My GW690ii arrived today...

LMNOP · Feb 28, 2015

WHY DID I WAIT SO LONG?!

To my surprise, the Japanese Post only took THREE DAYS from Tokyo, and just as I was heading out to walk on the frozen lake at sunset, the USPS carrier was pulling up to my apartment with a box of Japanese gold.

I loaded this beast up with Ektar 100, and went for a nice long walk onto a frozen solid Lake Champlain, and spent that roll in ten minutes flat. I was impressed with the handling of this thing, it feels SO natural and satisfying, like I've been shooting it for years. The RF focusing patch is MUCH more visible than the GS645S that I had for a short time. As soon as I rigged it up with a Langly strap, I was ready to go, and completely thrilled. If anyone is looking to get rid of a GW690iii, or even GW670 at a good price - I will soon be looking for a backup!

Anyway, I'll be sending off 2 rolls on Monday, so I'll post when I've scanned those puppies. Fingers crossed - I hope the focus is accurate, and the seals are tight!

Sirius Glass · Mar 1, 2015

Enjoy! Go out and shoot film.

trythis · Mar 1, 2015

Happy, Happy, enjoy!

RattyMouse · Mar 1, 2015

Congrats! Now you need a GSW690 to pair up with that.

emjo · Mar 1, 2015

Good catch! Beautiful camera for sure.

PS And here is that tight seal for you just in case

parkpy · Mar 5, 2015

Can you give us the name/id of your eBay seller?

Thx!

Newt_on_Swings · Mar 5, 2015

Nice. Try pairing it with an optech stretching strap, the elastic in the neoprene really helps with the weight.

nwilkins · Mar 5, 2015

parkpy said:
Can you give us the name/id of your eBay seller?

Thx!

The OP's experience is the same you'll get from pretty much every Japanese ebay seller with 99.7% feedback or better. Japan is the best place to buy camera gear from on ebay.

nbagno · Mar 5, 2015

ChipMcD · Mar 5, 2015

nwilkins said:
The OP's experience is the same you'll get from pretty much every Japanese ebay seller with 99.7% feedback or better. Japan is the best place to buy camera gear from on ebay.

+1 on that. I've recently purchased several RB and RZ lenses from different Japanese e-bay sellers. All items were as described, very well packed and promptly shipped. It takes a surprisingly short time for stuff to arrive on the east coast of the US from Japan.

nwilkins · Mar 5, 2015

Japan has an amazing postage system. I remember I ordered a lens and it cost $17 CDN to arrive in 3 days from Japan, insured, with tracking etc. I ended up returning the lens and the cheapest option back to Japan with tracking through Canada Post was $45 and a 4 week delivery time.

wjlapier · Mar 5, 2015

Congrats!

macfred · Mar 5, 2015

nwilkins said:
The OP's experience is the same you'll get from pretty much every Japanese ebay seller with 99.7% feedback or better. Japan is the best place to buy camera gear from on ebay.

I agree !

marton · Mar 9, 2015

Mine arrived today. Nothing will prepare you for how big this thing is. Texas Leica indeed. Mine came with a UV filter over the lens, which I unscrewed and took off. The outer circle, the bit with the lens info written in green then fell off. I chuckled. Makes no difference the operation and with a little dab of glue it'll fit right back in. Put a roll of B&W film into it and that focus patch is going to take some getting used to, along with the oh so elegant shutter sound - Klang. Everything seems to work just fine though. I'll develop the film at Uni as soon as I can to get an idea of how it performs. Funny thing - I looked all over the camera to find where the ISO information goes till I remembered...oh yeah, it's all manual.

Sirius Glass · Mar 9, 2015

Did it come with a truss?

LMNOP · Mar 9, 2015

marton said:
Mine arrived today. Nothing will prepare you for how big this thing is. Texas Leica indeed. Mine came with a UV filter over the lens, which I unscrewed and took off. The outer circle, the bit with the lens info written in green then fell off. I chuckled. Makes no difference the operation and with a little dab of glue it'll fit right back in. Put a roll of B&W film into it and that focus patch is going to take some getting used to, along with the oh so elegant shutter sound - Klang. Everything seems to work just fine though. I'll develop the film at Uni as soon as I can to get an idea of how it performs. Funny thing - I looked all over the camera to find where the ISO information goes till I remembered...oh yeah, it's all manual.

I was thinking of getting a uv filter or polarizer, I like how there are almost no accessories to add to this camera. I did not expect to love this camera as much as I do, especially after seeing the negs. I could go hiking and take nothing but my GW. I have a nice Langly strap on it, but it's a bit heavy. The shutter sound is actually kind of satisfying, and I don't understand why so many have complained about it. The shutter sounds exactly like a toy camera I had as a child, and I mean, it sounds exactly the same.

Renato Tonelli · Mar 10, 2015

I blame and thank you all for caving in. Mine (w/90mm lens) arrived yesterday from Japan. Beautiful condition. I marveled at how every function is well designed with no superfluous features. Even the pressure plate for 120/220 is pure ingenuity - no complicated maneuvers: you just remove it and flip it for the format you are using. This was important for me because I still have quite a bit of 220.

I will probably add a UV; the Polarizer and contrast filters I already have.

sixby45 · Jul 12, 2018

Yep the super texas Leica! I love that camera And all its iterations - it was so easy to just go out and shoot with - and those GIANT negatives - awesome! Enjoy the camera A great setup indeed.

Sirius Glass · Jul 12, 2018

Enjoy

nbagno · Jul 14, 2018

That’s not the sound of the shutter, it’s the mechanical film counter.

marton said:
Mine arrived today. Nothing will prepare you for how big this thing is. Texas Leica indeed. Mine came with a UV filter over the lens, which I unscrewed and took off. The outer circle, the bit with the lens info written in green then fell off. I chuckled. Makes no difference the operation and with a little dab of glue it'll fit right back in. Put a roll of B&W film into it and that focus patch is going to take some getting used to, along with the oh so elegant shutter sound - Klang. Everything seems to work just fine though. I'll develop the film at Uni as soon as I can to get an idea of how it performs. Funny thing - I looked all over the camera to find where the ISO information goes till I remembered...oh yeah, it's all manual.

RattyMouse · Jul 14, 2018

My first serious camera was one of these big Fuji's. Loved that gear. Only sold it off when I went digital. HUGE mistake. Anyway, I ended up going back to film and this time got the Fuji GF670W. Same concept as the older Fuji rangefinders, except 1,000 times more modern. They are electronic so will not have the infinite lifespan, but they will easily last long enough for me.

Dan Daniel · Jul 14, 2018

nbagno said:
That’s not the sound of the shutter, it’s the mechanical film counter.

Actually no, it isn't. It is a spring mechanism that connects the shutter release button to the the actual shutter release mechanism inside the lens.

There is something almost perverse about the noise. I wonder if it was because of its intended use- group shots, maybe in busy environments, maybe by camera operators who aren't well-trained? Make certain that there is NO WAY to not know if the shutter fired.

RattyMouse · Jul 14, 2018

Dan Daniel said:
Actually no, it isn't. It is a spring mechanism that connects the shutter release button to the the actual shutter release mechanism inside the lens.

There is something almost perverse about the noise. I wonder if it was because of its intended use- group shots, maybe in busy environments, maybe by camera operators who aren't well-trained? Make certain that there is NO WAY to not know if the shutter fired.

On the flip side, the Fuji GF670W's shutter is so silent that they put an LED next to the viewfinder so that you can be certain that the shutter tripped. Without that you'd never know. It is that silent.

nbagno · Jul 14, 2018

Ah, well that's just me regurgitating what I've read :-|

Dan Daniel said:
Actually no, it isn't. It is a spring mechanism that connects the shutter release button to the the actual shutter release mechanism inside the lens.

There is something almost perverse about the noise. I wonder if it was because of its intended use- group shots, maybe in busy environments, maybe by camera operators who aren't well-trained? Make certain that there is NO WAY to not know if the shutter fired.

Dan Daniel · Jul 14, 2018

nbagno said:
Ah, well that's just me regurgitating what I've read :-|

I wish that you were right. The clank from the GW690 led to me selling mine. I found myself cringing each time I took a picture, I found it that annoying.

A few people, including me, spent time a few years ago tracking down the noise. I don't remember exactly where in the line it is, but there is a spring-loaded rod or plate. The shutter release you press releases the latch on this spring-loaded piece which then pushes another lever to transfer the motion to the back of the shutter itself inside the lens. If you open the back and hold your ear to the inside you might be able to hear it at the top of the film chamber.

Maybe some day I'll go in and relocate the shutter release to bypass that spring part! The camera handles so nicely and gives such nice images.

My GW690ii arrived today...

LMNOP

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My GW690ii arrived today...

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