CLE & 40mm Rokkor selling price?

[v_roma]

Hello everyone,

Times are tough so another piece of gear has to go... I'm planning on selling (probably on RFF) a recently CLA'd/serviced Minolta CLE and a 40mm Rokkor lens. The CLE went in for repair last year because the shutter stopped working. I suspect it was just a matter of cleaning the contacts. It was also CLA'd when it went in. What is the going price for the camera and lens these days and are they better sold together or separately?

Thank you very much!

[pggunn]

I'm thinking the CLE should go for $500 to $800 (USA) depending on condition. If the meter works and everything else is in order, and it's in good cosmetic shape about $800 tops.

The 40/2 Rokkor should go for about $400 more or less - $300 to $500, from a working but beat up user to one like new - I think, but don't take my word for it. It's a volatile market.

I'd check prices from recent auctions on ebay, at KEH, Collectible Camera, here in the RFF classifieds, and maybe some of the others here will weigh in with their opinions.

BTW, I've been kicking myself ever since selling my 40 Rokkor and R3A two or three years ago. I was out of work for a while and needed the money. I'll probably get another 40 soon. I've got a tax refund coming and a Bessa R2 already in the mail!

[v_roma]

Thanks for the response. I've been holding on to this kit for as long as I could justify it, particularly the rokkor, which I think is a special lens. But I think it's time to let it go. More important things in life that the money should be spent on.

[pggunn]

KEH just posted a few 40 Rokkors for sale today and they have gone up quite a bit more than I thought. EX grade is now in the $700 to $800 range!

They have a bargain grade listed at $484! Three years ago you could get an EX for less than that.

Now more than ever I wish I could have held on to mine.

[Brian Levy]

Sell the body and save the lens. Look for a CL user body and you'll end up with the same quality and have the lens. I have the Summicron-C version and can not imagine it ever leaving the house, even if it finally becomes a shelf queen. I think it is ine of the best lenses Leica designed. I do have the 90mm Rokkar which unlike the 40mm is not the same as the 90 in the Leica kit and reputedly the better of the 2.

[Godfrey]

Originally Posted by Brian Levy

Sell the body and save the lens. Look for a CL user body and you'll end up with the same quality and have the lens. I have the Summicron-C version and can not imagine it ever leaving the house, even if it finally becomes a shelf queen. I think it is ine of the best lenses Leica designed. I do have the 90mm Rokkar which unlike the 40mm is not the same as the 90 in the Leica kit and reputedly the better of the 2.

Um, the M-Rokkor 90mm f/4 and the Elmar-C 90mm f/4 are exactly the same lens, built on the same production line in Wetzlar. The only difference is the bezel (the Minolta one says M-Rokkor, etc, and has a 40.5mm JIS filter thread, where the Leica version says Elmar-C, etc, and has a German E series thread). They even say "Made in Germany" on the base on both.

The Summicron-C 40mm and M-Rokkor 40mm f/2 (first gen) were also the same lens, but the M-Rokkor was built by Minolta in Japan and the Summi was built by Leica in Germany. Their performance is near to identical, but some people feel the Summi is better made ... It always seemed a little heavier to me. The M-Rokkor 40mm f/2 (gen 2) that the CLE came with is the same optical design but has multi coating. This lens definitely feels lighter than the Summi and perhaps isn't built quite to the same standard, but it exhibits less flare.

I've had both 90s and all three 40s over the years. I have the 2nd gen 40mm and the 90 M-Rokkors now. The 40mm is one of my very favorite lenses and is almost permanently glued to my M9 at this point. It is a great performer and weighs virtually nothing.

Leica M9 + M-Rokkor 40mm f/2

It's almost too sharp! This size rendering of this photo does not do it justice.

I think I paid about $625 for this example of the 40/2 in absolutely mint condition from KEH.com last Fall. It was worth every penny. I'd sell the CLE body and hang onto the lens if I could.

[Brian Levy]

Years ago after getting the kit that included the Rokkor 90, I spoke to Leica and was told the Elmar-C 90 and the Rokkor-C 90 for the CLE are not the same. Possibly the version sold with the Minolta labeled CL was the same but we did not discuss this possibility. The gent whom I got the kit from was a well respected technical camera guy and I repsected his evaluation. In practical use, it seems most who have been able to comapr the 2 prefer the Rokkor, being sharper than the Elmar. I've not comapred the pair personally. The difference filter threads are a bit of a pain. Having collected filter kits over the decades is the one sore point in my system. However, I have adaptors to Series V filters so that has helped.

My 40mm Summicron-C is I think an early model and I love it. I've compared it to several of the 50mm and 35mm Leicas over the years and preferred it to them. Part of this is b/c the 40mm focal length seems almost perfect for me. 50mm too narrow and 35 a bit too wide, though I can easily live it as it is my 2nd preferred focal length.

I'm not a Leica nut by any means and just concerned with things like if I can get the results I want from it. I do not follow the marque as many do. It is a tool, not a passion. Could I possibly come up with better combinations if I was more hardware concerned, probably. Would I appreciate it as much, possibly. Is there anything I'd like to add to the kit, probably a 28mm lens but, probably will never happen as I just use my feet when I need a wider view.

[River Dog]

Split them. I recently got a Ex++ 40mm Rokkor CLE on eBay in the UK for $560.