Nikon FM3a - outrageous used prices ?!?!?

[BradS]

I was poking around the KEH site, looking for...well, you know...and I stubled upon their selection of used Nikon FM3A's....

What has happened to the prices on these? KEH are asking nearly double what they cost new just a few short years ago...


(I ended up buying something else - shhh don't tell my accountant).

 

[David H. Bebbington]

Don't understand your comment - the dearest price I could find was $1,035.00 for LN (like new) grade, which is approx. $150 less than I paid for a new FM3a immediately after I heard they were discontinued! Mint- cameras are offered for $850 on down.

Regards,

David

 

[Pinholemaster]

Supply and demand.

You could buy a new Nikon F6 instead.

 

[BradS]

Don't understand your comment - the dearest price I could find was $1,035.00 for LN (like new) grade, which is approx. $150 less than I paid for a new FM3a immediately after I heard they were discontinued! Mint- cameras are offered for $850 on down.

Regards,

David

Hi David,

I'm pretty sure your comment was meant to be tounge-in-cheek but, just for reference, I think I paid just about $569 for mine, new. That was perhaps, a year before it was announced.

I'm in a dilema...because, I actually like to use mine! and now, I find that I could almost trade it for a good user DLC-45...

 

[David H. Bebbington]

Hi David,

I'm pretty sure your comment was meant to be tounge-in-cheek but, just for reference, I think I paid just about $569 for mine, new. That was perhaps, a year before it was announced.

I'm in a dilema...because, I actually like to use mine! and now, I find that I could almost trade it for a good user DLC-45...

I suppose this once again illustrates the difference between UK and US prices - what I paid (to Robert White) was the regular list price!

Regards,

David

 

[BradS]

I suppose this once again illustrates the difference between UK and US prices - what I paid (to Robert White) was the regular list price!

Regards,

David

Ah, yes. Now that you mention it, I do remember this from my last visit to the UK. Looking at prices there, I remember thinking..."The number is the same (as it would be in the US) but, the units are different"!

 

[pentaxuser]

Supply and demand.

You could buy a new Nikon F6 instead.

Not in the U.K. you couldn't - no where near a F6 price as others have stated.

pentaxuser

 

[Tom Kershaw]

Ffordes have FM3a(s) advertised for £350, and a couple of used F6 cameras from £900.

 

[PhotoJim]

The FM3a is the most recent manual Nikon body and as such is pretty popular.

Those who realize the pricing dilemma satisfy themselves with a cherry FE2 and a pretty FM2n, which can do everything the FM3a can do between them (with a slight reduction in TTL capability but nothing dramatic) and leave some change for lenses.

I'd love to have an FM3a but the prices tell me that I can't justify one. I got a really pretty used F5 for less money than a similar FM3a would cost. I'll just have to learn to love my FM2n and FE instead.

 

[Roger Hicks]

No price is outrageous if that is what people are willing to pay. Whether it's worth it to you is another matter -- as is the question of affordability (I'd love a second MP body but can't afford one, even if I sold my M4-P and both M2s)

 

[firecracker]

I never understand why people don't consider getting the original FM bodies, which are old, but can be as good as the newer models...

Do you really need high shutter speeds above 1/1000?

 

[Roger Hicks]

Do you really need high shutter speeds above 1/1000?

They're useful for differential focus. I like being able to use the 50/1.5 Sonnar on the M8 at 1/8000 where I might have to stop down to f/4 with the MP.

 

[David H. Bebbington]

I never understand why people don't consider getting the original FM bodies, which are old, but can be as good as the newer models...

I have never found that SLR cameras grow old gracefully - I have owned secondhand examples of F3, FE and FM - I was never satisfied with the sharpness-wrecking vibration levels until I bought a new FM3a (and an amateur-owned just-serviced used F3). If an old Nikon IS working well, people (logically enough) seem to keep them and not offer them for sale!

Regards,

David

 

[Roger Hicks]

I have never found that SLR cameras grow old gracefully...

F

(I have five)

 

[Chan Tran]

I like the FM quite well. I have a good used one and didn't seem to have any problem with it like David said. So I can say that it grew old gracefully. I compared the pictures I took with it and the F5 which was purchased new in 2003 and very well kept and I can see no differences between them if I used the same lens. In fact the FM yields better exposures than the F5.

 

[HerrBremerhaven]

I have and still use an old FM. The seals have been replaced, and it has been cleaned. While the cost of doing those things might be more than simply buying another used version, what I ended up with is a good functioning camera not needing additional repairs.

The downside of an FM over an FM2 is that the FM2 allows changing the viewfinder screen. The advantage of an FM over an FM2 is the AI tab can be moved, allowing some very old Nikon lenses to easily be used (like some of the shift lenses). The FE allows changing screens and moving the AI tab.

To get around the 1/1000 shutter limitation just takes ND filters. This assumes you might want to shoot near wide open shutter under bright conditions. The faster shutter speeds possible with an FE2 or FM2 mean that an ND filter might not be needed for similar conditions. The downside of the faster shutter speeds is that they might be more off in accuracy as these cameras become much older and more used.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
Dead Link Removed

 

[John Bragg]

I guess that the high prices suggest that this camera had a lot more mileage left in it when Nikon decided to pull it from the market.. There is the pity !!!!

 

[BradS]

I guess that the high prices suggest that this camera had a lot more mileage left in it when Nikon decided to pull it from the market.. There is the pity !!!!

Agreed!

 

[snegron]

I have never found that SLR cameras grow old gracefully - I have owned secondhand examples of F3, FE and FM - I was never satisfied with the sharpness-wrecking vibration levels until I bought a new FM3a (and an amateur-owned just-serviced used F3). If an old Nikon IS working well, people (logically enough) seem to keep them and not offer them for sale!

Regards,

David

I have purchased several used Nikon 35 mm bodies and lenses from KEH, and I have not had any any problems with them. Two Nikon F bodies were supposed to be in EX condition, but they looked and felt near mint when I got them. Also true with an F2A. The meter still works, all works well with it.

As far as the prices of used manual cameras go, I have noticed that they are higher recently. Have you checked the prices on an F2AS in EX or LN condition? They are high as well.

Several months ago I purchased a new F100 because I had a feeling that Nikon would be discontinuing it soon. I have tested it by shooting about 10 rolls of film, and now I plan to box it up and place it in storage for some time. I have several other Nikons I can use. The F100 will hopefully be like new in several years when I have worn out my other Nikons. So, as soon as I wear out my F, F with FTN Photomic Meter, F2A, F3HP (two of them in almost new condition), FM2N (a black body and a silver body), then I can start using my F100!