The Minolta collection is growing! I just won an auction for an MC Macro Rokkor QF 50mm f3.5. Six dollars plus shipping. In the photos, it looked decent so I figured why not. It is from the same place I got the 70-210 that had "significant wear." The only wear that lens was a finger print on the filter and a couple of scuff marks on the hood that wiped clean. Hopefully this will be as nice. I am really enjoying the Minolta gear.

Have a great day,
Aubrey

Good morning, gentlemen;

Yes, it is something when I realize that I have done it, and it is completed. Then it is also somewhat anticlimactic. As mentioned, now that I have done it, what do I do now?

And, for upnorthcyclist, yes, there is an original version Autocord 120 roll film TLR camera here and a few accessories for it.

Silvertooth, that is a worthy goal, and one that may surprise you. There are many more versions in there than may be obvious from just looking at the cameras. While the model designations do run from the SR-2 and the SR-1, the SR-3, and to the SR-7, there are many variants in the individual model designations. The SR-1 had five model designations alone but 10 versions, and I count 19 different versions total in the line from the original 2 versions of the SR-2 on through the three versions of the SR-7 and ending with the SR-7v. Many of these versions are not obvious visually, but must be detected by observing how the camera operates, and the outside appearance is the same for many of them. While some include the SR-M in this group, I do not. It is more related to the SR-T 101 both in its construction and the time when it came out.

The rangefinders and viewfinder 35mm cameras are also well represented, from a Minolta 35 and Minolta A through the entire "Number" Series and a few in the "Letter" Series. Yes, there is also a Minolta Hi-Matic 7s II here, but that is not my favorite. I feel that the 7s II had its capabilities cut to get the size and weight down to what they wanted it to be. I am not sure that was a good thing to do. My preference is still for the Minolta Hi-Matic 9 with its full range of shutter speeds from 1 second to 1/500th of a second, and the lens apertures from f:1.7 to f:22, coupled with the ability to also work in a fully Automatic or Program mode.

Then there are the 16mm cameras with my favorite being the 16 II.

There are even some 110 cartridge cameras from the 450 SE ElectroFlash to the Minolta 110 SLR.

And the last one in the group is a Minolta Instant PRO camera that takes the Polaroid Spectrum instant pack film.

Finally I do feel that there is a representative sampling of the Minolta film cameras here. No, not necessarily one of every camera they ever made, but there is at least one of the significant and the popular Minolta cameras.

No, I do not have any binoculars.

Enjoy; Ralph, Latte Land, Washington

Good morning, Ralph;
congratulations to completing your collection!
Next step must be that we all can see it!
Why not a website with your collection, all the various models (and descriptions of those variants not in the collection), and description av all details and original accessories – you seem to have all the information on the subject, share it!!

Enjoy!
/Bertil

I received my MC Macro Rokkor QF 50mm f3.5 today. Unfortunately, I was not able to go out and play this afternoon. The lens looks beautiful. I should have a little time tomorrow to go to a local garden and try it out. My Minolta excitement is continuing to grow!

Aubrey

Good morning, Aubrey;

Nice to hear. You will enjoy that lens. The ROKKOR-QF 3.5/50mm Macro lens really is a nice work-horse lens. And, with the front element recessed so deeply in the lens barrel, it really does not need a lens hood. I find that a ring flash fits onto it very nicely and provides nice flat lighting for most of my closeup work. I like my Sunpak DX-12R in this use, but there is also the Minolta 80-PX if I want to keep it "pure." The DX-12R has a little more horsepower.

This combination has been used for a lot of the flowers that finally bloomed very late this spring, and into the early summer. Weird weather. Now if I can just get the film scanner to work the way that I would like.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

I just received an MD Tele Rokkor 200mm 1:2.8, for actually a pretty reasonable price, from the bay. All the way from Germany! I haven't shot with it yet, but just looking through the viewfinder it looks pretty stunning.

I don't know if I have purchased enough stuff from German sellers on eBay to generalize, but it seems like the several items I've gotten (mostly lenses) have been top-notch - well described, packed well, very clean.

It's supposed to be nice tomorrow - I'm looking forward to trying out the new lens. I picked up a couple rolls of Provia 100f - we'll see if the lens lives up to its reputation!

Mike

Good morning, Mike;

Congratulations on the TELE ROKKOR 1:2.8 f=200mm telephoto lens. I agree that it is a nice one. You will enjoy it.

eek-bait and the quality of the product received in comparison with the description. Again, congratulations. I am envious of your remarkable good fortune with your purchases, but you did say that they have been from Germany. I will admit that the successful purchases I have made from Australia, Canada, England, and from Ukraine have been quite satisfactory and reasonable. It has been with the purchases from sellers here in the United States where there has been great disparity between what was in the Item Description, and what came out of the box. It was just in February of this year that I finally had a 35mm SLR camera body come to me that really did match what was in the description, including that part about a "used" item "but is fully functional and operates as originally intended," as found in the eek-bait definition of "Used." The real surprise is that there were actually two (2) cameras that came to me that way that month, both the same model; one from an individual, and the other one from a company. Boy, was I surprised. That was nice.

Anyway, have fun with the 2.8/200mm lens. They really are nice. I like the sample that I have, and it was bought as part of a package that also included a ROKKOR 2.0/135mm lens. The big 135mm lens is not used very often, but the 2.0/100mm and the 2.8/200mm do go out on occasion.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

eek-bait -

Boy, I sure don't mean to leave the impression that I have had good luck with eBay - I've sent more crap back than I've kept, statistically.

I've gotten better as a buyer over the years, that's true, but mis-described stuff goes back as a matter of principle. Even if a seller says no refunds, I've found that they will refund if you describe the problem accurately vs. what the ad implies - sellers realize, I think, that eBay will look at the correspondence in a dispute and protect the buyer if the buyer seems reasonable, so the seller will avoid a dispute that will probably go against him anyway. I'm always super-polite but firm and I avoid any contention, especially feedback wars, even if the seller deserves it.

Most of the stuff I buy is not particularly rare, even the 200mm 2.8. I mean, they come up occasionally, so if I'm patient, I have choices. Ralph, I don't envy your passion (yet understand it!) to collect truly rare items like some of the SR-series cameras. I can be unequivocal about sending mis-described junk back because another one will come along, while you have to make the decision whether to keep it or not based on its scarcity - you might not see another one for a very long time.

The "used, but fully functional..." caveat has been my best tool, that and the fact that I've maintained my feedback rating at 100%. Conversely, I have eaten a boatload of shipping charges over the years - I think that's the true cost of dealing with less-than-stellar seller descriptions on eBay.

The main problem, or, perhaps, the best thing I've found with German sellers is that they are generally professionals. They usually list their items at rather outrageous BIN prices - in effect, brick-and-mortar camera store prices. A real gem of a listing, one that I will follow, is when one of my preferred German sellers will let an item go at auction - whatever the market will bear. I follow completed listings on the items I want to buy, and items NEVER sell at those BIN prices. I can't figure out the economics there.

I got my slides back yesterday that I shot with the 200mm 2.8. I don't have a scanner - my film "work flow" is to shoot it, get it processed, and look at it - so I can't show examples here. Anyway - Wow. Nice lens. The extra stop or two really helps make it somewhat hand-holdable, at least on a sunny day. I'm so spoiled by my DSLR with image-stabilization and variable ISO that I forget sometimes why film photographers treasure fast lenses. This lens is sharp and produces good contrast even wide-open, on a projected screen, which to me is the ultimate test. There is a little color-fringing, noticeable when I get within a couple of feet or so of the screen, but that's "pixel-peeping" beyond practicality. It's a keeper!

Mike

Thought I'd add my latest purchase. An XK body with a 450 Electro Flash, all in good working order. Don't like that little button on the body. You can't put it in a camera bagt with the batteries in the camera. They can become discharged if the camera bag depresses the button, Other than that the Camera is a built like a tank. BTW does anybody know if Sony is going to release a full frame Alpha DSLR. (the 900 and 850 are discontinued) ? I'd like to use my collection of Maxxum AF lenses with one.

Picked up a Rokkor 35-70 Macro Zoom. Love it!!

My latest foray into the world of Minolta was the acquisition of the venerable XE-7 and the lesser sibling, the XE-5. Both cameras were won on Ebay as "parts or repair" as the seller stated that the film rewind was jammed on both cameras. I had always wanted to tryout the XE series, so $23.00 later, I was the proud owner of both XEs.

Cosmetically, both cameras are in wonderful shape. Mechanically, they both had locked up shutter releases and of course the film rewinds wouldn't work. I started with the XE-7 first and set the shutter speed selector to "X" and the On/Off selector to On. The shutter fired but the rewind lever had way to much resistance. On disassembly, I noticed that the film rewind had been apart and assembled incorrectly. Put things back the way they were supposed to be and, Viola!, nice, smooth rewind function! I loaded in 2 1.5 volt batts and the meter reported for duty. A cursory check against my Sony A300 and my Minolta 9xi showed it to be in the ballpark. Ran the shutter at all speeds and it seemed pretty kosher.



Next up, the XE-5. Removing the bottom plate showed something jammed in the gears at the bottom of the rewind shaft. After putting the shutter speed on "X" and cocking the shutter, the shutter release worked, the mirror went up and…..nothing. After a teardown and removal of the mirror box, I noticed that the shutters had become detached from the mechanism and moved about freely on their own. Afraid to proceed any further, I buttoned up the XE-5 and set it back on the shelf, not sure what to do next.

In about 2 weeks and $19.00, I had another "fixer-upper" XE-5 from Ebay sitting on my bench that was advertised as jammed.. I tore this one down, removed the mirror box and un-jammed the shutter. I put new batteries in and when I released the shutter, the mirror went up…and stayed there. Classic symptom of low/no battery power. I ended up scraping the little metal contacts behind the On/Off selector switch and now I have a working XE-5 to go with my XE-7!



So, for an investment of about $42, I have a working XE-7 and XE-5 plus a XE-5 parts camera.

Both cameras have had their light seals replaced and I hope to get them both loaded up with film and take them for a spin!.

Hi guys! It's me again!

Just got a MC Tele Rokkor - PF f2.8 135mm with a case and lens caps.


Got it hooked up to the XE-7 and going to run some shots through it to see how it does.

Mike

Congrats on your XE series cameras - I really like the XE-7. When I first got it, I couldn't believe that it is actually heavier than my SRT-102! I like to use the XE with heavier lenses, like the 100mm macro. It also makes a nice combo with the 200mm 2.8, balance-wise. The film advance is the nicest I have ever experienced.

One thing I have found with these "hybrid" automatic cameras, such as the XE and the XD (by hybrid, I mean that they are a combination of mechanical and electrical, not truly electronic or digital), is that they have sliding resistors that are subject to problems with dirt and oxidation. I don't shoot enough film to use the three or four cameras I rotate through (according to whim) regularly - sometimes a camera will sit for a couple months without use. I find that it is helpful to exercize these cameras regularly. The slidewire resistors, in the case of the XE, are part of the circuits for setting ASA, exposure comp, speed and aperture. I like to run through all the settings - turn the ASA dial from limit to limit etc. - while keeping an eye on the exposure needle for smooth operation. If the needle moves a little irregularly, I'll figure out which control is causing the problem and exercize it until it smooths out. It doesn't happen very often. I find that this also keeps the camera familiar in my hands, and often inspires me to load it up and use it. Plus, playing with my stable of cameras is just plain fun for me.

Have fun with the XEs - hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Mike

Musta hit send twice...

Mike

Thank you upnorthcyclist!

I'm pretty happy with them myself. Oh, and thanks for the tip about "exercising" them. I also have a number of cameras that I try to rotate through so, like you said, they sometimes sit for a while.

Mike

HI everyone. I'm new to APUG, i just created my profile today and this is the first group I looked up.
I've been a Minolta Maniac a while. I have numerous Minolta bodies and lenses from SRT 101 through 9xi(autofocus) and and this is my first post.

My most recent purchase is a black XD11 that should be waiting at work for me in todays mail.

I got it to go along with my chrome one that I've had for a while and been using as my carry around this week. I'll post some pics of the pair when I can.

Glad to be aboard!

-Dave

While looking around the almost local Salvation Army store, I noticed a Minolta x-700 with the Minolta MD 35-70 3.5 sitting in a camera bag. The flash was history due to old battery leakage but the camera body and lens were mint. $25 whole dollars for it.

Nice to have a 700 again. Mine died from water damage during a basement flood years ago along with it's MD 35-70 3.5 lens. Now my Minolta collection is almost complete. I will need to get a Minolta family photo one day very soon.

Congratulations! I always thought the X-700 with the 35-70 would be a great combo. I've stayed away from picking one up because the X-700 has so many accessories - I'd be chasing around after obscure cables and IR controllers and motor drives for the rest of time - I have the GAS bug something awful for arcane Minolta stuff. Awhile back, I found an Auto Electroflash 450 setup, real complete, and had to have it. Dunno what I'll ever use it for.

My last acquisition was an MC W.Rokkor-X 1:1.8 f=35mm lens - a beauty.

Mike

I`ve just found this forum, and it looks good.
Way back in the early 1980s I started my photo thing with X300, followed by X500 and finally an XD7. These three cameras served me well till 2007.
In 2007 I sold everything and moved into digital, although I thoroughly enjoy my digital gear and make money, I have always regretted selling the Minolta stuff and yearn to handle one again, particularly the XD7.
That has changed, in the last two weeks I have acquired an X300, X500 plus bless my soul, an XD7. In fact I have sent the XD7 for a full overhaul as it will be the one I will use the most. Just a thought, but how do you think my customers would react if they saw me using a film camera ?

Richard.

Good morning, Richard;

In part, it depends on the observational powers of your customers (will they even notice?), and then do they understand enough to appreciate the tonality range and resolution of the film you are using in that camera?

I do not honestly know what your customers will think. I can see a few ways they could go. One is that they might feel they have found a real true photographer. Another is that they might miss the speed and immediacy of the digital images, and besides, they are good enough for the size prints they are getting, and digital is a lot faster than film. I guess it depends on the customer. And, from the model designations you mentioned, probably you are in Europe, so I really do not know the customers.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

Good morning;

This was one of hose things that was not expected, not intended, and it just sort of happened. It was not my fault.

I went to see my local camera tech because he had a small 110 film cartridge Asahi-Pentax "auto 110" SLR camera kit for sale. It included the three lenses and the AF100P electronic flash, but not the little Autowinder that goes on the bottom of the "auto 110." Now we come to the problem.

he had sitting on his counter top a camera that he said that he had just taken in, and he would make me a deal I could not refuse. Well, this particular pusher does know his clients very well. Yes, I walked out of his shop with not only the Asahi-Pentax "auto 110," but also with a Minolta XD-7 with an MD ROKKOR 1:1.4 f=50mm lens on it and a Minolta MD ZOOM ROKKOR 1:4.5 80-200mm zoom lens and a Minolta auto 200X electronic flash. The auto 200X does need some work in the battery compartment, because the alkaline batteries were not taken out of it before it was "stored." I actually think that it was just abandoned more than being "stored." But anyway, it is here, and it is a welcome addition to the samples of Minolta's efforts to provide good functional cameras to the photography community.

Let's see. In this last week, I think that is seven (7) camera bodies and twelve (12) lenses. I do need to find a chapter of Cameras Anonymous. I was doing so well, and then I just fell off the wagon again.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

Ralph,

you wrote:
"The Minolta AUTO ROKKOR-PF 1:1.4 f=58mm "normal" lens was the original lens provided with the SR-7. The standard lens for the SR-1b was the AUTO ROKKOR-PF 1:1.8 f=55mm."

What do you mean with SR-1b? The second version of SR-1 has the new clicking shutter speed dial, but is still semi auto (aperture re-opens when operating the film advance lever). To my informations, it was sold with the first version of the Auto Rokkor-PF 55mm F2, which has the long travel aperture lever, aperture lock, unevenly spaced F numbers and marked half stops. The third version of SR-1 is the same as before, but has the fully auto aperture (serials start around 122xxxx). With this came a new lens, the second version of Auto Rokkor-PF 55mm F2, which had the new short travel aperture lever, evenly spaced F numbers and the preview lever (serials start with 143xxxx). The fourth version of SR-1 had the rounded meter shoe, and was the first to be equipped with the Auto Rokkor-PF 55 F1.8 (with evenly spaced F numbers and preview lever - and yellow LV numbers, like all lenses so far). The Auto Rokkor-PF 58mm F1.4 (with yellow LV numbers) was introduced with the second version of SR-3. The Auto Rokkor-PF 55mm F1.8 and 58mm F1.4 introduced with fifth version of SR-1 (square meter shoe, CHYODA KOGAKU engraved) and first version of SR-7 (CHIYODA KOGAKU​ engraved) lacked the LV numbers.

Best regards
Dennis.

Good morning, Dennis Lohmann;

Nice to have you active on the forum.

I need to prefix my comments with the statement that I am going mainly by memory here. My original Minolta SR-1b, along with all of my original Minolta literature, brochures, owner's manuals, et cetera, did not survive the death of a marriage

The subject of the Minolta designations for their cameras has been interesting and variable. In reference to the Minolta SR-1b, that is the designation that was on the box, the warranty card, and in the owner's manual that came with the camera that I bought from Brenner Photo in their store on E street just east of 10th Avenue and was north of the FBI Building at Pennsylvania Avenue and 10th Avenue in Washington, D. C. Later in talking with one of the sales people there, he explained that Minolta-USA when they were still at 100 Park Avenue in NYC had made reference to the different models of the cameras that could be distinguished by their external appearance when viewing them. Those that had internal changes, but no external differences, seemed to be sub-variants. In the case of the SR-1 series, I could see ten (10) different models and sub-variants, the original SR-1 with no light meter mount and the model designation engraved on the right front of the camera as you are holding it, or in front of the shutter release and film advance lever (and it was engraved CHIYODA KOGAKU on the top), and there were two sub-variants in the way that they worked, which included the addition of the improved lens diaphragm automatic stop-down and reopen, and then the reflex mirror auto-return after taking the photograph, and no longer required advancing the film to reposition the mirror for viewing through the lens. The SR-1a was the first model with the large almost square light meter mount with the two vertical holes and the two vertical chrome stripes mounted on the right front below and in front of the shutter release and the film advance lever, and they moved the SR-1 engraving over to the left front of the camera below and in front of the film rewind knob. I believe that there were two sub-variants in that model. The SR-1b was when they changed the light meter mount to the smaller rectangular block with the angular cut on the lens end to align with the lens mount and the two vertical holes for the new Cd-S light meter pins (which replaced the prior Selenium cell light meter), along with the change from the round window to the smaller rectangular window for the frame counter, and I think that this was right around the time when they changed the name engraving to the Minolta Camera Co, Ltd. on the top. I think that there were two or three sub-variants in the sR-1b model. Then the SR-1v came out at the same time as the SR-7v with the change to the rectangular black plastic viewfinder port in place of the threaded round port with the bayonet mount for the magnifier and the right-angle viewing adapter. The final one in the SR-1 series was the SR-1s around the time of the introduction of the SR-T 101 where they seemed to be using the remaining parts stock from the SR-7v to make a slightly less expensive model from those parts. It had the almost square light meter mount that was thinner than the original similar looking mount with the two chrome vertical stripes, but it had a vertical groove on the sides of the mount where a projection on the tall Cd-S light meter slid into to hold the light meter. The SR-1s also got the 1/1000th second shutter from the SR-7v, and it was engraved on the left front with SR-1s. (I have wondered if that "s" in the designation actually stood for "surplus" in recognition of the fact that they were using up the old parts stock to make this "new" model.)

Dennis, I have said that this is mainly from memory, and all of my original Minolta literature and notes are gone. OK. That is what I can recall right now of the Minolta SR-1 series of SLR cameras. You and Andrea Apra probably have catalogs and other resources which include the Minolta catalog numbers for identifying the models even more accurately.

And you do get me thinking very carefully about these things.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

Hello Ralph,

thanks for your reply, that's an interesting discussion. I'm not at home at the moment, so I have to write it by memory, too. Let's see:

"In reference to the Minolta SR-1b, that is the designation that was on the box, the warranty card, and in the owner's manual..."

That's new to me, I never have seen this. I own manuals of each type of SR-1, and the only appendix I have seen, is the "Model V" designation. Too bad you haven't any pictures of that.

"...there were two sub-variants in the way that they worked, which included the addition of the improved lens diaphragm automatic stop-down and reopen, and then the reflex mirror auto-return after taking the photograph, and no longer required advancing the film to reposition the mirror for viewing through the lens."

Okay, you're right with the first statement regarding the diaphragm operation, but all Minolta SLRs beginning with the SR-2 had instant return mirrors. So if you have a SR-1 with a mirror, that returns only by operating the film advance lever, it's simply a mechanical failure.

So I just tell you my actual classification. I denote the several types with an appendix like SR-1.3 for 3rd type, model, generation, edition or whatever you wanna call it. I also note the order no. given in the service and part's manuals. None of these notations appear on any camera, manual, box. I just list the differences to the previous model.

SR-1.1
July 1959, model SR
semi auto diaphragm (re-opens when operating film advance lever)
aperture lever with long travel
lift-to-turn shutter speed dial
LV marks
instant return mirror
round frame counter window on the left
serial on the left
SR-1 on the right with green color
engraved with CHIYODA KOGAKU right side on the top
ASA/DIN scale split for color and b/w
lens: 55/2, LV, aperture lock, uneven F stop scale, half stops, long travel aperture lever

SR-1.2
August 1960, model SB (released with SR-3.1)
clicking shutter speed dial

SR-1.3
April 1961, model SD
fully auto diaphragm (re-opens instantly after exposure)
lens: 55/2, LV, pre-view lever, even F stop scale, no half stops, short travel aperture lever

SR-1.4 (what you call SR-1a)
August 1961, model SD' (released with SR-3.2)
rounded meter shoe on the right (for the clumpsy Selenium meter)
SR-1 on the left, still green
lens: 55/1.8, LV, pre-view lever, even F stop scale, no half stops, short travel aperture lever

SR-1.5 (what you call SR-1b)
July 1962, model SF (referred as New SR-1, released with SR-7.1)
new lighter and more square shaped body
square meter shoe on the right (for slimmer CdS meter 2)
aperture lever with short travel
no LV marks
square frame counter window on the right
serial on the back, right of view finder
SR-1 on the left, now black
engraved with CHIYODA KOGAKU left side on the top
lens: 55/1.8, no LV

In July 1962 Chiyoda Kogaku Seiko, K.K. changed its name to Minolta Camera Corporation, LTD., but the first batch of about 30.000 cameras was still engraved with the old brand name.

SR-1.6
late 1962, model SF
engraved with MINOLTA CAMERA CO., LTD. left side on the top
new ASA/DIN scales concentric

SR-1.7
September 1964, model SF-B
new styling of film advance and self timer levers

That's it. Further, we have two models of SR-1 (V) and two models of SR-1s, so all in all we count 11 models of SR-1. I'm going to set up a web site on this in the next time, including many pictures and serials and production numbers.

BTW my most recent purchase in this field was a SR-1.3 (the rarest model of all) with matching lens and manual. Interestingly the manual is the one of the SR-1.2 with a inlaying leaflet, that describes the changes to fully auto diaphragm and the new lens generation. Excellent finding!

Best regards,
Dennis.

Found a body I had sold off years ago - X-570 and I still have the 100 f/2.5 and the 50 f/1.4 so I am good to go. Maybe a WA in the future, but these two are a good start