I used to read what he says and believe it like it was gospel. Since then I've drawn my own conclusions and see that a lot of his reviews are less than perfect. Case in point: the old 35mm f/2, pre-AI, is a fantastic lens. KR discounts it due to flare problems. I've only seen one photo with flare in it from my version of this lens and I've taken hundreds of photos with it, some directly into the sun and some with the sun just outside of the image. The pre-AI 50mm f1.4 single coated lens is a really nice lens as well. Compared to an AI version 50mm f/1.4 it holds its own but I haven't tried pointing it at the sun or other bright light source, yet.
Comparing the pre-AI and the AI 50mm f/1.4 to the 50mm f/1.8D AF lens (I have all three) the 1.8 is lightweight and plastic but makes great images at all apertures. The 1.4s work best at f/2 and up so you only get to use f/1.4 for soft photos if you like that effect. The pre-AI is physically larger than either of the other two lenses, easily doubling the weight of the plastic 1.8D. The 50mm f/2, from what I've seen and heard, is a great lens but hype has driven its value up to the point where you can get a 1.4 for about the same price.
I've owned an F Photomic FTN and I currently own an FE2 (the FE2 was the first camera that I ever owned and the F was given to me shortly afterwards in a bag in about a hundred pieces because someone took it apart to try to repair a broken winding mechanism that I had Nikon repair). The FE2 has better ergonomics and is faster handling. The F is a mechanical beast and feels like it'll last forever. I'll never sell the FE2 but the old F was sold many years ago and I don't regret it. I've owned a Nikkormat and it's somewhere in between the FE2 and the F (not as heavy as the F but almost completely mechanical and the ergonomics are better). The only other film Nikon I'd consider buying today would be an F2 or FM2. I'm not looking for either at this point.
As as for the OP, keep the FE or sell it to get an FM/FM2. FMs are purely mechanical as the batteries only power the meter, and have better ergonomics than the F or Nikkormat. The FE only has B and 1/90 seconds mechanical speeds and won't work without batteries at any other speeds but the batteries seem to last forever in them. Nikon has made millions of lenses before the AF era and even some of the newer AF lenses work great with older film cameras like the FE/FM series. They made some really bad lenses but they also made a lot of really good ones, too. Avoid the bad ones and you will be fine. The real beauty of the Nikon system is that I can use a brand new lens on my old FE2 that I bought brand new in 1983 and I'm using lenses that were made in 1973 on my new D610. Try that with Canon!
