incredible project but unless I'm misunderstanding what he is comparing it to, this is only a few hundred dollars/euros less than a used leica m digital body per a quick ebay search.

Thanks! I'm comparing with the latest Ms, I'm not gonna buy old tech. I want also autofocus which this cameras don't have. It might be fun to manual focus with their lenses (also expensive) but I don't see myself doing this all the time.

Maybe, but that camera isn’t what they wanted either (other than the body shell).