The "QL" stood for Quick Load if I remember correctly. My father had one (with a 58mm f1.2 lens) and it was the first camera I used back when I was 11-12 years old.
The amazing thing was that the camera NEVER failed to properly load the film. That pressure spring and takeup spool mechanism was really excellent and much better than just about anything out there at the time. No fiddling with inserting the film tab into a slot, you didn't have to partially wind the roll to ensure it was going to work. It just WORKED... great camera.
I had a silver one, great camera, they were known as the Japanese Leicaflex (sorta, nothing is as heavy as one of those). The black FTbs are way more cool looking.
The amazing thing was that the camera NEVER failed to properly load the film. That pressure spring and takeup spool mechanism was really excellent and much better than just about anything out there at the time. No fiddling with inserting the film tab into a slot, you didn't have to partially wind the roll to ensure it was going to work. It just WORKED... great camera.
Agreed. I remember being amazed by that loading mechanism when it first came out. (especially compared to loading the Nikon F, which I was shooting at the time.)