Got a Canon 7 - Great Viewfinder

[Lamar]

I broke down and bought a Canon 7. It came in yesterday. I haven't finished shooting up the first roll yet. The viewfinder is a definite improvement over the Zorki's (3s and 4). Parallax corrected frame lines for 35/50/85/100/135mm. I love the higher eyepoint and being able to see the whole 50mm frame line with my glasses on. The downside is no built-in adjustable diopter and apparently no provision for screw-in diopters. I like the looks of the Zorki's better, though. The Zorki's have more style and character and they feel a bit more compact in the hand, although the physical size difference isn't really that much. The only problem I've noticed is that the ISO setting for the meter slips when the shutter is moved. I did a little research and found this is most likely due to a weak spring washer that provides tension between the shutter knob and ISO wheel.

 

[Xmas]

Unless your sight is really bad you should not need a dioptre with a late Canon rfdr.

Some of the LTM lenses won't mount on Canon's with light baffle plates, eg J12 and Kobalux wides. Check with shutter and back open.

The Canon and Soviet concentric cassettes arnt compatible.

 

[Lamar]

Jupiter-12's not compatible??? Uh oh! I have mounted it and shot a few frames. I mounted it carefully and felt no problems, it seemed ok. The shutter fired fine and I see no contact marks inside. Define light baffle plates... The top horizontal plate just below the rangfinder feeler arm and follower?

Edit - ok, I took a look and the top baffle is bowed up just a bit and I do see some slight marks but my J-12 (sn 590xxxx) doesn't contact. Looks like someone else has been here before and tweaked the baffle up ever so slightly to make it clear. Or maybe their lens did it for them.......

 

[Xmas]

yea some people use crow bars, try a sharpie on any bright marks.

A lotta variation in J12 and Russar be careful.

 

[Lamar]

Just finished up the roll of film I had loaded and checked clearances for the Jupiter-12 (sn - 590xxx) on the Canon 7. The distance from the rear element to the shutter curtain is at least 5 to 7mm maybe more, plenty of clearance. There is plenty of clearance on the sides as well. There is about 2mm to the bottom baffle. I would need a feeler gauge to measure the top clearance but it does clear since the baffle is bent upwards by just a little bit. I would not bend it any more though because it looks like it would interfere with the rangefinder follower arm movement.

 

[Lamar]

I developed the first roll through this camera now. My framing is a good bit more accurate with this camera when compared to using just the viewfinder to frame on the Zorki. The frame lines help a lot. Many more keepers and much less cropping. I found that I have the same issue with shutter curtain travel speed synchronization as I do with my Zorki's. Several frames show a darker side indicating the rear curtain catching up to the front during travel. I checked sync against a CRT and found about the same percentage of off-sync shutter travel speed instances compared to my Zorki's, maybe just a bit lower with the 7 so it looks like this is just something I'll need to live with or send off for a real CLA to have resolved.

 

[markaudacity]

The viewfinder is a definite improvement over the Zorki's (3s and 4). [...] The Zorki's have more style and character and they feel a bit more compact in the hand, although the physical size difference isn't really that much.

Any viewfinder is better than a Zorki. ;P
I know exactly what you mean about the way the size/shape feels in the hand. I don't know why no one besides Leitz and FED/KMZ/LOMO ever made a camera with rounded ends. It's such a comfy shape.