In article <48607l$346@news.uit.no>, paalj@ibg.uit.no says...
>The optical quality of Leica lenses may be great, but nowadays thats >not the main reason for buying Leica equipment. As you have noted, the >difference in optical quality is small indeed, and there are Japanese >lenses that outperforms Leica lenses. The big difference however, lies >in the built quality. You won't get plastic crap from Leica.
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How about Nikon manual-focus lenses? Nikon still produces a full line
of all-metal barrel VERY high quality optics that are built to last.
And they fit on the older metal bodies OR the new-fangled fancy
AF bodies. Some of us do hate AF and plastic, but Nikon has two
complete (and interchangeable) lens lines - the MF nicely made one
and the plastic AF one (some of the lenses in the AF line are well
made and substantial in construction - and satisfy us old-fashioned
types).
Hope this helps.