Contax lenses on EOS 7E body

[Arvee]

My Contax body is history and I have a few AE and MM lenses that I would like to use on my EOS 7E body (I disassembled my 167MT for a look and the plastic parts were cracking/deteriorating, no more Contax 167MT bodies for me!). I understand the stop down requirement but I do 99% manual operation so that's not an issue.

My question is there are a myriad of adapters out there and I don't want to buy something that is marginal so what is the 'hot setup' today?

Anyone care to recommend a working adapter they presently or previously have used with EOS (7E 0r?) cameras?

Is the Gandy unit the best bet? It's getting up there in the price range of a replacement body. If that be the case, is there a durable Contax/Yashica body in the $175-225 range used, one that is tougher than the 167MT?

I'm a bit dubious about ordering something from HK unless someone has previous experience that they work without problems.

Thanks!

Fred

 

[Peter Black]

I've tried one of those adaptors to mount a Leica R lens to Canon EOS. The problem for me has been that the Canon focus screen has no microprism or other aid to help focus the lens, so I've been pretty disappointed with some of the results. Your eyesight may be better than mine and that maybe won't be an issue for you, but otherwise you may want to consider one of the adaptors with the contacts for focus confirmation. I got mine from China at the link below.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Brass-Contax-...71853074QQihZ005QQcategoryZ3340QQcmdZViewItem

 

[sbelyaev]

For that amount of money one can buy a used Contax body in KEH. RX or ST in bgn condition should be good enough. RX is probably better a better choice - Kyocera will continue to service them for another 8-9 years.

 

[bjorke]

i bought one from gandy, and one from bob shell. no noticeable function diff though the price varied widely

I think Hakuba makes one in Japan, I expect it's fine

 

[patrickjames]

Hmmm. When I was using Contax lenses my body of choice was the Yashica FRI. I liked the camera enough to keep it even though I eventually switched to Canon. You can buy them for a song since no one wants them and they share many parts with the RTS. Great camera, little money.

Not to talk you out of getting an adapter. I have thought about it many times since I miss that Zeiss glass, but I never thought it was worth the trouble. As they always say, your mileage may vary.

Patrick