Anyone know what a good price would be for the 35 SP in excellent plus condition? What would you be willing to pay if you wanted one? Comes with the factory eveready case and strap.

-- Brian Harvey (bharvey423@yahoo.com), May 29, 2002

Answers

Hmmm. Now, did Leitz or Leica make this "Olympus" thing? Must have or you wouldn't have brought the question to this group. You could email Erwin Puts. Maybe he knows,

-- Patrick (pg@patrickgarner.com), May 29, 2002.

Brian, try Stephen Gandy's rangefinder forum on Topica.

-- Dave Jenkins (djphoto@vol.com), May 29, 2002.

I don't think this is the right place to post this question. Not only because you might not receive a good answer, but this forum is primarily about Leica-related photography. Other brands are often discussed, but there is usually a link or comparison back to Leica.

-- Tony Rowlett (rowlett@mail.com), May 29, 2002.

Brian,

Your question's OT, of course, but thank you for clearly labelling it so that those with no interest could ignore it. The Oly 35SP is a good fixed lens rangefinder camera IMHO - there, I knew there had to be a link with Leica somewhere!

I guess around $110 - $120 for a chrome version would seem reasonable from a dealer, less from a private seller; black ones are rare and cost more. The 35SP f/1.7 lens is excellent, BTW, better than the one in the 35RD. Check that the meter is working, in both average and spot mode, and that the VF/RF window is clean. These tend to be the biggest problem.

-- Ray Moth (ray_moth@yahoo.com), May 29, 2002.

You can find reasonable price Oly 35 SPs on Ebay,if I am not mistaken the average price is from $120.00 to $200.00 but depends on the condition of the camera. I have an Olympus RC more compact than an SP as my usual everyday carry camera. The Zuiko 2.8 lens is good but not good enough compare with Leica M lens.

-- edgaddi (edgaddi@msn.com), May 30, 2002.

The right way to ask this question on this board is not what is a good price but what piece of Leica equipment would constitute the right trade.

-- Jeff Spirer (jeff@spirer.com), May 30, 2002.

I'd expect to be able to find a good SP for around $125 or so.

Beware a couple of things; you'll need to use a mercury cell or Weincell for the meter, and if I recall correctly, the EI setting for the meter only goes to 400.

Of course this has nothing to do with Leica except that the SP is a fine little RF camera for those circumstances in which one might not want to take a Leica.

-- John Hicks (jhicks31@bellsouth.net), May 30, 2002.

The price for the 35 SP is about 100 - 130 USD here in Germany; I personally have the 35 RD which seems like a more reasonable choice: No spot metering, but half the cost with the same lens. Nice camera, and the price leaves you with enough money (in contrast to the SP) to start saving on that Leica M ;-)

-- Kai Blanke (kai.blanke@iname.com), May 31, 2002.

Although they have the same maximum aperture, the Olympus 35 RD doesn't have the same lens as the 35 SP: the SP lens has one additional element and is reputedly better corrected, especially wide open.

-- Ray Moth (ray_moth@yahoo.com), May 31, 2002.

I've used both. The lense on the SP is better between 1.7 and 2.8, no difference at smaller openings.

-- marco grande (hektor73@yahoo.com), May 31, 2002.