{"product_id":"superb-1930-black-leitz-leica-ii-with-nickel-elmar-lens-freshly-serviced-clad","title":"Superb! 1930 BLACK LEITZ LEICA II, Prewar Factory conversion with Nickel Elmar lens.  Freshly Serviced CLA'd!","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cscript language=\"JavaScript\"\u003e\/\/ \u003c![CDATA[\nvar message=\"© Petrakla 2026 Unauthorized use is a copyright violation\"; function keypressed() {;return false;}document.onkeydown=keypressed;function clickIE4(){ if (event.button==2){ alert(message); return false; } } function clickNS4(e){ if (document.layers||document.getElementById\u0026\u0026!document.all){ if (e.which==2||e.which==3){ alert(message); return false; } } } if (document.layers){ document.captureEvents(Event.MOUSEDOWN); document.onmousedown=clickNS4; } else if (document.all\u0026\u0026!document.getElementById){ document.onmousedown=clickIE4; } document.oncontextmenu=new Function(\"alert(message);return false\")\n\/\/ ]]\u003e\u003c\/script\u003e \u003cscript src=\"\/\/ajax.googleapis.com\/ajax\/libs\/jquery\/1.7.1\/jquery.min.js\"\u003e\u003c\/script\u003e \u003cscript src=\"jquery.zoomooz.min.js\"\u003e\u003c\/script\u003e \u003cmeta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=windows-1252\"\u003e \u003cscript type=\"text\/javascript\"\u003e\/\/ \u003c![CDATA[\n(function(d){  var f = d.getElementsByTagName('SCRIPT')[0], p = d.createElement('SCRIPT');  p.type = 'text\/javascript';  p.async = true;  p.src = '\/\/assets.pinterest.com\/js\/pinit.js';  f.parentNode.insertBefore(p, f);}(document));\n\/\/ ]]\u003e\u003c\/script\u003e \u003cmeta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 style=\"text-align: center;\" class=\"titel2\"\u003eCleaned, Lubricated \u0026amp; Adjusted. Ready for immediate use!\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eThere are times when camera collecting is incredibly difficult. It comes at moments when you’re asked simple questions like “What’s the best camera…?” or “Which is the most significant camera ever?” The brain starts working, the heart beats nicely and the mouth moves but if an answer appears at all… it’s a long and complicated one, full of design details, historical moments and personal rationalizations.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eFortunately answers come quicker when we are asked to feel more and think less…. Matters of the heart are easier to answer and to agree on. The eye and the heart have a directness and honesty that the brain lacks as it struggles to retain, comprehend and balance all the many details.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eSo here’s a simple question for the heart. What is the most enjoyable camera of the 20\u003csup\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e century…? I don’t know about you, but I see the answer almost immediately. I can also feel it between my hands. And it’s a surprising answer because it runs counter to my technology oriented brain. What I see is not the most expensive, the rarest or even the most sophisticated. That evidently doesn’t impress my heart… which is why the heart and the mind are such a good match. They need each other for balance. The brain tells us what we think we need and the heart tells us what we want.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eThe most enjoyable camera ever….? I thought it would be a Pentax Spotmatic but it’s not. The winner is a black screw mount Leica. It’s honest, it’s significant and above all it’s great fun to be with. The Leica is like the perfect partner that some of us search our entire lives for. It has that unique mix of something for the heart, something for the eye and something for the head. It’s that perplexing mix that insures we never tire of being close. It’s the perfect mate to be marooned with on a deserted island. The finish is smooth and worn. The knurled metal knobs have lost the rough sharp edges through years of loving use. And when you cradle it in your hands, you’re not simply picking up a camera… it’s more like being reunited with an old friend. A friend with rich sparkling stories of adventure and history, life and death, valor and treachery, lives and passion… And like a faithful friend it will go on and on recording our adventures, our children’s adventures and possibly be still there for our grand children to enjoy and to remind them of our life, excursions and adventures.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eThis camera’s own life is long and colorful. I can’t tell you the stories of where it’s been but I can tell you this Leica began its long journey of many roads and many years in \u003cb style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"\u003e1930\u003c\/b\u003e. It was built in a time and a place when Germany and the world looked very different than it does today…\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eA few years later this camera was returned to the Leitz for an factory upgrade. It was expensive but if desired cameras could be disassembled, upgraded to the latest specifications, then reassembled and carefully calibrated. I’ve been told that because of the complexity and cost, relatively few Leica I cameras were upgraded to include a coupled rangefinder. As a result, early prewar factory conversions complete with period correct nickel plated knobs are difficult to find. (Later conversions were fitted with chrome knobs that don’t look quite right.) This camera was updated to be functionally and cosmetically identical to the very first Leica II rangefinder camera which was released in 1932. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif;\"\u003eIn case you’re wondering, this camera will work correctly with any Leitz lens or third-party Leica lens in LTM mount.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;\"\u003eNinety-six years\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003elater, this Leica winds and fires beautifully and tends to confirm the idea that the more you use a Leica, the smoother it becomes. It’s also been \u003cb style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"\u003ecarefully cleaned, lubricated and adjusted, \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\"\u003emaking\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\"\u003eit\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/b\u003ethe ideal camera for a photographer with historical interest who wants to work and shoot with a historic camera regularly. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;\"\u003eThe camera is in exceptionally fine condition. The black vulcanite body covering is flawless, the shutter curtains are smooth and light tight. All shutter speeds are appropriate. The coupled rangefinder image is easy to see and works smoothly \u0026amp; accurately. The view finder is also clean and bright. And i\u003cspan style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\"\u003en case you’re wondering,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\"\u003eit uses\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"\u003e normal 35mm film. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;\"\u003eThe desirable \u003cb\u003enickel plated Leitz elmar lens\u003c\/b\u003e is included. The glass is clean and clear with just a few light cleaning marks light and it’s capable of producing lovely photos with modern color and B\u0026amp;W films. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;\"\u003eIt comes complete and ready to use with lens, a lens cap, a Leitz film take-up spool \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size: 10.0pt; font-family: 'Verdana',sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;\"\u003eAll in all this is a wonderful collectable Leica. The perfect company on your own search for that perfect picture, that perfect moment, when you discover that perfection isn’t about being perfect… it’s about being comfortable about yourself, your choices and following your heart.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Leitz","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55705464701267,"sku":null,"price":1195.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0829\/4817\/files\/DSCF0364.jpg?v=1793548214","url":"https:\/\/www.petrakla.com\/products\/superb-1930-black-leitz-leica-ii-with-nickel-elmar-lens-freshly-serviced-clad","provider":"Petrakla Classic Cameras","version":"1.0","type":"link"}