Olympus Pen F current value (Nov. 2015)

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Hi everyone,

I have a chance to buy an Olympus Pen F with the 38mm f1.8 for approx. $115 US. The body is in fair condition but the lens has some fungus (this will be a user so I will need a clean lens). Looking around it appears the F commanded a higher price some years ago but isn't in the same demand anymore?

This FT body on ebay looks to be a steal... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chrome-Olym...109642?hash=item2104b8538a:g:I4oAAOSw14xWL8eL

Meter not working but the F doesnt have a meter anyways right!?

What prices have you seen the F and this lens go for in the last couple of years?

Thanks in advance!

Daniel

removed account4 · Nov 3, 2015

it all depends on condition daniel
i have seen them go for cheap
but if they were an ft ( with meter ) and a not so tip top condition lens ( fungus or scratches or ? )
and i have seen them go for $$$ when they were in better condition.
the meter not working might not be because it is dead, but because that camera uses a different battery
than is sold now.

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

jnanian said:
it all depends on condition daniel
i have seen them go for cheap
but if they were an ft ( with meter ) and a not so tip top condition lens ( fungus or scratches or ? )
and i have seen them go for $$$ when they were in better condition.
the meter not working might not be because it is dead, but because that camera uses a different battery
than is sold now.

To clarify I have a chance to buy an F body in Fair condition, with a 38mm lens that has some fungus. The FT on ebay is just an example of low price point for a usable Pen camera (I am not interested in buying it). Do you have any specifics for what $$$ means?

Thanks.

Les Sarile · Nov 3, 2015

crumpet8 said:
To clarify I have a chance to buy an F body in Fair condition, with a 38mm lens that has some fungus. The FT on ebay is just an example of low price point for a usable Pen camera (I am not interested in buying it). Do you have any specifics for what $$$ means?

Thanks.

KEH lists the Dead Link Removed at $218.

Trask · Nov 3, 2015

The FT diverted some of the light entering the lens to the meter, so reportedly the viewfinder image of an F is brighter than that of the FT. I myself rarely use my FT principally because I have a hard time accurately focusing, in part due to the fact it uses a microprism focusing device. I'd like to do a comparison between an F and an FT to see the actual difference in luminosity.

removed account4 · Nov 3, 2015

crumpet8 said:
To clarify I have a chance to buy an F body in Fair condition, with a 38mm lens that has some fungus. The FT on ebay is just an example of low price point for a usable Pen camera (I am not interested in buying it). Do you have any specifics for what $$$ means?

Thanks.

as les pointed out ...
go to keh, go to ritz camera in Arizona ... look at what they charge, that is a good start.
always figure in a cla when you buy something too, so what seems inexpensive might not be so inexpensive.
john hermanson has parts and works on these cameras, and zacks in ri also works on them
( no idea where you are located )
unlike trask, I use and have used my ft an awful lot since purchased a handful of years ago. no prob focusing
no worries of brightness, and I got the battery compartment converted to use modern batteries...

good luck!
fun cameras
john

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Yeah, I've been on KEH and seen the FT there but the price they're asking is too much I think. There are FTs on ebay that go for much less. There aren't many F's around to gauge a current price point from unfortunately though. Nobody bought or sold a 38mm 1.8 lens or F body or kit lately?

ciniframe · Nov 3, 2015

jnanian said:
as les pointed out ...
go to keh, go to ritz camera in Arizona ... look at what they charge, that is a good start.
always figure in a cla when you buy something too, so what seems inexpensive might not be so inexpensive.
john hermannson has parts and works on these cameras, and zacks in ri also works on them
( no idea where you are located )
unlike trask, I use and have used my ft an awful lot since purchased a handful of years ago. no prob focusing
no worries of brightness, and I got the battery compartment converted to use modern batteries...

good luck!
fun cameras
john

John Hermanson (Zuiko.com) still works on Pen F & FT but his warranty only covers the area worked on because of very limited parts.
I also prefer the F because of the plain matte focusing screen. The big bug with the Pen F is lenses. They are hard to find and expensive when you do. I am fortunate to have a few, bought through the years. A 20mm f3.5, 25mm f4, 38mm f1.8 and 100mm f3.5
Adapters to other lens mounts are also very expensive when they are original Olympus brand adapters. They made them for M42 (Pentax screw thread) Nikon F and later the Olympus OM mount plus a few others. There seem to be quite a few Pen F bodies offered on EBay from Japan. Cosmetically some seem very nice but shipping is usually $18 to $25 to the US.
I have been a fan of the Pen F since I bought a pair used in the early 70's. The 3:4 aspect ratio seems right to me and my solution to small negatives is small prints. Usual maximum enlargement size is 8X or 6X8 on 8X10 paper.

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Olympus-Pen...560187?hash=item235a67143b:g:JlAAAOSwnOJWFCdL

Here is an example of an Ft body for way under the cost of the one from KEH. Its a great shop but I don't always believe their prices as a price guide... At some point $200 for an Ft body may have been reasonable?

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Thanks ciniframe Yeah I saw there are a few from Japan but there aren't any auctions of the F in similiar condition to the one I'm looking at. I'm sure those cameras have been relisted a dozen times without buyers so again they don't give me a good price point to work with...

Les Sarile · Nov 3, 2015

crumpet8 said:
Here is an example of an Ft body for way under the cost of the one from KEH. Its a great shop but I don't always believe their prices as a price guide... At some point $200 for an Ft body may have been reasonable?

Maybe a good working in great condition - with guarantees, is to someone.

Richard S. (rich815) · Nov 3, 2015

I've always found KEH a great guide. And only buy from a private seller at least 30% less than from KEH, eBay 40% less, due to their very conservative ratings (KEH bargain is as good as EX anywhere else) and their 14-day return and 60-day warranty. $200 for an FT with that return and warranty policy is not bad. I got my very much ugly user FT for about $125 from a private seller and I have 4-5 of the lenses including the rare 35/2.8 Pancake. Great camera! That said I would never touch a lens with fungus, especially any body sold with it. It tells you a lot about how it was stored and while you might just say you'll clean the fungus it's often etched into the lens coating and causes permanent damage that cannot be "cleaned", often the fungus comes back later and can spread to other lenses in your collection, and even the body might have mold or fungus inside that could infect other lenses. Move on from that one...

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Thanks for the info and advice Richard, just the answer I was looking for really I didn't mean to knock KEH, just wanted to make a point that their pricing isn't a good value guide all the time, though it's spot on very often! Their rating system and return policy is amazing as well it seems? Finally an online company that has some accountability.

I'll pass this one up based on fungus and keep my fingers crossed I can pick up another for around $100 or splash out more if it has some lenses or is in amazing condition. Thanks again!

wblynch · Nov 3, 2015

I would like to find a nice clean Pen F body.

The Pen lenses come apart easily for cleaning. That fungussy lens might be salvageable.

You would think there would be lots of cheap Pen F bodies laying around since too many Pen sets were bought up to put their lenses on mirrorless digital cameras.

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Aww Bill, you're killing me, I thought I'd let this one go already! Can you walk me through cleaning the lens then? Would love to own it really

Here is a picture of some fungus...

Richard S. (rich815) · Nov 3, 2015

crumpet8 said:
Aww Bill, you're killing me, I thought I'd let this one go already! Can you walk me through cleaning the lens then? Would love to own it really

Here is a picture of some fungus...

You can take it apart and clean it but as I mentioned you do not know until after that if the fungus etched into the coating. Only lens I bought with fungus and had successfully cleaned was an uncoated 35/3.5 Elmar LTM lens and only because it was very very minor and uncoated in the first place. Fungus gets on glass but it's fungus, with spores, that spread into the workings of the lens too. Nothing to stop it from possibly growing again or possibly spreading to other lenses if you store them together. If you live in a humid area I'd especially stay away. Some people NEVER buy a lens with any kind of hint of fungus as a rule. And if you do it never buy for less than a huge discount vs one without, and I mean huge. But that's me....

Fixcinater · Nov 3, 2015

I found a stupidly good deal on an FV body, the FT with a 100% reflective mirror and no meter. $6 in a thrift store, along with an OMen adapter, Exactaen adapter, Nikonen adapter and some of the T-mounten adapters, all still in their ridiculously small boxes.

This lead me to KEH during their one day sale a little while ago: 38/1.8 for roughly $30 due to a small filter ring dent (easily handled with a couple pieces of wood shaved down to fit) and just recently a 100/3.5 for $25 on eBay with caps and hood and case that was poorly advertised but in nice condition.

The wides are always expensive so unless I happen upon another good deal like the FV body, I'm happy where I am at with the kit. I never would have bought into the system were it not for the super cheap body to get me started.

Anyway, more to the point: price always depends on your ability to be patient.

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Yep, I think I'll give it a miss or see if I can get a huge discount on it. It's not humid here (in Norway) but Norwegians blast the heat most of the year so I believe humidity inside the house can get pretty high.

Fixcinater>> That is a good deal, I'd take a burger and fries at $6! Thanks for the price info. I'm in no rush as I have enough cameras to shoot anways, so I'll take your approach in buying a pen.

removed account4 · Nov 3, 2015

crumpet8 said:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Olympus-Pen...560187?hash=item235a67143b:g:JlAAAOSwnOJWFCdL

Here is an example of an Ft body for way under the cost of the one from KEH. Its a great shop but I don't always believe their prices as a price guide... At some point $200 for an Ft body may have been reasonable?

i won't buy anything from anyone on ebay without a 100% feeback rating,
so even though that one you linked to was cheap, it looks like you might
be getting what you paid for. granted when you buy on ebay with paypal
you get a 45 day return policy if it isn't what it is listed as ..
as for keh's prices .. i bought mine from a dealer with a money back guarantee
5-6 years ago and it was rather pricy, but it was backed with a warrantee,
and the shop swapped out the camera with a higher priced one ( for the same price )
when they did the pre-packing cla and noticed something wrong with the camera.

at least through a dealer you have a leg to stand on if there is a problem, usually dealers
will fix problems, make sure a customer is happy because word of mouth of a bad situation these days is global, not local.
as for buying from ebay or regular people, you have to do your homework, know fungus on one thing might mean on everything
it might mean parts that are broken ( intermittant ) might be broken ( not intermittant anymore ) after a bit of use, and parts might
not be easily found to repair what might be wrong ... sometimes people on ebay don't reveal what might be problematic
and claim ignorance ( found in someone's attic, selling for a friend or someone from my church &c ) ...
and sometimes they really are clueless and have no idea what it is they are selling ...

good luck finding a camera, love using mine, and with modern technology you can make gigantic prints just like a big camera's negatives..

Lee Rust · Nov 3, 2015

As a recent convert to half-frame 35mm, I purchased a succession of three Pen FT bodies from KEH for prices of about $90, $130 and $210. The $90 camera worked OK but had fungus in the finder and the $210 camera stopped working after just six clicks of the shutter. These two were returned to KEH without hassle for full refunds, including return shipping. I kept the $130 camera, which works fine and has a usable meter. With KEH, this buy-try-return method is relatively painless as long as you have the patience to go through the process and there's a range of choices available on the website at the time.

I also tried a Pen F, but it had problems with the mirror return mechanism getting stuck open, which is apparently a common issue with the F. There were significant changes made to the mechanics of the FT, and the mirror mechanism was totally redesigned.

Any difference in viewfinder brightness between the F and the FT seemed very slight to me. However, in my experience I have found that the f1.4/40mm lens does give a noticeably brighter finder image and easier focussing than the f1.8/38mm, perhaps because of shallower depth of field at full aperture. The viewfinder microprism patch seems to pop in and out of focus much more obviously with the 40mm than with the 38mm.

My biggest complaint about the Pen FT is that it's way too easy to grab the camera and trip the shutter by mistake, plus the rotary shutter sound is quite loud compared to the almost silent leaf shutter on the viewfinder Pen I was using before. On the other hand, the close focussing range of the lenses is very useful and the camera with lens attached fits into a very small carrying case that was designed for a mirrorless digital.

Of course, the original reason for the 'half-frame' format was the high cost of color film and processing in the late 1940's through 1960's. Now that film is once again expensive, it's nice to be able to fit 77 or 78 frames onto a nominal 36 exposure roll of film.

Sirius Glass · Nov 3, 2015

crumpet8 said:
Hi everyone,

I have a chance to buy an Olympus Pen F with the 38mm f1.8 for approx. $115 US. The body is in fair condition but the lens has some fungus (this will be a user so I will need a clean lens). Looking around it appears the F commanded a higher price some years ago but isn't in the same demand anymore?

This FT body on ebay looks to be a steal... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chrome-Olym...109642?hash=item2104b8538a:g:I4oAAOSw14xWL8eL

Meter not working but the F doesnt have a meter anyways right!?

What prices have you seen the F and this lens go for in the last couple of years?

Thanks in advance!

Daniel

KEH will have one without the fungus and it will be returnable if you do not like it. Why take a chance with evilBay?

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Thanks Lee, that's super helpful! Good to know about the mirror return mech. too...

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Hey Sirius, if you've read the entire thread I am looking at a particular model local to me here in Norway, not something off ebay. The one Ft body that KEH has is also overpriced in my opinion.

Lee Rust · Nov 3, 2015

Daniel, the Pen FT bodies are always coming and going in whatever photo equipment marketplace is convenient to you, but the lenses, especially wide-angles, are relatively scarce because they're currently 'en vogue' for use with mirrorless digital cameras. You might search for your preferred lenses first, then pick and choose a nice body to go with them. It's best to factor a handheld light meter into your kit, because an FT with a fully functional internal meter is not something you can count on. The meter on my FT works fine in brighter light but not so much in dim places, so thats when I rely on the Sekonic that lives in my camera bag alongside the FT.

crumpet8 · Nov 3, 2015

Sounds like a good plan Lee. Will keep an eye out for lenses and build from there. Already have my Gossen light meter (for using with my Mamiya RB67) so all good on the light meter front!

Olympus Pen F current value (Nov. 2015)

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