflex SL2 in CHROME for $1,100.00 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fld Posted October 28, 2008 Share Posted October 28, 2008 Best buy? A model C, optimized, with an Elmar f 3.5, 5 cm. For which I paid all of $35.00 at a flea market! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mohir_ali Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 Black paint M4 for $700 in '90, 35/2 ver. 1 for $400CDN in '92, 6X24 Trinovid ('63, first year for 'vids) for $20 at a yard sale in '95. First one stolen, still have the other two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_s.2 Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 My best Leitz "find" was not just my first M4 and 35 Summicron that I bought for around $300, but also the owner of this camera. Michael Rougier was a Life magazine photographer who was probably best known for his work during the Korean War. I met him in the late 70's when he was selling off some of his equipment and at that time he was selling another M4 body, but it had a broken finder window. Being a poor university student then, I couldn't afford the second body and have it repaired as well. Michael still lives in a little cabin on the outskirts of town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fredonian Posted October 30, 2008 Author Share Posted October 30, 2008 Vic, I would say that you can include your Leica gear ( retaining or increasing in value ) as a gain in the sense of bargain. Esspecially since ( even at this very moment ) one can't fathom the speed in which the value some film-based camera gear is dropping. Esspecially with medium format. Some medium format camera kits which were $3500 less than a decade or so ago, are now selling for under $500. It's a good time to be a camera collector. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_flash Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 I picked up a couple of Nikon RF lenses with finders and leather Nikon cases for $75 while passing through Jackson Wy, but passed on the SP because it was brassed. I saw an elderly lady sell a new condition black Leica II with Nickel lens for $100 to a shop, including manual, books, cartridges and case. Paint was like a mirror. I tried to buy it, but it went to the owner's collection. A friend went out to move his car at a Camera Show, the show folks asked him to move it off the grass. He met a guy who did not want to pay the $5 admission, and sold him a box of SM Leicas and lenses for $100. Visoflex, multiple nice bodies, lenses, hoods, etc. I 'll believe it when it arrives, but I paid for a 135mm Hektor M mount, $27 including shipping. Karma has balanced these with a few other deals, the CL without a battery, whose meter did not work when a battery was put in. (You know the listings, "I know nothing, seems to work, and the picture is fuzzy, I do not have a battery, but I want a lot of money for it" I have seen a guy trade two Mint Nikon F's, two Rolleis (one a 2.8 Planar 12/24) extra finders for the Nikons, and some money for an 8008s Nikon. Have seen Nikon N90s with a zoom for $75. Guy at the last show had two nice IIIf's with fresh cla for $250, still has them. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_meyer3 Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Leica IIIc with collapsable 50mm f/2 Summicron; $65 around 1990 from a local antique shop. I brought a Kodak Medalist at the same place/time for $60. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanford Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 OTOH I traded in my CLA'ed M6 with grip, 50mm Summicron, and some cash for a Nikon D300 so I made someone else's best Leica deal list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobtodrick Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 About 10 years ago I took a phone call from a client of mine, a local university medical dept. They said they had a 'few' things they no longer needed and would I be interested in finding them a home (I work at a large photo retailer). If went to see what they had, figuring I'd find a bunch of junk. What I found, was literally a small roomful of...mostly old junk. But unused, in boxes with all the original paperwork was: Leica IIIg, with 50 and 90mm Elmars. Bronica SQ with 3 lenses and 2 backs. 16mm Arriflex with sound gear and lens package. All pretty much new. Because all the gear had been tax deducted years ago they legally couldn't sell it. I told them I could move some of it and we could swing the high end Agfa Flatbed scanner they couldn't squeeze into their budget. So we cut the deal. I moved the Arri gear and the Bronica and they got the $6000 Agfa scanner donated. Plus they were more than happy to donate the IIIg kit to me, which I used up till a year or so ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pensacolaphoto Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Zeiss Jena 5cm 2.0 pre-war LTM for $225. Like new M3 [with original receipt] plus rigid 50mm Summicron plus 35mm Summicron plus 90mm Summicron for $1650. It came with many accesories too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_bury Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 Leica IIIf Black dial w/ 50 mm summitar, leather case and Leica light meter for $20 at a garage sale down the street two years ago. I've been using it ever since. Even came with a half roll of film, which I haven't bothered to try and develop. I just regret I didn't buy the zeiss camera for another $20. Got me interested in photography so now here I am cruising the leica and rangefinder boards. thanks for all the great tips.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msitaraman Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 I was going to say "a 36 exposure roll of Tri-X for $2.99" before I saw the above post. John Bury wins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pensacolaphoto Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 John, Which Zeiss camera wa sthe other $20 camera? Was it a Contaflex TLR by any chance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yeffe Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 M3ss body (ex-) purchased in 2006 for 600. Arrived non-functional with leatherette peeling off and studded with bug carcasses. Seller refunded cost of CLA and re-leathering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_bury Posted October 31, 2008 Share Posted October 31, 2008 No, the Zeiss wasn't the TLR. The funny thing is that I didn't know much about cameras but I recognized the Zeiss and Leica names from optics that we use at work. I asked the guy at the garage sale to hold onto the Leica so I could run home and get some money. I asked my wife if I should buy the Zeiss or the Leica and she said, "Leica makes good cameras," so I bought the Leica. I told the guy that I thought old cameras sure look cool and he said, "It's a camera, you should take pictures with it." Good advice. The next weekend we had some friends over who coincidentally had a Leica IIIc, so he showed me how to load the film and told me how lucky I was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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