Surprise surprise! I bought a camera from Japan that has major problems. Fortunately, for the first time ever, the seller was completely open about them. I bought it as a project, and I still plan to keep it as a project, but I figured I'd see if anyone else wants to do that more than I do first.
This is in alright shape and is essentially functional, with some issues:
1. The shutter hangs open on 1/8 and B, rendering them useless. All other speeds seem alright.
2. The aperture seems slightly sluggish.
3. The advance lever catches, so you sometimes have to push it upward a bit to get it to move. Not a big deal at all.
4. There are a couple of faint spots in the lens that I can't quite identify, and an odd thin ring of haze inside the edge of one of the internal elements. I can't imagine any of it having an effect on anything imagewise.
I've shot two rolls with it, and sometimes get impressively sharp images. Unfortunately, either because of the shutter/aperture issues or something else, a lot of shots have come out soft. So, obviously, at the very least this could use having all of its blades cleaned. Whether there's a bigger issue or not, I can't say.
Oh, and the seller put in new seals, so there's that. And I'll include a lens cap, but the filter ring is so shallow that you really should get a push-on if you want it to stay.
Price: $55 shipped. If you can fix it up, you've got a $200+ camera for peanuts!
Behold, some photos taken on my couch:
This is in alright shape and is essentially functional, with some issues:
1. The shutter hangs open on 1/8 and B, rendering them useless. All other speeds seem alright.
2. The aperture seems slightly sluggish.
3. The advance lever catches, so you sometimes have to push it upward a bit to get it to move. Not a big deal at all.
4. There are a couple of faint spots in the lens that I can't quite identify, and an odd thin ring of haze inside the edge of one of the internal elements. I can't imagine any of it having an effect on anything imagewise.
I've shot two rolls with it, and sometimes get impressively sharp images. Unfortunately, either because of the shutter/aperture issues or something else, a lot of shots have come out soft. So, obviously, at the very least this could use having all of its blades cleaned. Whether there's a bigger issue or not, I can't say.
Oh, and the seller put in new seals, so there's that. And I'll include a lens cap, but the filter ring is so shallow that you really should get a push-on if you want it to stay.
Price: $55 shipped. If you can fix it up, you've got a $200+ camera for peanuts!
Behold, some photos taken on my couch: