Canonet GIII 17QL or Minolta Himatic 7sii

zanxion72 · Jun 28, 2014

I am being offered these two at the same price. I can afford only one. What do you recommend? The Canon or the Minolta? (I wish I could get both)

Richard S. (rich815) · Jun 28, 2014

The one that's in better shape.

Oren Grad · Jun 28, 2014

I have both. The Minolta is a bit smaller and lighter and simpler in construction and is a bit easier to stuff into a coat pocket, the Canon feels a bit "tighter" and better made. That could be partly sample variation. The Canon shutter speeds go to 1/4 plus B, the Minolta only to 1/8 plus B; this makes no difference to me as I use either camera only hand-held and rarely want to tempt fate beyond 1/15. The control rings around the lens are laid out a bit differently and have a different "feel"; you might prefer one or the other. I can't tell you anything about the meters because I don't use them - I use both cameras in full manual mode and don't bother with a battery. If you want to use the meter you'll need to check current battery compatibility. There's a dedicated Canon flash for the Canonet; I've never used it nor any other flash with either of these two cameras. The Canonet uses 48mm filters and caps, which are a bit of a nuisance to find; the Minolta uses 49mm accessories, which are widely available.

I happen to prefer the Minolta. I can't give you any good reason other than that I'm subjectively more comfortable with it in the hand. That's not really much help as your reaction could be the opposite. Do try to get your hands on both before making a decision.

Good luck!

Brian Legge · Jun 28, 2014

Do you have the ability to test them or see what condition they are in?

They can both be great cameras but some issues are expensive or impractical to repair. If there is the hint of anything wrong with one, take the other. Check the shutter speeds, condition of the rangefinder patch, behavior of the meter and particularly on the 7sII verify the aperture stops down correctly. They are prone to a small part breaking in the meter resulting in the camera stops down to ~f16 all the time (https://www.flickr.com/photos/cannelbrae/sets/72157624508226403)

Assuming they are both in great condition, I'd go with whichever feels ergonomically better to you. I love the nub at the base of the aperture ring on the 7sII. The Canon feels a bit more rigid and solidly constructed.

At least personally, the optics seemed similar enough that I don't see a reason to take one over the other. The 7sII has the better reputation - and I didn't perform a direct comparison when I had both - but at no point did I feel like either camera let me down optically.

zanxion72 · Jun 28, 2014

Yes, I have direct access to them. They both look nice and shinny. The Minolta is nice and small, but Canon looks also nice and the controls seem to fit better in my hands.
They both work perfectly. That is now a hell of a dilemma. Which one is more likely to last longer? I won't be using their meter anyway.

Steve Goldstein · Jun 28, 2014

Why not take both, shoot with both to decide which you prefer, then sell the one you don't want? That way you can form your own final opinion.

Richard S. (rich815) · Jun 28, 2014

I cannot speak for the Minolta Himatic 7sii (but I do have a Minolta AL-F and it's shoots nicely) but I have a Canonent and the lens on it is superb.

Brian Legge · Jun 28, 2014

Its almost impossible to know which will last longer.

I've seen quite a few 7sIIs with the problem I mentioned above. That may be because the people mostly sell the broken ones. Canonets seem a hair more prone to developing stutter blade sticking issues, though I have no idea how common this is.

Whats the asking price?

John Koehrer · Jun 28, 2014

I'm partial to the Canon, better fit.
The QL loading is pretty fool proof, but never underestimate fools. Like Oren I don't bother with a battery either.
The Canon is locked if it's on "A" and has no battery also has a GN function if you don't have the Canon flash.

zanxion72 · Jun 29, 2014

It seems I'll go for the Canon. Later this month if that little Minolta is still there, I'll buy it too. I like a lot that quick loading feature of the canonets. I have the 19QL, the first model, but it is way too big to carry around, bigger than my Nikon FE.

Kyon Thinh · Jun 29, 2014

If the minolta is black, get it.

Tom1956 · Jun 29, 2014

If I had a choice between a Canon or a Minolta, I'd pick the Canon, although it would be like choosing between brussels sprouts or cooked cabbage.

zanxion72 · Jun 30, 2014

Bought the Canon. Both were not black bodies. Canon had its case and its lens cap and that was what made me go for it. I feel quite sorry leaving the minolta behind. If it is still there by next week I will get that too!

It feels nice. It is even quieter than my little Oly 35RC (yeah, I am by the "small is beautiful" notion)! One thing I noted is that in Auto when exposure is out of limits it locks the shutter. Is that normal?

ToddB · Jun 30, 2014

Sounds like you made a wise choice.. I just got one from my gramdmother, working on a roll now. Can't wait to see the results. Your lucky that yours came with original case. I want one of those, but they are impossible to find.

Todd

zanxion72 · Jul 1, 2014

Indeed, for all those small rangefinder cameras, the original cases are hard to come by. After three years, I am still looking for the original hard case of the Olympus 35RC.

zanxion72 · Jul 4, 2014

That's it! Sold the 18-105 lens of my Nikon D90 and bought the little Minolta too Now I am all happy (and sort of broke!)!

ToddB · Jul 6, 2014

Awesome...

Sounds like you made a smart choose. Now you got the best of both worlds. Awesome little Rangefinders that shoot film, so you scan negs at 9400 res and have the ability to print in the darkroom. What could be better.

Todd

zanxion72 · Jul 7, 2014

Thanks Todd.

Of course, now my D90 sits naked (with a cap on it), but who cares, I have long stopped using it! It amazes me how silent it is. I thought that my Oly 35RC was nice and smooth, but this one is even better (a lot).

Xmas · Jul 7, 2014

zanxion72 said:
One thing I noted is that in Auto when exposure is out of limits it locks the shutter. Is that normal?

Yes normal & very annoying.
Most of the simple autos have no mechanical or electrical bits, you pay by accepting limits.
The meter does not work in manual either
The RC is easier to use.
Or I use a MINOLTA 7S which is big but has programme and meter in manual but only EV readout.
I normally remove the battery.

For those that want case or half case the small /2.8 canonet case also fits ok, drill out rivit for half case.

You need to use an air cell or silver cell with diode for linear readings, folks that use alkaline cells have large errors at one end...

zanxion72 · Jul 8, 2014

What a relief! I should had though so. It locks the shutter when the exposure is out of limits just like my Oly 35RC. It is a bit annoying that there is no metering when going manual, but that's o.k. I can live perfectly without that.
As for the batteries would the zinc air ones that provide 1.4V do? I have been given with four old mercury (by Kodak) cells with that, but for sure they won't last forever.

Xmas · Jul 8, 2014

zanxion72 said:
What a relief! I should had though so. It locks the shutter when the exposure is out of limits just like my Oly 35RC. It is a bit annoying that there is no metering when going manual, but that's o.k. I can live perfectly without that.
As for the batteries would the zinc air ones that provide 1.4V do? I have been given with four old mercury (by Kodak) cells with that, but for sure they won't last forever.

Yes zinc air are good if you can get one to fit.

google ' mercury battery problem ' and down load the PDF. You need to be good with a soldering iron to make the adapters.

I use a separate meter with mono...

zanxion72 · Jul 8, 2014

I think that is what I will do. I will use a separate meter. As for soldering, I would end up with burned fingers but not a single adapter.

Michael Finder · Jul 8, 2014

Excellent decision to buy both. The Minolta 7sII don't come up that often. I have had both. I find the Canon GIII to be a more robust camera. The Minolta is a joy to use. So light. If you have a dead meter shoot the sunny 16 rule on manual. Works beautifully for me.

zanxion72 · Jul 9, 2014

It's meter works perfectly, but I do not trust much those meters especially when mounting filters on them. It is as if the frame of the filter itself cuts a portion of the view of those light meter "eyes" leading to underexposure. When I go out light, I use my iphone and the pocket light meter app. Else, I always carry along my Gossen Luna SBC (the one with the leds). Sunny 16 works for me, but not most of the time (I still have to get used to working it out properly).

Xmas · Jul 9, 2014

zanxion72 said:
It's meter works perfectly, but I do not trust much those meters especially when mounting filters on them. It is as if the frame of the filter itself cuts a portion of the view of those light meter "eyes" leading to underexposure. When I go out light, I use my iphone and the pocket light meter app. Else, I always carry along my Gossen Luna SBC (the one with the leds). Sunny 16 works for me, but not most of the time (I still have to get used to working it out properly).

Cut off would lead to overexposure.
Could be your alkaline battery is new?
Some people find they need a short hood to block out the sky to avoid underexposure...

Canonet GIII 17QL or Minolta Himatic 7sii

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