Moskva-4 6x6 insert in 6x9 Ercona II?

[Steve Goldstein]

I've about given up on ever finding the correct 6x6 insert for my 6x9 Ercona II. Today I happened to look at a Moskva-4 on eBay and noticed that it came with a 6x6 insert. Does anyone know if the Moskva insert fits the Ercona? Or is there anyone local to me (northeastern Massachusetts, US) with a Moskva insert that I could test-fit in my Ercona?

I know I can crop, but a proper insert would give me 12 exposures per roll rather than 8. That's advantageous in situations where changing film is challenging, like on a ski slope at 10,000' elevation when it's really cold and snowing and blowing and I'm wearing mittens. My (smaller and lighter) Perkeo II gives me 12 exposures, but ski areas tend to be big open landscapes, especially in the western US, and the Perkeo's 75mm lens usually gives me a lot of boring foreground image area that I end up cropping. Using a 6x9 folder with a 105mm lens as a 6x6 camera increases the number of exposures per roll, reduces the excess and usually wasted coverage, and still fits into my small chest pack even though it's heavier and bulkier.

Of course, as soon as I put in the insert I'd probably find a more panoramic composition that would be better served by the full 6x9 format because we all know that the perversity of the universe tends toward a maximum. Nevertheless, I'm still curious whether using a Moskva insert is feasible. If so, it would enlarge my search universe.

 

[Donald Qualls]

There are at least two styles of Moskva inserts -- one is all stamped sheet with perforations to fit over the bumps in the film rail (in a Moskva 5, for certain, and I think the Moskva 4 is the same); the other has a wire that rides outside the row of bumps. For either one, I think the only way to tell if they'd fit an Ercona is to have both cameras in front of you, with or without the insert -- and know how the insert fits and works in the Moskva camera.

 

[Steve Goldstein]

Thanks Donald. Having two different versions makes things more complicated. I guess I'll just live with it as a 6x9 camera.

 

[Donald Qualls]

Thanks Donald. Having two different versions makes things more complicated. I guess I'll just live with it as a 6x9 camera.

Well, yes and no. I'm certain both versions work in a Moskva 5, they just mount differently. I'm not even certain the Moskva 4 was 6x6 with the insert in -- some of the pre-War Zeiss cameras were 6x6 with insert, some were 6x4.5. I've never handled a Moskva 4, but a good look at the film door photo would tell you if it used a center window, or two in the 6x9 track, or one on each edge (6x9 and 6x4.5).