Donald Qualls
Subscriber
The FedEx truck brought my Contax III (pre-War model) from Japan yesterday. It's as nice looking as the eBay listing made it seem; meter works and it's clean, RF appears accurate and the spot is bright. Only thing is, the shutter seems slow.
Now, I'm well aware that Contax RF bodies slow down the shutter transit at speeds below 1/50, but the open time seems about a stop too long on the settings where I can see it. I'll test more when I have time to use the slo-mo video on my smart phone, but I'm inclined to keep the camera, rather than return it, and pay for a CLA. Unlike my two Kiev 4 bodies (one of which has a much worse shutter than this), this one won't meet with "I don't touch Soviet/Russian cameras" from repair shops, and a CLA would still leave this costing less than some of the others I saw while shopping.
Who does good work on Contax RF at reasonable cost (or is that combination possible) and what kind of lead time do they have?
Now, I'm well aware that Contax RF bodies slow down the shutter transit at speeds below 1/50, but the open time seems about a stop too long on the settings where I can see it. I'll test more when I have time to use the slo-mo video on my smart phone, but I'm inclined to keep the camera, rather than return it, and pay for a CLA. Unlike my two Kiev 4 bodies (one of which has a much worse shutter than this), this one won't meet with "I don't touch Soviet/Russian cameras" from repair shops, and a CLA would still leave this costing less than some of the others I saw while shopping.
Who does good work on Contax RF at reasonable cost (or is that combination possible) and what kind of lead time do they have?