Iskra Red Window Placement

brainmonster · Jun 10, 2020

I've been shopping around for a used Iskra. Most of the cameras are untested (I know so a bit of a gamble). I'm shopping for one with the frame counter removed and the red window in place. However I noticed on all the models on ebay the red window is placed in a different position. They all appear to be masked for a square 6x6 frame, so why is the red window placed differently on all the models? Shouldn't they be all in the same place for accurate 6x6 pictures?

Or perhaps I'm thinking about it incorrectly,as long as the red window is placed vertically in the same position, if the red window is horizontally in a different position, it will take pictures correctly but perhaps just offset differently on a roll of 120 film.

Please let me know your thoughts on this question as I want to have it count the frames correctly through the window...

Donald Qualls · Jun 10, 2020

Since the red windows are retrofits, they'll vary depending on how much effort the worker was willing to put in (cut through pressure plate, avoid pressure plate, etc.). As you note, as long as they're within a few mm of the centerline of the backing, they'll read the 6x6 framing track and as long as the window is inside the 6x6 gate or within a few mm outside, on either side, the twelve frames will fit on the film (which normally has a few centimeters clearance on either end with 6x6).

Shutters can be cleaned or repaired, within reason -- and there's not much to go wrong with a ruby window.

moto-uno · Jun 10, 2020

As much as I loved mine ( great lens ) , good lord that thing could develop light leaks and shutter irregularities .
If you love to tinker with cameras , this may be the tool for you , Without the frame counter and self timer working
you should be able to negotiate a good price ( do inquire about the self timer ). Peter

xya · Jun 10, 2020

I had no issues with mine, neither with leaks nor with the shutter or the film advance. the film advance is marvellous, I wish, other cameras had this. the lens is very good. so to me it's a wonderful camera, everything is working as it should. at the moment I try to repair one with a light meter. the meters of those are dead usually.

brainmonster · Jun 10, 2020

moto-uno said:
As much as I loved mine ( great lens ) , good lord that thing could develop light leaks and shutter irregularities .
If you love to tinker with cameras , this may be the tool for you , Without the frame counter and self timer working
you should be able to negotiate a good price ( do inquire about the self timer ). Peter

What was the cause of the light leaks on your camera? The bellows or the back? I'm a little worried about my ability to fix such things, but I think that depending on the location I may be able to fix if it has leaks (unless it's caused by aperture/shutter ring).

itsdoable · Jun 10, 2020

The red window for 6x6 on 120 film is in the middle of the strip. The default position (smack in the middle of the frame) places the image right next to the leader tape. In the old days, it saved film and chemicals, and we manually removed and dark-loaded the film into the processors. Today, most of the processors still operating are daylight loading, and when you daylight load, you loose an inch (minimum) of your leader - which now cuts into your 1st frame (this is a constant issue with my 2 local processors). Starting the film a little further along helps avoid loosing the 1st frame, so the after market modders probably are doing this. Today's films are also a little longer, as variations on the build in film indexing/counters do not always use the same amount of film, so starting later works fine.

None of this really matters if you dark load and process your own film,

brainmonster · Jun 10, 2020

itsdoable said:
The red window for 6x6 on 120 film is in the middle of the strip. The default position (smack in the middle of the frame) places the image right next to the leader tape. In the old days, it saved film and chemicals, and we manually removed and dark-loaded the film into the processors. Today, most of the processors still operating are daylight loading, and when you daylight load, you loose an inch (minimum) of your leader - which now cuts into your 1st frame (this is a constant issue with my 2 local processors). Starting the film a little further along helps avoid loosing the 1st frame, so the after market modders probably are doing this. Today's films are also a little longer, as variations on the build in film indexing/counters do not always use the same amount of film, so starting later works fine.

None of this really matters if you dark load and process your own film,

Thanks for your response. Yeah, one camera had the red window slightly to the right, so I guess that it's to avoid the problem with losing the cut into your first frame, so maybe it's even an advantage to have the window that way. However, my current medium format camera has the red window in the middle or even slightly to the bottom (the TLR is top loading) and I don't have any problems, so this shouldn't be an issue for me, but interesting, thanks for making me aware of that.

brainmonster · Jun 10, 2020

xya said:
I had no issues with mine, neither with leaks nor with the shutter or the film advance. the film advance is marvellous, I wish, other cameras had this. the lens is very good. so to me it's a wonderful camera, everything is working as it should. at the moment I try to repair one with a light meter. the meters of those are dead usually.

Yeah it seems like hit or miss with these, if you get a well-kept copy your golden, so I'll try to find one in good physical condition. I really like the look of the images, they are very sharp and have a dramatic quality that's hard to describe in the photos I've seen that's not in other cameras. Hopefully I'll get a decent copy or be able to fix any issues that might arise.

the Iskra 2 is hard to come by, if you repair the meter you could probably sell it for a decent price, or use it as a a convenient medium format with the in-camera meter.

brainmonster · Jun 10, 2020

Donald Qualls said:
Since the red windows are retrofits, they'll vary depending on how much effort the worker was willing to put in (cut through pressure plate, avoid pressure plate, etc.). As you note, as long as they're within a few mm of the centerline of the backing, they'll read the 6x6 framing track and as long as the window is inside the 6x6 gate or within a few mm outside, on either side, the twelve frames will fit on the film (which normally has a few centimeters clearance on either end with 6x6).

Shutters can be cleaned or repaired, within reason -- and there's not much to go wrong with a ruby window.

Yeah I'm more worried about the focus calibration and the coupling with the viewfinder, but it looks like there's ways to fix these issues if it has it, by adjusting some screw. Thanks for the info about the red window.

moto-uno · Jun 11, 2020

The bellows were something to pay attention to concerning light leaks , but I had leaks into the film chamber that I'll have to
look back through old remarks I had made . I really loved the quality of the pics , but holy crap after a while I finally took a
hammer to it .

moto-uno · Jun 11, 2020

I'm a little more patient now . Peter

Donald Qualls · Jun 11, 2020

Well, that's one way to be sure you don't "forget" and load the camera you swore you'd never use again...

StepheKoontz · Jun 11, 2020

moto-uno said:
The bellows were something to pay attention to concerning light leaks , but I had leaks into the film chamber that I'll have to
look back through old remarks I had made . I really loved the quality of the pics , but holy crap after a while I finally took a
hammer to it .

LOL this reminds me of someone I knew, who finally threw his Kiev 88 into a lake.

Iskra Red Window Placement

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