Pentax 6x7

[campy51]

Would you buy the above model with broken chain and AE finder but no lens and at what price? Body appears to be very good.

 

[John Wiegerink]

Would you buy the above model with broken chain and AE finder but no lens and at what price? Body appears to be very good.

Only if the price was equal or slightly above the cost of a good working AE finder. I have two Pentax 67 cameras, but have never had to repair either in the close to 40 yrs I have owned them. I don't know how expensive or hard it is to repair the chain.

 

[Alex Benjamin]

Personal experience taught me that buying a defective camera or lens in order to save money is never a good idea, for more than one reason.

There are many Pentax 6x7 in good condition on the used market. One may cost a bit more than a broken one. But then, it may cause you less problems and last you much longer.

 

[Taylor K Nankervis]

"Body appears very good"...

Never judge on appearances alone.

If the meter coupling chain is broken, I would say there is a good chance that the camera has a few other problems too! These are now very, very old cameras, and the older they get the more unreliable for critical projects. Those from 1969 to 1975 are now the worst for major failures. The last-generation cameras with lots of improvements from 1991-1992 are still going. The chain is not required if you are manual (hand-held metering); indeed; you can focus and shoot with nothing on the top, just squinting down into the focusing screen! The coupling chain though is required if the metered prism is present on the camera. Repair entails disassembly of the lens mount and shims (and these cannot be reused), rethreading of replacement chain (e.g. TigerTail multistrand beading wire), testing, reassembly (with new shims) of the lens mount and finally collimation for correct focus — with a lens on. So it is not really a DIY job. This service can easily exceed the value of an old camera, so it is a matter of weighing up risk and reward.

My two P67 cameras, both dating from the final generation in 1991-1992, have OEM chains in-situ. It is essential to learn the specific way of removing and replacing the prism and lens so that tension is released on the chain. Too often new users unfamiliar with these cameras hit the interwebby with a saturating welter of stinging words about the cameras because they did not bother to understand the correct way of using them! Lots of things can (and do!) fail: the meter coupling chain, the winding mechanism, the film counter roller, shutter (capping), mirror solenoid (mirror sticks in the up position, or stops half way or does not work at all), shutter speed decay...it's a long list of things that can go wrong, and the older the camera, devoid of any routine or essential servicing over its undoubtably long life, the much higher the risk is of cascading failure.

 

[abruzzi]

Check with pentaxs.com for the cost of repairing the chain if you need that. I agree with Taylor--look for a 67. They are up to 20 years newer. What you're looking at--6x7 (MLU or not?), broken chain, metered prism, no lens, I'd maybe do $200-250. There is a 6x7 non MLU on eBay with a claimed working meter that will end up setting you back $390 with shipping and tariff. (I wouldn't buy that one either, personally. I would look for newer.)

 

[campy51]

They are asking $300 but they usually give me 10%off. Here are a couple of pictures, it looks to be in excellent condition. I thought about just using it on manual.

 

[Taylor K Nankervis]

A 50 year old 6x7 (c. 1975) with a broken metering chain is not in "excellent condition".
And cosmetic condition is not ever an indicator of mechanical or electronic condition.

I wouldn't pause for breath looking at a camera with a non-functioning chain. This is a system camera with heaps and heaps of serious potential for a dedicated user.

Look for a working, functioning and tested Pentax 67, with a lens included.

 

[campy51]

A 50 year old 6x7 (c. 1975) with a broken metering chain is not in "excellent condition".
And cosmetic condition is not ever an indicator of mechanical or electronic condition.

I wouldn't pause for breath looking at a camera with a non-functioning chain. This is a system camera with heaps and heaps of serious potential for a dedicated user.

Look for a working, functioning and tested Pentax 67, with a lens included.

Cosmetic condition is a good indication how it was treated. The fact that the chain is broken is so common with this model even buying a working one in poorer condition doesn't mean the chain will not break. I guess a simple mistake in removing the finder can break the chain. I thought about trying to fix it myself but there's not much out there on doing that.

 

[Taylor K Nankervis]

I thought about trying to fix it myself but there's not much out there on doing that.

It is not as easy as that, nor as easy as the pundits who record the process on YouTube.
The mount requires precise collimation to return focusing accuracy to spec. Just tweaking a few screws and saying it's fixed isn't even half the matter done. pentaxs.com can probably do the repair of the chain, but chances are he will find other problems that would need fixing too.

There are many ways an experienced, wary user of these cameras can determine the camera's functional patency going forward, even too, the presence of a niggle that indicates an emerging fault or failure, no matter the age of the camera.

 

[braxus]

A CLA for such a camera is around $500-600 US Dollars. Id expect theyd want to do that with a camera of this age, just to repair the chain. Look for a working unit. The best version one cameras to get are the ones that say Pentax on the prism and 67 on the body. Those are the newest version 1 cameras. Anything older and you run the issue of problems with them. Avoid any body that does not have the mirror lockup switch on the side of the lens box.

 

[destroya]

I have a 6x7 with mirror lock up. when i got it, it had a broken chain but everything else worked fine and continues to work fine. I use a hand held meter so it didnt bother me. if that's all that's wrong it not a big deal, but like mentioned above, be careful as it could mean other issues. I got mine locally, so i was able to check it out first and the guy did tell me if the first roll has issues he'd give me my cash back. I use it along die my 67ii and the results are identical, so I got lucky. nice having a 6x7 body for B&W and color

john

 

[DREW WILEY]

My original nearly 50-year old P67 body got dropped three times, twice by my brother, and finally by me, and is no longer worth even attempting to repair. That leaves me without an alternate body for color vs b&w film; but I need to tightly watch my budget at the moment. Perhaps I can trade something for another one.

I'm going out with my newer MLU body this afternoon, equipped with Ektar colof film, the 300EDIF and chimney finder, and of course, an especially solid tripod, hunting some distance shots if the last of the residual fog clears out and the air turns as clear as the morning forecast claims. I got burnt by last week's incorrect forecast, but had a nice walk anyway.

 

[Shaps]

When I started to photograph with film again in medium format I considered buying cameras that were made 50 years ago. Then I realized today that many repair shops are gone and parts are not available. And repair prices are much higher than 50 years ago. So I have bought two 3d printed cameras (6x17 and 6x9) that use view camera lenses. Everything is manual on the camera which is actually a nice change from digital. If The view camera lenses need repair it easier and cheaper to just buy another one to swap out.

 

[loccdor]

use view camera lenses.

That's what I'm moving towards as well, though on a technical camera with rangefinder rather than 3d printed. Your logic about fewer things to go wrong is sound.

 

[Taylor K Nankervis]

A CLA for such a camera is around $500-600 US Dollars. Id expect theyd want to do that with a camera of this age, just to repair the chain.

Back 2012 a colleague here in QLD/Oz sent his P67 to Eric at pentaxs.com.
Though the camera touched down unmarked in TX after 3...long...weeks, it was subject to delays with freight and US Customs. Freight and insurance was AUD$480 I think, with repair cost of $660 (meter coupling chain, post-assembly calibration; winding pawl, counter roller and treatment of corrosion in the battery compartment. Then another $US$400 freight and insurance to post back to Australia! In a nutshell, patently prohibitive costs to most ordinary folk, and nowadays probably much, much more expensive.

I do not know if that P67 is still in use (likely switched out in favour of LF/alt.). So US residents have it easy when they need repair from one State to the next, but it wasn't easy for Australian owners of the 6x7 / 67 back then. Fast forward more than a decade-plus, we have 2-3 repairers in Australia using 3D-printed or CNC machined parts. Like repairing an old car (Holden, Ford!) the costs can gallop away and well exceed the basic value.

I thought Eric at pentaxs.com had (or had plans to) retired (many) years ago?
Evidently he is still beavering away though the cameras he is happy to work on are progressively dropping off his list.