Nikkormat Ft2 + lens question

[MartinCrabtree]

Wandered over to the auction site and there are many Nikkormat for bargain prices. You guys cost me more money............at least I don't have to buy glass to go with them.

 

[cuthbert]

Odd place for Nikon to have put the JCII sticker - better than putting it on the rear element though.

Nice kit - the photos you made with it are excellent.

Thanks Theo!

 

[John_Nikon_F]

Odd place for Nikon to have put the JCII sticker - better than putting it on the rear element though.

Nice kit - the photos you made with it are excellent.

It's the normal spot on the 300/4.5 IF-ED AIS... Other lenses typically have it on the aperture ring, or focusing ring, if the lens has a metal ring or enough material between the grip and the edge of the ring to place it.

With respect to the price, BradS is right. $150-$175 is the max. Part of the reason being is that, even though it's minty, the camera is between 37 and 40 years old. Time to have it overhauled. That adds another $138-$145 or so to the cost.

With respect to the shutter recoil, that's actually the mirror box. Lock the mirror up and there's very little vibration. The FM and FE have the same amount of vibration as a Nikkormat EL. Even sound the same as one. The FT3, however, is a 1965 design that had been mildly modified over the next 12 years. Centerweighted metering pattern arrived in 1967. The split-image screens started being used in 1971 with the "A" screen, then 1973-74 with the "K" screen. Plastic tip advance and self-timer, late 1972. Hot shoe and threaded sync terminal (aka FT2) arrived in 1975. AI coupling, 1977. So, it should be expected that an FT3 will feel more clunky than a Pentax K2/K2 DMD, even though both use the same shutter (Copal = Seiko - used to be Seikosha, before the Copal name came into being). A K2 or K2 DMD is going to be very similar to an EL, with respect to vibration and noise.

-J

 

[cuthbert]

With respect to the shutter recoil, that's actually the mirror box. Lock the mirror up and there's very little vibration. The FM and FE have the same amount of vibration as a Nikkormat EL. Even sound the same as one. The FT3, however, is a 1965 design that had been mildly modified over the next 12 years. Centerweighted metering pattern arrived in 1967. The split-image screens started being used in 1971 with the "A" screen, then 1973-74 with the "K" screen. Plastic tip advance and self-timer, late 1972. Hot shoe and threaded sync terminal (aka FT2) arrived in 1975. AI coupling, 1977. So, it should be expected that an FT3 will feel more clunky than a Pentax K2/K2 DMD, even though both use the same shutter (Copal = Seiko - used to be Seikosha, before the Copal name came into being). A K2 or K2 DMD is going to be very similar to an EL, with respect to vibration and noise.

-J

Agreed on the matter that the Ft3 is in fact a camera from the 60s, disagreeing on the Seiko shutter: the K2 has the electronic Seiko, that is VERY different from the Copal used on the FT3, it gives AE priority first, and it's battery dependent.

 

[John_Nikon_F]

Agreed on the matter that the Ft3 is in fact a camera from the 60s, disagreeing on the Seiko shutter: the K2 has the electronic Seiko, that is VERY different from the Copal used on the FT3, it gives AE priority first, and it's battery dependent.

Erm, actually it is. The only difference is that the Copal in the K2 has electronic controls on it. The Seiko in the FT3 is mechanical. Just like how the Nikkormat EL is electronically controlled. It's still the same shutter.

-J

 

[Jon Buffington]

So I made an offer. He accepted. $100 for the ft2, 50/1.4, 50/3.5 macro +extension tubes, 28/3.5 and bag. A Nikon n90 thrown in as well. Pick it up tomorrow evening.

 

[cooltouch]

Yay! Cool beans, especially if the N90 works. If the lenses are all in good shape, just the two 50s are worth more than what you paid, so you did well, most likely.

Pics please, once you get the kit home and settled in and all.

 

[cuthbert]

So I made an offer. He accepted. $100 for the ft2, 50/1.4, 50/3.5 macro +extension tubes, 28/3.5 and bag. A Nikon n90 thrown in as well. Pick it up tomorrow evening.

Congratulations! Please send us a pic of the set!

 

[TheToadMen]

And ... enjoy the camera!

 

[Jon Buffington]

Sans the bag and accessories, this a quick and dirty cellphone image of the set. No detail but gives you an idea. Everything looks new. The n90s looks new except the back is getting sticky (common). Ft2, n90s, 50/1.4ai, 28/3.5, 55/3.5 micro, vivitar extension tube set. All works.

 

[Down Under]

I vote for $275. Worked out at $100 for the FT2, $50 each for the 50 and 28, and $75 for the micro. That is, if all are in good working condition. Like a previous poster, I agree that a 1970s camera will never be "As New". As for "minty" - well, okay, as long as it isn't "moth-bally"...

If the seller is a friend, add a little more for the friendship's sake. If you are dealing with a reseller, he probably picked up the lot at a charity shop anyway, so turn the knife if you have to. It all depends how badly you want this kit...

That 50 f/1.4 is a gem of a lens. With the 28, you may find you have a lemon, or it may be fine. I had one of each, and dumped the bad one to a repair shop who wanted it for parts. Now have two good ones. The 55 suffers from ugliness but can be a good performer. Nice even contrast. Did you say you added a 300? Lucky lad. I borrow one now and then for specialised work, and I have to say it's a lens I would buy in a flash if one turned up at a price I wanted to pay. Down Under, they sell for about A$200 and up for examples with lousy cosmetics but good glass. Pristine rates A$500-$600 and up. Five or six years ago sellers were dumping Nikkor lenses dirt cheap, now they have wised up. Higher prices all round.

The ideal lens kit for a Nikkormat, I find, is 28 - 50/55 - 85. If you prefer shorter/longer, substitute a 24 and 135. Add lens hoods and UV filters. With such a kit, you can do almost anything.

I own three FT2s in varying conditions. They all work well. I also have three Nikkormat ELs, which were supposedly the weak link in the Nikon chain at the time. Two were bought new, one was given to me. All work fine.

That Micro Nikkor box is a collectable, BTW. The Vivitar lens I would toss, but that's me.

 

[Theo Sulphate]

Sans the bag and accessories, this a quick and dirty cellphone image of the set. No detail but gives you an idea. Everything looks new. The n90s looks new except the back is getting sticky (common). Ft2, n90s, 50/1.4ai, 28/3.5, 55/3.5 micro, vivitar extension tube set. All works.

Total bargain. Congratulations.

 

[Huss]

Sans the bag and accessories, this a quick and dirty cellphone image of the set. No detail but gives you an idea. Everything looks new. The n90s looks new except the back is getting sticky (common). Ft2, n90s, 50/1.4ai, 28/3.5, 55/3.5 micro, vivitar extension tube set. All works.

Excellent score! I would have snapped that up.

 

[Jon Buffington]

Thank you both. I have run a few rolls through it, so far so good. Now to develop those rolls and look at the results.