Looking for medium format folding rangefinder 6x7, 6x9, or 6x8

[warden]

I have a Fujifilm GF670W and the lens is very sharp.

I really wanted one of those when they first came out. Very cool.

 

[film4Me]

A Fujifilm GF670W would need to be crowdfunder and given to the OP as a birthday present, US$5,000 there abouts. His budget seems to be around 1/10th of that.

Now he's shifted to 6x6, favoring a Mamiya Six folder, and doesn't realize it has a coupled rangefinder. Only needs a clip-on light meter. The Mamiya Six Automat would be a good choice, but it's still 6x6 which means forgetting about the larger formats of 6x7 and 6x9 he previously required.

 

[GregY]

...actually neither the Plaubel 67W nor the Fuji 670W...meet the criteria since both lenses are f4.5 ......As mentioned..RL is dreaming....

 

[RezaLoghme]

Ok I am now looking at Mamiya Six, lets see.

 

[GregY]

Ok I am now looking at Mamiya Six, lets see.

Well the original Mamiya Six has neither a meter nor a wide lens.
Since we're talking 6x6 now.... a new Mamiya 6 with a 50mm lens is easily the match for
Leica lens quality. Handles well and the hard covered bellows retracts unlike the Mamiya 7. As good an MF camera as you could ever ask for.
(Mamiya 6, 50mm, TriX)

 

[RezaLoghme]

I want something vintage and cheap. The exposure meter is still a problem.

 

[GregY]

I want something vintage and cheap. The exposure meter is still a problem.

You're looking for something that doesn't exist.....

 

[BrianShaw]

The exposure meter is still a problem.

May I ask, why is that? a handheld exposure meter is a bit of necessity for most older MF cameras. Not really difficult to use, either, once familiar with it.

 

[Craig]

a new Mamiya 6 with a 50mm lens is easily the match for
Leica lens quality.

Greg: Have you ever used a Bronica RF645? They are interesting cameras to me.

 

[RezaLoghme]

May I ask, why is that?

I had cameras without exposure meters and somehow they never clicked with me

This comes from my own experience. I simply did not like to use them and always went for cameras which had one.

 

[GregY]

Greg: Have you ever used a Bronica RF645? They are interesting cameras to me.

No Craig, they were few & far between. I've never been a fan of 645 (until someone gave me a Pentax 645).....& the Bronica has a vertically oriented viewfinder....which would drive me nuts since i see photos in landscape and rarely shoot portrait orientation...

 

[Craig]

the Bronica has a vertically oriented viewfinder....which would drive me nuts since i see photos in landscape and rarely shoot portrait orientation...

Me too! Part of the reason I have not pulled the trigger on one of the various Fuji 645's either.

 

[OAPOli]

Super Ikonta 533/16 or 534/16

 

[John Wiegerink]

Well the original Mamiya Six has neither a meter nor a wide lens.
Since we're talking 6x6 now.... a new Mamiya 6 with a 50mm lens is easily the match for
Leica lens quality. Handles well and the hard covered bellows retracts unlike the Mamiya 7. As good an MF camera as you could ever ask for.
(Mamiya 6, 50mm, TriX)View attachment 416991

If I sold off some of my gear or had extra cash on hand I'd be running with a Mamiya 7 three lens or two lens outfit. Probably won't happen since I don't buy lottery tickets. I have often thought about a Fuji GL690, but don't have any experience with the camera or its lenses. I did have a Fuji GW690 for a while and loved its lens, but the older GL lenses I'm not sure about.

 

[abruzzi]

The GL690 has great lenses. The have a breech lock mount which takes a little getting used to. The body is about the same size as the later GW cameras but the lenses are larger. The camera has a mechanism to pull a curtain over the film so you can change lenses mid roll. If you were to get one you’ll definitely want to test that first thing. I haven’t found anyone to work on them. I have the 65,100, and 150 which all work fine, but I also have the 180 which need some work so it sits on the shelf for now.

They are not a good replacement for someone looking for a folder. The 6x9 folder can slip into the back pocket of a pair of jeans, but the GL690 is a monster.

 

[Prest_400]

@GregY Great shot with the Mamiya 6! That's the kind of run and gun environment where these cameras work best.

If I sold off some of my gear or had extra cash on hand I'd be running with a Mamiya 7 three lens or two lens outfit.

Ditto, and one of the reasons why these cameras are so value... Wish there were new units. GF670W also seems like a winner.
f4.5 isn't that crazy slow given DoF and it's medium format after all.

645 is actually IMO a better format for travel-street given the frames per roll and assume DoF of a shorter FL standard lens.
If shooting happily with a 6x9, that's a lot of reloading. Beautiful large negs though. Reminds me how 220 would be fantastic for those use cases.

The GW690 is a great camera with some quirks. The GL 100mm is a Tessar type but have heard well of it.

It's a pity that there is a tech gap betweem vintage equipment and portable, modern formula lensed cameras with fast features. Then the SLRs or the auto Fujis did bridge the gap

 

[abruzzi]

645 is actually IMO a better format for travel-street given the frames per roll and assume DoF of a shorter FL standard lens.
If shooting happily with a 6x9, that's a lot of reloading. Beautiful large negs though. Reminds me how 220 would be fantastic for those use cases.

Along with the Bronica RF, Fuji made a bunch of great portable cameras in 645 format. I have the Zi model with the zoom, and to be honest, it’s never taken a bad shot (to be clear, I have taken many bad shots with it, but they are always perfectly focused and exposed.)

At some point I’d like to try the GS645 if I could find one in good shape-including rangefinder and meter. It’s probably the smaller than the newer ones. I don’t think it’s quite pocketable, though.

 

[mshchem]

8 exposure rolls are perfect for me. Maybe it's my short attention span

 

[RezaLoghme]

Great discussion!

 

[film4Me]

Ok I am now looking at Mamiya Six, lets see.

The Mamiya Six Automat is within your budget but there are compromises such as the 6x6 format, non wide 75mm lens, and only clip-on or pocket light meter.

On the plus side, it has a coupled rangefinder worked by a thumb wheel at the rear of the top plate. It also has a frame indexing counter. The camera is quite heavy but that is to be expected with MF cameras.

The Sekonic light meter is match needle and you get 15secs to select speed and aperture once the side button is pressed. The red needle stays in place for that time.

 

[RezaLoghme]

I have looked at all suggestions from this thread (excluding 1990s Mamiyas - I want silver 1960s vintage feeling). As mentioned before, the Six IVB (with the square windows) seems to be interesting, despite the compromises I will have to make.

Unfortunately I cannot find any in Europe at the moment, so the hunt will take a bit longer.

The Sekonic EM...I don't like this flimsy piece of plastic at all and would be happy to pay 2x as much, had it a better look and feel.

So, for now my question has been answered, thank you to all who contributed. Now I am interested in real life experiences from owners.

O/T: Has anyone ever replaced the bellows on this camera?

 

[film4Me]

Another advantage of the Automat is it self cocks as the film is being advanced to the next frame ... but it can also be cocked manually if need be. If I were you, I'd scrape up the extra cash for an Automat.

Why do you have to buy it in Europe? There's plenty elsewhere.

The Sekonic meter is just an example. There's others sold on Ebay. Look through them and see which one suits your taste in either clip-on or pocket meters.

 

[RezaLoghme]

I dont have to buy it in Europe, but if you look at various buying guide threads here, you will notice that many of us tend to lean towards buying in their own jurisdiction. As I am buying into a totally new system, I might want to try such a camera first. Yes, returns are certainly possible.

 

[John Wiegerink]

I have looked at all suggestions from this thread (excluding 1990s Mamiyas - I want silver 1960s vintage feeling). As mentioned before, the Six IVB (with the square windows) seems to be interesting, despite the compromises I will have to make.

Unfortunately I cannot find any in Europe at the moment, so the hunt will take a bit longer.

The Sekonic EM...I don't like this flimsy piece of plastic at all and would be happy to pay 2x as much, had it a better look and feel.

So, for now my question has been answered, thank you to all who contributed. Now I am interested in real life experiences from owners.

O/T: Has anyone ever replaced the bellows on this camera?

I think you are condemning things that are tried and true because you have no experience with them. Looks aren't everything! The Sekonic meter is ten times better than almost all the MR meters Leica made for their M series cameras. So, you want a fancy chrome finish meter that won't stay working then go for it. I have an old plastic Sekonic studio meter that's probably 50+ years old and it still works perfect, even after being dropped several times. Functionality is what I'm after and not looks. Oh, it's nice to have a good looking camera or piece of equipment, but that is not the most important thing. As far as the bellows go on the Mamiya or even Zeiss folders, they all can be replaced.

 

[BrianShaw]

I have looked at all suggestions from this thread (excluding 1990s Mamiyas - I want silver 1960s vintage feeling). As mentioned before, the Six IVB (with the square windows) seems to be interesting, despite the compromises I will have to make.

Unfortunately I cannot find any in Europe at the moment, so the hunt will take a bit longer.

That seems a really good choice that will be both fun and productive. For a while I was looking into the breadth of 1960's MF folders and kept coming back to the Mamiya Six, specifically the IVB. None in North America that I could find so I put that thought on the backburner and continue with my 1930's Kodak/Nagel Duo six-20.

I've not seen too many of the Mamiyas that needed bellows. It seems the ones needing work are more prone to focusing issues... and lens fungus. The only drawback (for me) was the fiddly loading scheme. But that can be learned easily, I'm sure. Hope you find one despite it not being exactly what you were seeking.