heavest 35MM

[MattKing]

I played around for a while with a 220 back for my RB67 converted to use 35mm film. That would be in the running for the "heaviest" prize.

But I am sure that the winner would be one that shoots 35mm motion picture film.

 

[Pioneer]

Adding lenses definitely changes the equation. I would have bet it was my Contarex Bullseye with the Tele-Tessar 400mm but I think the Pentax K2 with the SMC Pentax 500/4.5 actually weighs more. The Contarex undoubtedly weighs more but the Tele-Tessar lens is surprisingly light for what it is.

If the Contarex is not the heaviest 35mm camera out there it certainly has to be in the running. But if the Nikon F4 really weighs 1.4 kg without lens it has the Contarex beat. The Contarex is only 1.2 kg.

 

[k.hendrik]

1.470 kg only body with batteries and 2.862 with ED AF 80-200 ! the Master; F5

 

[cuthbert]

Adding lenses definitely changes the equation. I would have bet it was my Contarex Bullseye with the Tele-Tessar 400mm but I think the Pentax K2 with the SMC Pentax 500/4.5 actually weighs more. The Contarex undoubtedly weighs more but the Tele-Tessar lens is surprisingly light for what it is.

If the Contarex is not the heaviest 35mm camera out there it certainly has to be in the running. But if the Nikon F4 really weighs 1.4 kg without lens it has the Contarex beat. The Contarex is only 1.2 kg.

...then you realise why before the Spotmatic everybody wanted a Leica M or an equivalent rangefinder.

 

[miha]

Leicaflex with 90mm Summicron.

A perfect combination!

 

[frobozz]

I guess over the years it must have put on some weight as the New Canon F-1 manual only lists it at 795g body only - 1,030g with FD 50mm f/1.4 lens. Maybe measure it's waistline too . . .

Canon Site on New F-1 shows 795 g (body only with Eye-Level Finder FN).
I weighed my New F-1 body only with the AE Finder at 838g.

Oh yeah that's a good point - I also use the Speed Finder, which is the best thing about all eras of Canon F-1 cameras. But that adds even more weight! I'm also generally using the big honking aperture lenses (55/1.2 Aspherical, 85/1.2 Aspherical, 24/1.4 Aspherical). I should probably weigh mine, but then it would probably feel heavier once I knew the answer!

Duncan

 

[wiltw]

My Topcon RE Supers are heavy even without a lens attached. .

820g Topcon Super D, w/o lens or body cap...but I have always considered the Nikons to be the 'sledgehammer camera'

 

[Sewin]

Don't forget the old Zenit E over 900g with a 50mm lens.

 

[flavio81]

I still use my F1 30 years later without the motor drive. It's the best camera I own.

Benjiboy & me agree with you!! Although i've yet to try the Pentax LX.

And with Les Sarile and Cuthbert -other F-1N users-, it seems that this thread is becoming a "Canon F-1N club meeting"...

It is a rather heavy camera but not so heavy when we compare it to the Nikon F4 and F5 monstrosities!!

Heaviest camera I own, in a sense, is my Zeiss-Ikon Contessa 533/24. It is a small camera, very small, but for it's small size the weight is surprising. I'd say it's the "densest" camera I own.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I have a Canon F1(n) with motor drive and a high powered nicad power pack. Too friggin heavy.

I used to have the ni-cd pack for the New F-1 (AKA F-1N, as opposed to the earlier F-1n), but when it wasn't holding a charge anymore, I decided to sell it for parts and replace it with the AA power pack that takes 12 cells. I bought it over the counter in the early 1990s from none other than the infamous Cambridge Camera, which had a pile of them new in the box on a shelf somewhere in the back. No idea why the 12-cell power pack wouldn't have been a popular item...

Canon New F-1 with motor drive, AA power pack, aluminum body cap, no lens, minimalist strap, QR plate--1812g

Canon EOS-1n RS including 8-cell AA pack, plastic body cap, no lens, QR plate--1528g

 

[GarageBoy]

The Contarex is pretty damn heavy but the Contaflex is DENSE- looks small and almost pocketable- feels like a brick

 

[frobozz]

I used to have the ni-cd pack for the New F-1 (AKA F-1N, as opposed to the earlier F-1n), but when it wasn't holding a charge anymore, I decided to sell it for parts and replace it with the AA power pack that takes 12 cells. I bought it over the counter in the early 1990s from none other than the infamous Cambridge Camera, which had a pile of them new in the box on a shelf somewhere in the back. No idea why the 12-cell power pack wouldn't have been a popular item...

Canon New F-1 with motor drive, AA power pack, aluminum body cap, no lens, minimalist strap, QR plate--1812g

Canon EOS-1n RS including 8-cell AA pack, plastic body cap, no lens, QR plate--1528g

I've rebuilt all my High-power NiCd packs with fresh high-capacity NiCd cells - it's a little fiddly to get it all apart and back together again, requires a little soldering - but now they're good for another decade or two. Compared to the expense of loading up 12 new AAs every so often, and the risk of them leaking if the drive sits unused for a while, plus the convenience of powering the camera from the NiCd pack with the Connector C-FN, and I can understand why all those battery packs went unsold.

Duncan

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I've rebuilt all my High-power NiCd packs with fresh high-capacity NiCd cells - it's a little fiddly to get it all apart and back together again, requires a little soldering - but now they're good for another decade or two. Compared to the expense of loading up 12 new AAs every so often, and the risk of them leaking if the drive sits unused for a while, plus the convenience of powering the camera from the NiCd pack with the Connector C-FN, and I can understand why all those battery packs went unsold.

Duncan

Yes, I considered doing this at the time, but then figured I could use AA rechargeables and have the option of off-the-shelf batteries when recharging wasn't so convenient. In practice, though, it was too many batteries to charge all the time. When I was using it a lot, I would change the batteries maybe twice a year. Lately it's more like every couple of years, and I check periodically to be sure nothing is leaking. I've never had the Connector C-FN, but it seemed like a good idea.

 

[cuthbert]

Benjiboy & me agree with you!! Although i've yet to try the Pentax LX.

And with Les Sarile and Cuthbert -other F-1N users-, it seems that this thread is becoming a "Canon F-1N club meeting"...

It is a rather heavy camera but not so heavy when we compare it to the Nikon F4 and F5 monstrosities!!

Heaviest camera I own, in a sense, is my Zeiss-Ikon Contessa 533/24. It is a small camera, very small, but for it's small size the weight is surprising. I'd say it's the "densest" camera I own.

I refuse to use any 35mm camera heavier than a F-1...what's the point of that? I'm quite surprised to hear that some people like the F4 and the F5 to be honest. What's the point of these cameras?

 

[Les Sarile]

I've rebuilt all my High-power NiCd packs with fresh high-capacity NiCd cells - it's a little fiddly to get it all apart and back together again, requires a little soldering - but now they're good for another decade or two. Compared to the expense of loading up 12 new AAs every so often, and the risk of them leaking if the drive sits unused for a while, plus the convenience of powering the camera from the NiCd pack with the Connector C-FN, and I can understand why all those battery packs went unsold.

Duncan

I used the Lithium AA's and not only do they save a lot of weight, but they can last quite a few rolls and have a high tolerance for temperature fluctuations.

 

[Theo Sulphate]

I'm quite surprised to hear that some people like the F4 and the F5 to be honest. What's the point of these cameras?

Several reasons why I like my F4s, so much so, I bought a second one:

- it's the last film pro Nikon with all the control functions having a dedicated lever or switch; that's just me

- as Ken R says, it's the "Rosetta Stone" of Nikon lens compatibility: I can mount and meter pre-AI lenses from 1959 and I can (and do) use the newest lenses like my 60/2.8G AF-S macro lens (in M or S mode).

- it's very well-built

I like Canon as well. Someday I'll get an F-1N.

 

[MartinCrabtree]

Love my F5. Couldn't care less if no one else does. Same goes for my F. And all the same glass will work on either one.

If you can't carry the weight it's OK. I can. All day long.

 

[Les Sarile]

It is interesting that these all use the same full frame of 35mm film . . .

 

[MartinCrabtree]

On a lighter note.......Les do you use all the cameras you have? Are they stored in another building or do you live alone in a mansion?

 

[flavio81]

It is interesting that these all use the same full frame of 35mm film . . .

Umm... The Rollei 35 and Minox 35GT are smaller than them, and the Nikon F5 is bigger. The cameras pictured there are normal-sized cameras. The EOS-1 did not seem a big camera in my hands. As for the OM-1, i don't like its ergonomics nor the lens system. I always thought it was WAY, way overrated.

 

[Les Sarile]

On a lighter note.......Les do you use all the cameras you have? Are they stored in another building or do you live alone in a mansion?

I only keep fully functioning and accurate models and I do use them. I have much less than others I've seen . . .

 

[Les Sarile]

Umm... The Rollei 35 and Minox 35GT are smaller than them, and the Nikon F5 is bigger. The cameras pictured there are normal-sized cameras. The EOS-1 did not seem a big camera in my hands. As for the OM-1, i don't like its ergonomics nor the lens system. I always thought it was WAY, way overrated.

I just meant to show the obvious differences between these models and not anything else. I also don't own those models you cite so please feel free to show them here.

However, there is no denying the genius that was Yoshihisa Maintain - Olympus Pen, OM, and others. He did clearly alter the landscape of 35mm and forced practically all manufacturers to make a smaller camera.

 

[Zorkiphoto]

The Kiev 10 and Kiev 15 must be contenders. Those are some serious lumps of metal....

 

[cuthbert]

I hhave two Kiev 15, they are massive but not as "dense" as a F2 or an F1.