Another beautiful estate sale find

[2F/2F]

Hello,

This time it is a 4x5 Linhof Super Technika III version 4 in a three-lens kit with cams that has turned up in one of the estates we have taken on.

Same exact camera model I just purchased a few months ago. This one is a little more beat, but does come with the optical zoom finder (which did NOT come with mine), a case (probably non-Linhof case, but nice nonetheless), and one lens that I don't have on mine: a 360mm Tele-Xenar and its cam. Also with the camera are a 150 and a 90, and their respective cams (both of which I already have in my kit). I could only find the distance scale for the 150, however. Too bad, but not anywhere near as bad as a missing cam is!

It has some lens hoods and filters, a Graflex 2-cell flashgun and 5 in. reflector, and a Linhof flashgun with two reflectors. There are also some film holders.

Additionally, a nice unopened Plus-X film pack that expired in 1964 (and another that is opened, with the first sheet exposed, unfortunately).

...but the mother lode: a box of glassine-stored b/w negatives shot with the camera. Travel (landscapes and architecture), family, parties, Los Angeles houses and cityscapes, etc. Also, three or four big boxes and several carousels full of color transparencies to add to my collection. (I have already purchased these items.) I can't see someone's family photographs from such an interesting era be unclaimed and pieced out to various estate sale goers. I try to keep unclaimed family photo/film collections intact whenever possible; especially when from the pre-1970s.

I'm so tempted to get this camera as well. I would really love to have the optical finder and the 360 lens/cam. A beater body would be nice as well for when I hike around the forest here in L.A. I would sell off the redundant 90 and 150, but they would not do anyone much good without the camera body to which they are matched. Also, the 360 from this camera might not be accurate on my body...though the optical zoom finder would certainly be quite a score, if I could get my boss to separate it from the kit for me.

I wonder what this kit would go for on E-Bay. Very tempted...trying to fight it...argh!

Will try to get pix for you all ASAP. Might take a few days.

 

[Mike1234]

What did you pay for all this? Did the widow understand its value?

 

[thebanana]

Buy it.

 

[Steve Hamley]

Yep, buy it. I lucked out and got a near pristine Tech IV, 65mm Angulon, WA focusing device, viewfinder, and miscellaneous accessories in the leather case for an unbelievable price.

Cheers, Steve

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I have a cammed 360, and it's very handy, particularly with a rollfilm back. I've done a little impromptu bird photography that way when traveling with the Tech V (the limiting factor in that application, however, is the low top speed of the shutter).

The tolerance on the 360 cam isn't as tight as on a wideangle cam, so you might give it a try on the other body that you already have. If it's close, Richard Ritter may be able to tweak it so it's perfect. He makes cams for Tech IIIs.

 

[Mike1234]

Please just ignore my earlier post. I worded my questions very poorly and I'm sorry for that.

 

[zony]

Nice... any update? A similar estate sale in OC just sold a mid III with a Schneider Optik 360, 2 GD one 4 3/4 and one 9 1/2, with a Heliar on the camera - all in shutters... $1k... I was tempted but passed... sight unseen and untested et al. I too would have been interested in the negs etc.

 

[2F/2F]

Got the camera kit for $600. Pix to follow.

 

[2F/2F]

Just got into the kit in detail. It's in nicer shape than I though. Some mold on the bellows and leather that cleans off fairly easily was the only thing that made me think it was a bit beat up. Just light, dusty white mold that wipes off. No water damage that I could find upon opening up the camera. Everything on the camera is smooth as silk (more smooth, in fact, than my other one, which was bought and sat unused since the '50s). Contrary to my first instinct, the case is definitely made for it. It has spots that fit the camera lenses and accessories perfectly. It is green, and appears to have some sort of logo underneath the covering material, so perhaps it has been recovered. Turns out there is a Linhof flashgun and an extension, which explains the two reflectors. The lenses and shutters are in amazing shape. The 360 and its Compound shutter are clean, clean, clean, and operate smooth as butter and the times seem right on. It's my first time using one of these shutters. I like it a lot. All lenses have caps, and there are some hoods, adapters, and about 10 or 12 Series VI filters in nice stacking cases. The zoom finder also operates like buttah. The NOS Plus-X film pack is a nice touch! The really big test will come in my darkroom when I get a few minutes...I'll see if the bellows are any good. They look it, but you never know with old bellows. One nice thing about this one is the top-mounted strap lugs, which my other one does not have. This will definitely be my carry-around Technika. It has been well used and loved, it is very smooth, and clean, but not super dooper clean to the point where beating it up a little bit would be a big deal. The RF is bright. I was leery at first, but now I am glad I picked it up. Nothing beats an original cased kit for wow factor!

 

[zony]

Very nice and congrats... keeping my eye peeled these days... with a bit of regret for passing on the III, but I am also looking at a Horseman FA or Wista RF or SP... in the end, my Tachi still does the job.

 

[2F/2F]

Very nice and congrats... keeping my eye peeled these days... with a bit of regret for passing on the III, but I am also looking at a Horseman FA or Wista RF or SP... in the end, my Tachi still does the job.

Yes...a Tachi would be nice...but probably in a larger format when I finally do get one. I have several 4x5s already, and they do everything I want them to do. I might use one to replace my Kodak No. 2 5x7, which is great, but I want a bit more versatility. the Kodak is also sooo sweet for a 90-year old camera, and I don't like to beat on it too hard. Have backpacked with it a few times, and it held up fine, and have done a boatload of road tripping with it. Always going back and forth between Tachi and Shen Hao. Wish I could find a spot that has both available for rental. That is a few years down the road anyhow, though.