Rangefinder accessory

[Ariston]

Where can I find a good, compact rangefinder that can be mounted on a cold shoe? Old and used is okay, I just don't know what search term to even use. Thanks!

 

[BrianShaw]

“Kodak service rangefinder” is one... made by Kodak. There are others from other manufacturers but I can’t recall their names.

 

[shutterfinger]

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=accessory+rangefinder&_sacat=625

 

[hsandler]

Watameter is a fairly common one.

 

[MattKing]

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=accessory+rangefinder&_sacat=625

Which yields nothing useful for me - this takes me to no listings, and a search index page that is heavily weighted to auto parts.
eBay searches aren't necessarily easy to share, particularly for those who may be in different countries.
Using watameter as a search term seems to work well on eBay Canada.

 

[Sirius Glass]

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fr...era.TRS0&_nkw=rangefinder+for+camera&_sacat=0 yields:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Saymon-Bro...189387?hash=item593f6ce0cb:g:63UAAOSwUrFd8rhF

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Leica-Comb...775934?hash=item3d96f7043e:g:zBoAAOSwHt9dxQPK

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SAYMON-BRO...362299?hash=item1a8370dfbb:g:MWYAAOSwRJpdQbeP

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Voigtlande...054105?hash=item2889c496d9:g:vJkAAOSwndFd4DrC

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Blik-Lomo-...=2541838628261b4bb0099cad435281e93a7b381baefb

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Blik-Lomo-...=2541838628261b4bb0099cad435281e93a7b381baefb

https://www.ebay.com/itm/TEWE-35-20...570416?hash=item36563557b0:g:LwEAAOSwtctdq7gz

​

 

[reddesert]

Have a read through this page from Mercury Camera:
http://mercurycamera.com/accessories-2/accessories/accessory-range-finder-roundup/

 

[nosmok]

Have several, the pick of the litter is the Watameter in terms of ease of use but it only mounts horizontally. I use a Kodak Service RF when I need a vertical mount. Keep in mind you may need/ want to have them calibrated-- checking them against a tape measure yourself is a real drag at the longer distances.

 

[EdSawyer]

The Voigtlander one is the best I have tried. It's been remade in modern form by Fotoman in recent years.

 

[Kodachromeguy]

The Voigtlander one is the best I have tried. It's been remade in modern form by Fotoman in recent years.

I bought a Rowi rangefinder that looks just like some of the Voightlander units. Same subcontractor? Note: you may need to select a metric or English unit depending on how your lenses are marked.

 

[guangong]

Bought a Watameter to use with Retina B, but never bothered to use one for Rollei 35, Minox or Minolta 16, where I use guestimation and depth of field. On the other hand, for fast lenses, closeups and MF a rangefinder is nice to have. The ease of calibration is an advantage of the Watameter.
However, noting distance on lens when using RF or SLR will develop skill in estimating distances in no time.

 

[Ariston]

Thanks everyone - all these responses help a lot.

I bought a Rowi rangefinder that looks just like some of the Voightlander units. Same subcontractor? Note: you may need to select a metric or English unit depending on how your lenses are marked.

Thank you for reminding me! I would have forgotten.

 

[shutterfinger]

Which yields nothing useful for me - this takes me to no listings, and a search index page that is heavily weighted to auto parts.
eBay searches aren't necessarily easy to share, particularly for those who may be in different countries.
Using watameter as a search term seems to work well on eBay Canada.

OP is in US A. Ebay search is for US A. Does not surprise me that a US A search does not work in another country.

 

[BrianShaw]

OP is in US A. Ebay search is for US A. Does not surprise me that a US A search does not work in another country.

FYI... Didn’t work for me either, and I think I’m still in USA.

 

[Ariston]

FYI... Didn’t work for me either, and I think I’m still in USA.

Yeah, it didn't work for me either, but I appreciated the effort. I don't know how to post search results from another site, either. But all the responses have helped me search for myself.

 

[shutterfinger]

Still good form this stupid high speed switch machine, firefox on windows 10 pro.

 

[MattKing]

I think the problems one encounters with trying to share eBay search links may arise from how eBay attempts to interact with registered users - the search link may be particular to that user.
So if you aren't "Charles" (shutterfinger), plugging that link into your browser confuses your browser.

 

[reddesert]

Just describe it in words. It's a search for "accessory rangefinder" in the Cameras & Photo section.

 

[StepheKoontz]

Clip on rangefinder or shoe rangefinder might get other items to show too.

 

[DWThomas]

I own two such devices, a Waltz calibrated in feet, and a Watameter calibrated in meters. Both are horizontal, and appear to work, measurement wise. But it does appear that those accessory shoes (and stuff that mounts therein) were not exactly standardized decades back. So I confess to hardly ever using them, as they either don't quite slide in -- or are sloppy loose -- in the cameras I had expected to use them on.

I initially was coveting the Voigtländer, but most of those that I encountered on ePrey were going for prices like they should have a camera with them!

Unless I'm close enough to use a short tape measure, my estimate and set has generally worked well enough.

 

[Deleted member 88956]

Checking against

Have several, the pick of the litter is the Watameter in terms of ease of use but it only mounts horizontally. I use a Kodak Service RF when I need a vertical mount. Keep in mind you may need/ want to have them calibrated-- checking them against a tape measure yourself is a real drag at the longer distances.

any SLR for comparison is quick and easy