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Half case

cap'n bill

New member
My M6 had a wonderful Luigi half case. Antique brown, snug fit, excellent feel and lovely smell to it. It was rarely off the camera.

I sold it when I changed to an M8 and have just bought a Leica half case - they call it a camera protector. It's horrid, doesn't fit well, gapes at top and bottom, just doesn't feel right and for all the world might be a cheapo plastic job. Leica - suggest you subcontrct camera cases to Luigi.
 

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
My M6 had a wonderful Luigi half case. Antique brown, snug fit, excellent feel and lovely smell to it. It was rarely off the camera.

I sold it when I changed to an M8 and have just bought a Leica half case - they call it a camera protector. It's horrid, doesn't fit well, gapes at top and bottom, just doesn't feel right and for all the world might be a cheapo plastic job. Leica - suggest you subcontrct camera cases to Luigi.
Don t accept this situation. Return it to the dealer you purchased it from. B+H for example will take things back ..no questions ..I believe within 10 days of purchase. If its past the return timetable ..call NJ and request an exchange. At least if you have a case that fits you can always sell it either here or over on The Rangefinder Forum for a small loss(compared to your investment in Leica kit).

The complaint on this case has always been that its stiff but some report that it will break in with use and become less plastic like.
 

John Black

Active member
There is an Artisan & Artist 1/2 case which is nice. If you're using the case on a M8 / M9, I do not like the Luigi cases because they are too snug. With M8/M9 the camera is in and out of the case a regular basis to gain access to the SD card & battery. Also, the Luigi case was rubbing the finish off the M8 case at the corner of the rangefinder window because of the edge of the case rubbed against the corner.

The A&A case was snug initially, but over a years time it loosened up. Pro's and con's to that. It was a snap to drop the M8 into the case, so that was nice. Downside was it had to have a strap on the camera to "lock" the camera into the case. I always had a strap on the M8, so that was not an issue for me. But for somebody using a wrist strap (ie - connected at just one lug), the A&A case might not be a good choice.

In the pictures you can see where the case was a little loose by the eye piece. The case was probably ~6 months old when these pictures were taken.





It's kind of pricey for what it is, but I'd still buy one again and probably will for the M9. Supposedly this case will work fine on the M9, but I want to verify that.
 

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
The Leica case is awful. Get the Zhou case off eBay for $68 shipped. You won't be sorry.
Thats a good heads up on the Zhou case. it looks as if he has been improving it since last year. I found in digging that he will produce some cases in March that have the cutout for the Thumbs Up. His leather isn t up to Luigi s but for a black case it doesn t have to be.
 

drazin

Member
i have had both zhou and A&A cases. i enjoy them both very much! you cant go wrong with either of those.
 

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
i have had both zhou and A&A cases. i enjoy them both very much! you cant go wrong with either of those.
A&A makes first class products . Two issues I see with the m8/9 case that might be bothersome (maybe you could comment)....no grip or bump on the front of the case and the gapping on the back by the eyepiece.

When the M8 was released ... an early complaint was that your right hand needed a grip to rotate its position forward. I guess with a thumbs up you maybe can accomplish the same thing.

The gapping under the eyepiece just looks bad ..is this common or maybe just a stretched case from hard use.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
I've been looking at cases for the M8 since I got it... I didn't care for the Leica or A&A cases; they're a bit "too open" across the back. Kind of pointless, if you ask me. The Luxecase looks really nice, but there was no (easy) provision for a Thumbs Up, and was a "take it or leave it" situation; there are only two versions. Luigi makes your case completely to order (down to the last detail) and offers a huge selection of colors, etc. The quality of materials and workmanship is unquestionable. Though they are a bit spendy.

I went all out on the Ikon and picked up a Luigi case for it... I was sold! This was around two years ago. Then a little over a year ago I picked up an M8, and just now finally got - you guessed it - a Luigi case for it. I should have done that a lot sooner! Both in that "rally" color. I don't have any shots of the M8 yet, but here's a few of the Ikon:



I can highly recommend Luigi cases, I'm a two-time customer - so far.
 

Double Negative

Not Available
Here are three quick snaps of the "rally" case on the M8. Before and after of cut-out for the Thumbs Up. Quickly handled with an X-Acto knife and a Sharpie.

 
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