Yeah, but he also quoted a budget that sounds a bit tight for top-grade medium format---he can get a damn good camera for US$500, but he won't get a Planar 'flex or a Mamiya 7. And for some of us who *do* have top-grade MF stuff, it still shares time with "cheap-ass garage sale classics".
That said, I wouldn't really suggest a scale-focus folder here either. A good RF folder, sure, but that's out of the US$10 arena unless you happen to pick the right garage sale.
If the OP intends to *compete* with his Leica gear, I hope he's planning to spend more than US$500. But he specifically said "not necessarily better" and sounds like he's looking to try out the format, not to switch systems in search of better image quality.
I bet a hat there are plenty of F1 drivers who have a great time messing around with restored 1965 Ferraris, even though they wouldn't be competitive cars in their day jobs.
Totally agree, but I know from experience what he is likely to want to see coming from that Leica glass, so he should maybe get a nice TLR with a stunner for a lens and give it a whirl. Or, up the budget to around $750-$800 and snag a decent 500CM/80/A12, worst thing that could happen is that he bails and sells it for roughly the same.
I have a friend who has a nice Ferrari collection, probably worth around 2 mil, he has a restored 1965 Ferrari convertible...

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