New-to-me Canon FT QL

[jay moussy]

Thrift, Canon FT QL, with the FL 50mm 1.4 lens
Never seen an older Canon before, what I see so far
- FL mount --- mech. similar to with FD I read?
- Quick Load -- will learn how to operate via manual, will head out to Mike B. site
- Mercury battery -- not sure if worth working on adaptation?

I must say I like the heft of cameras of that era, like my Konica Autoreflex.

Anything else I need to know?

 

[Paul Howell]

You can use hearing a batteries. I think the Canon will have a brighter viewfinder than the Autoflex with a wider range of lens.

 

[Donald Qualls]

For mercury battery, a zinc-air hearing aid battery is the correct voltage, fairly cheap, and in some cases a drop-in fit (other cases it needs an adapter to, for instance, emulated the PX-625 flange). Depending how old the camera is (not familiar with that model) it may work fine with a modern alkaline battery of the original size/shape.

The Canon QL system is slick -- I've got a QL17 G3 rangefinder camera. Pretty much just pull out the right length of leader, drop the film in, drop the little door over it, and close the camera.

 

[AgX]

- FL mount --- mech. similar to with FD I read?

R, FL, FD mount, all haved same bayonet proper. But actuators differ.
Basically FL and FD lenses are switchable between FL and FD bodies (the different TTL and AE aside). Though with some lenses there are restrictions.

 

[Deleted member 88956]

For battery get a voltage regulating adapter. Especially if you decide to keep it and use it longer term, there is no better solution. One time $15-20 expanse and then off-the-shelf silver oxide batteries.

 

[AgX]

Both, FT QL anf FTb are outstanding within the Canon range, due to their "spot" metering.
(Only F-1 and T70 and T90 can do somewhat similar)

 

[randyB]

You may find the meter on the FT to be very sluggish, slow to respond. This is because it is very old and CDS cells do deteriorate over long time. I've had 2 in the past 15 years and on both the meters were basically useless. Of course, yours may be different, try the hearing aid battery, you may get lucky. The FT and FTB are lovely cameras, nice heft and feel. You might look into a CLA to keep the shutter working smoothly. Have fun. RB

 

[jay moussy]

Camera is very clean, implying minimal wear.
Fabric shutter curtain looks smooth, did not inspect closely yet.
What do we know about the durability of Canon curtains of that era?

 

[Sirius Glass]

.

E*N*J*O*Y!!​

 

[Mackinaw]

Camera is very clean, implying minimal wear.
Fabric shutter curtain looks smooth, did not inspect closely yet.
What do we know about the durability of Canon curtains of that era?

Canon SLR horizontal focal plane shutters of that day are well designed and well engineered. Sturdy and reliable. The speeds may have drifted, and it may cap at high shutter speeds, bot both of these are easily adjusted.

Jim B.

 

[gone]

I'd go w/ a 1.5V battery, the meter is probably tired, and you can compensate w/ the ISO but I doubt you would have to. Might be interesting to see if the meter worked first.

I loved mine, people called it the Canon Leicaflex, they're solid and heavy cameras. My favorite lenses were the FD 85 1.8 and FD 135 2.5. The FL lenses imaged differently, they had different lens designs. The viewfinder had little eye relief for eyeglass wearers, but it was bright enough, and the meter needle was so easy to read.

The shutter started capping on mine after a while, so I opened it up and cleaned things w/ alcohol, lighter fluid and Q-tips. A few twists on the shutter screws to give more tension on the curtains, and it worked great. There's quite a bit of repair info on the internet for these.

 

[wiltw]

There are many PHONY 'MR-9' adapters out there. One can recognize them with a hole drilled into one side, so it admits air to the air cell battery...this is NOT the product to use.
NOT this product
https://www.ebay.com/itm/334274422609?hash=item4dd44ee751:g:OhsAAOSwAvVhzw6q

A genuine MR-9 accepts a silver oxide battery, 386 / SR43W Silver Oxide battery (1.55 V) and will convert voltage to be equal to obsolete PX625 PX13 Mercuric oxide battery (1.35V).
This link goes to the correct product
https://www.ebay.com/itm/130646083632?hash=item1e6b1d0830:g:hkIAAOxykMpTHFbQ

 

[Auer]

Do a simple diode mod and use regular LR44's .



Really nice camera's, I have two.

 

[MattKing]

There are many PHONY 'MR-9' adapters out there. One can recognize them with a hole drilled into one side, so it admits air to the air cell battery...this is NOT the product to use.
NOT this product
https://www.ebay.com/itm/334274422609?hash=item4dd44ee751:g:OhsAAOSwAvVhzw6q

That product is labelled wrong, and way too expensive.
But products like that are useful if you are looking to use the short life but relatively cheap zinc air hearing aid batteries.
I use both types of adapters.
The more expensive ones that convert silver oxide cells for use - those go in my cameras or meters where I need a long lived battery .
And the less expensive ones that convert the zinc air cells for use - those go in the cameras that I'm likely to use and then remove batteries between uses.

 

[bluechromis]

I have the FT-b, the sucessor to the FT-QL. I assume that your f/1.4 50 mm lens is similar to the later ones. There is a review on the web of midrange price classical SLR lens that found the Canon FD 50 mm f/1.4 to be the sharpest. If yours is like my FD 50 mm 1.4, it is sharp indeed. Not everyone loves the bokeh, but you can't have everything if you don't want to pay for Zeiss and Leica. The FT-b is said to have one the most usable depth of field preview levers ever, one Canon could not equal in their high-end F-1. I assume the DOF preview evolved from the stop-down metering function of the FT-QL. I use the CRIS battery adapter, which last I heard, are not being produced. But it works perfectly. I have seen videos of a hack to solder in a resistor on the light meter wire that lets it use modern batteries. I didn't look that hard. The shutter sound on the FT is not quiet, but nicely solid and satisfying. The viewfinder is as bright as anything out there.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I'd go w/ a 1.5V battery, the meter is probably tired, ...

Give it a cup of strong coffee.

 

[jay moussy]

A question about the stock 50mm 1:4 lens:
It has a A-M ring, set to "A". I do not seem to be able to move it to the "M" position.

I wonder if I am doing it wrong, like not releasing a lock I fail to notice, perhaps?