05/09/2008 15:39
I believe such collector's fortune laying deep in the structure of the Soviet economics.
Of cause I can only relate to personal experience, and cannot say for every plant and factory, but we had quarterly and monthly quotes on quantity of "Suggestions for Improvement" what we had to filed. They called "òÁÃ. ðÒÅÄÌÏÖÅÎÉÅ". If such suggestions were accepted, changes to design follow soon and such changes can be made virtually every month.
Another reasons for design change, as you can expect, was new equipment, and new machinery, and new materials, (or luck of them). On paper new equipment should arrive according to schedule, but in reality it was NEVER happens. So new equipment was accepted for use in production, as soon as it was ready for it. New equipment means slightly different design. More often then not New machinery was "on probation" and work together with Old ones, what can explain slight variations of the camera produced at the same time on the same place. I believe we call them transitional models. Also luck of necessary materials in some months force to improvise, substitute, and simplify. All this assures constant changes in design.
Many software companies,(specially Microsoft) take same approach today. Constant changes and improvement, and eventually roll over to new product.
I pay my respect to Arsenal cameras, which had some standards and are stabilized in their design ...
