How good are Chinese Seagull TLR's?

Richard S. (rich815) · Mar 28, 2015

Scott Gibson said:
I was recently given an older Seagull TLR from a relative who lives in China. I have not had a chance to shoot with it yet, but I believe it is a 4B-1, with the manual red window film advance and a mask for 6x4.5. It has a metal body and is very heavy. To me, it seems like a quite robust and solidly constructed camera, although pretty much everything I've read about Seagulls would seem to indicate the opposite! I wonder if the reliability issues are limited to the newer models being sold today? Or maybe this one will fall apart once I actually attempt to use it

My experiences is mostly with 3-4 examples of older ones when I lived in China between 1996 to 2001. I tried some of the newer ones as well, the older ones feel more robust and may be. None of that matters when the shutter on every one I've used has gone out on me within 3-18 months. Much better used options for often cheaper, ones which are worth fixing, repairing or getting a CLA as they will last. I've gotten decent Rolliecords for $50-75 USD.

Maris · Mar 28, 2015

My Seagull 4A-103A has worked perfectly for more than ten years and hundreds of rolls of film; that is after its second rebuild on my repair bench. Inside components are strong and often crudely finished but work reliably when tweaked, bent, filed, and judiciously lubricated. My impression is that the basic design is good but the cameras are assembled by people who work in a hurry and don't check what they did. Conjecturing further I suspect the Shanghai factory operated in a command economy where they had to turn out so many units a month irrespective of customer demand or whether some cameras don't work straight out of the box!

RattyMouse · Mar 28, 2015

cliveh said:
It's made in China, I rest my case.

Along with iPhones, Mac Book Pro's, Airbus A320's, C919 jet aircraft, the LEAP-X1C jet engine, Nikon DSLR's and Lenses, etc..etc...etc.....All made in China.

In the '70s they said "It's made in Japan, I rest my case."
In the '80s they said, "it's made in Korea, I rest my case."

Some people never learn.

Richard S. (rich815) · Mar 28, 2015

Maris said:
My Seagull 4A-103A has worked perfectly for more than ten years and hundreds of rolls of film; that is after its second rebuild on my repair bench. Inside components are strong and often crudely finished but work reliably when tweaked, bent, filed, and judiciously lubricated. My impression is that the basic design is good but the cameras are assembled by people who work in a hurry and don't check what they did. Conjecturing further I suspect the Shanghai factory operated in a command economy where they had to turn out so many units a month irrespective of customer demand or whether some cameras don't work straight out of the box!

Ok, I take it back. I'd be willing to buy another Seagull TLR. But only one of Maris'.

benjiboy · Mar 29, 2015

cliveh said:
It's made in China, I rest my case.

Is that the same China Clive that was highly advanced scientific, cultured and mercantile society when we in Britain were occupied by the Roman legions living in mud huts with our animals and painting our faces with woad, it's a cardinal error to underestimate the opposition by dismissing them out of hand.

RattyMouse · Mar 31, 2015

benjiboy said:
Is that the same China Clive that was highly advanced scientific, cultured and mercantile society when we in Britain were occupied by the Roman legions living in mud huts with our animals and painting our faces with woad, it's a cardinal error to underestimate the opposition by dismissing them out of hand.

Yeah, the same China that was printing 5 or 6 hundred years before Gutenberg.

Argenticien · Apr 1, 2015

Maris said:
My Seagull 4A-103A has worked perfectly for more than ten years and hundreds of rolls of film; that is after its second rebuild on my repair bench. Inside components are strong and often crudely finished but work reliably when tweaked, bent, filed, and judiciously lubricated.

Wow. You have become to Seagull what Arax were to Arsenal. Good on you, but that's rather a high bar, if one is required to have the time, skills, tools, and maybe spares to do that in order to make a useful Seagull. It should scare off most of the rest of us.

--Dave

Maris · Apr 1, 2015

Argentician, you are right. The Seagull TLR is not for people who expect trouble free operation. Mine was so cheap new ($140!) that I had nothing to lose by opening and repairing the mechanism when it failed. Today the TLR that gets the most use here is a Mamiya C330S, a camera which is at least two classes above in mechanical excellence.

nyoung · Apr 1, 2015

Late 90s, they were available through Freestyle for less than $50 each. Bought four to introduce photo class to medium format.
Unpacked the boxes which were sealed in clear plastic - yellow sand from the factory floor in the boxes. The lenses were sharp enough but they didn't last long.

How good are Chinese Seagull TLR's?

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