RE: A recommendation.

  • From: "Gary Pinkerton" <gpinkcp@xxxxxxx>
  • To: leica@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2007 15:14:22 -0600

I agree 100%, they are the best I've ever used !!


From: David Young <telyt@xxxxxxxxx>
Reply-To: leica@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
To: leica@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: A recommendation.
Date: Fri, 02 Nov 2007 23:32:24 -0700


All:

A few weeks ago, Rose and I were in north western Alberta, where I took the shots of Nuthatches, Evening Grosbeaks and Blue Jays, all recently shown, here.

For most of the shots I'd used an old SL vintage 2x converter, which I love. But, when I went to put my gear away, the converter would not mount on the back of my old 50mm Summicron, where I usually store it, in my kit. Closer examination showed that the glass elements of lens and converter were touching! Turns out that the converter's optical elements are in a barrel with an externally threaded body, which is, in turn, threaded into the main body of the converter. I'm unsure whether it is held in place by a set screw, or simply by some Loc-tite or its equivalent. However it is normally held, it had come loose and moved, making optical alignment more than a wee bit of a problem. In fact it had become so loose, that I could, without any difficulty, unscrew it completely from the body of the converter!

Needless to say, most of my exposures were out of focus - even though they seemed OK in the LeiCanon's finder.

We made the 11 hour drive home in one day, on a Sunday, doing laundry and re-packing our bags on the holiday Monday (Canadian Thanksgiving) before setting out for the LHSA convention, in Rochester, NY, early the next morning. Somewhere, during that busy Monday, I found time to pack the converter and write a short note to Gerry Smith, at Kindermann, Canada, in Toronto. I mailed it, whilst on the road, the next day.

My short note told Gerry what was wrong, gave him my Visa number and said that if the bill was under $200, to simply go ahead with the repairs. If over that, please call me first, though I'd probably still say "OK".

We had a grand time in Rochester, making new friends and renewing many old friendships. We've been so busy since returning home that I have had almost no time to be behind a camera. Thus, I'd almost forgotten about my missing converter!

Today, there was a note in my post box that I had a parcel waiting. The return address was Kindermann, Toronto. Inside, was a note, which said "Secure Assembly, Check & reset collimation and general cleaning". Except for the usual wear on a 30 year old piece of gear, the converter looks like new! The cleaning job was incredible. The bill was even more incredible. Just $85.00!

Over the years, I've used Gerry and his crew for many repairs... thankfully, most of them were paid for by my insurance company, for by now the bills must be in the thousands! But I have always found Gerry and his crew to do first rate work, quickly, professionally and with the upmost precision. Unlike Leica themselves, I have never been disappointed, or had even the slightest problem, with Kindermann!

Kindermann are, btw, the Warranty depot, for Leica, in Canada.

Should you need top notch repairs on Leica (including screw mounts - I'm told that Kindermann Canada bought Leica's entire stock of SM parts when they went out of SM maintenance) or Rollie, consider Gerry, at Kindermann Canada, in Toronto. I don't think you can possibly go wrong!

Please note, I have no connection with Kindermann except as very satisfied customer.... again!

Cheers!
---

David Young,
Logan Lake, CANADA

Wildlife Photographs: http://www.telyt.com/
Personal Web-pages: http://www3.telus.net/~telyt
Stock Photography at: http://tinyurl.com/2amll4



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