Smallest fully mechanical rangefinder

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Kodachromeguy

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Thanks! The blue leather came about because one day the perfect condition vulcanite literally started to crumble off in my hands.
Many years ago, guys on the LUG (Leica Users' Group) had a long discourse on why some vulcanite covers became brittle and crumbled. Some people reported that Leicas in regular use had hand and nose oil on the surface, therefore preventing the drying problem. I recall no one ever had a definitive answer. On an irregular basis, I rub some Vinylex on my M2 and IIIC, but I am not sure if it protects the surface or has any long-term benefit. Vinylex is useful on plastic trim or vinyl seats inside of your car.
 
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leicaboss

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This forum is dangerous, these "tiny" RF's are so adorable it's causing my GAS to act up.

Between the Retina II and III variants, is there one that I need to be looking into first?
 

Sirius Glass

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This forum is dangerous, these "tiny" RF's are so adorable it's causing my GAS to act up.

Between the Retina II and III variants, is there one that I need to be looking into first?

Just buy all of them. The order that one buys them is not all that important. When you buy enough the GAS goes away. I know, I have been in a GASless state for years.
 

madNbad

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This forum is dangerous, these "tiny" RF's are so adorable it's causing my GAS to act up.

Between the Retina II and III variants, is there one that I need to be looking into first?

The IIa is the best combination of size and functionality. I've had a couple of IIc's and a IIIc which are nice but larger and have the wind lever on the bottom. Plan on having it serviced, once it's cleaned it will become a regular companion.
 

leicaboss

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Just buy all of them. The order that one buys them is not all that important. When you buy enough the GAS goes away. I know, I have been in a GASless state for years.
Not the most helpful advice - but totally relatable :smile:

The IIa is the best combination of size and functionality. I've had a couple of IIc's and a IIIc which are nice but larger and have the wind lever on the bottom. Plan on having it serviced, once it's cleaned it will become a regular companion.
Thank you so much, do you have a favorite place to get it CLA'd?
 

Sirius Glass

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Not the most helpful advice - but totally relatable :smile:


Thank you so much, do you have a favorite place to get it CLA'd?

If you do not stimulate the economy, who will? We help enable GAS, not mitigate it.
 

abruzzi

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Between the Retina II and III variants, is there one that I need to be looking into first?

the thing to remember with the later Retinas is that the Roman numeral (I, II, and III) seems to indicate the features on the camera—I is a scale focus camera, II is a rangefinder focus camera, and III is a rangefinder camera with a built in light meter. The letter suffix seems to be the generation. So a ‘c’ came after the ‘a’ model, and the ‘C’ came after the ‘c’.

the only one I have actual experience with is the IIIC. The meter actually works pretty well, and I’ve even shot slide film successfully with it. But it is a very old style meter—not TTL, and not linked in any way. So most people will want to save a little space, ditch the meter and get a II. I’ve never used the II so this might not apply, but the IIIC has a large bright viewfinder with bright lines for 35, 50, and 80. The Retina IIIc (small c) requires an external finder for the non-50 lenses. Some prefer the non-cluttered finder of the older model, but if you’re going to use the other lenses, the IIIC is more convenient.

as for CLA, Chris Sherlock in NZ is who I sent mine to.
 

wiltw

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This is awfully small when folded



And this is pretty small, too, athough technically not a 'rangefinder' it does focus itself.
Oly.jpg



And then there is this, also not a 'rangefinder' but it also focuses itself
Pentax%20110-2_zpswiz1rnxi.jpg


oops...latter two are not 'fully mechanical'
 
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wiltw

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How does the manual focus Pentax Auto 110 focus itself?
There is a nut that holds the camera! Sometimes there is a crank.

I made the mistake of thinking the Pentax 110 was AF, as my dad originally purchased it and I acquired it decades after his passing, but never shot with it due to the lack of film for it.
 

Huss

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There is a nut that holds the camera! Sometimes there is a crank.

I made the mistake of thinking the Pentax 110 was AF, as my dad originally purchased it and I acquired it decades after his passing, but never shot with it due to the lack of film for it.

Lomo makes film for it. And you can see the results in the LoFi section.
 

NB23

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3 iphones stacked. Fits in jacket pocket.

C02C2046-284A-42A3-B999-B8F51488DA24.jpeg
 

Huss

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Thanx for that tip...any idea where to get 110 color film processed?
Mikes Camera processed 110 film for me when I was in NorCal. There are a bunch of locations there. Samys does it. They are in San Fran,
You can mail it to northcoastphoto
 

wiltw

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Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas, will process 110 C-41 film. They can scan and make proof sheets, as well.
Thx. I also found that The Darkroom in SoCal does that too. And the other reply mentions NorCal locations, near me. I'll compare pricing.
 

Donald Qualls

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This is awfully small when folded


Yes, pretty compact (especially if that's the 6.5x9 model). Kalart rangefinders are sometimes found on these old plate cameras, even these little ones, but at best they're a little bigger than a Bessa II or Moskva 5, and the one pictured lacks the rangefinder feature.

A Barnack Leica is one reasonable choice for very small rangefinder camera; a Contax II isn't much bigger (but apparently much harder/more expensive to get serviced). Can't say I've handled a Leica of any version, so I can't verify the size, but it would have to be pretty small to beat out my Welta Weltini or the very comparable Super Jubilette, Super Baldinette, and other pre-Retina 35 mm RF folders.

A 127 half-frame (3x4 cm) folder with rangefinder would likely beat all the 35mm RF folders, but I've never seen one that I recall, and haven't been able to quickly confirm that such a thing ever existed. Kodak/Nagel Volenda is where I would have expected it if they were ever sold, but I don't believe they were. I suggest this because my Baby Ikonta is the same size or smaller than my Rollei 35, so adding a rangefinder would still leave a camera in the same size range as an Olympus XA or Weltini. Historically, 35mm had beaten 127 for anything above "two Christmases on one roll" family pictures before rangefinders found their way into the lower price ranges (where 127 cameras hung out after the VPK derivatives were discontinued in 1936), and the 127 "comeback" of the 1950s was mostly in square format (and I don't recall seeing any of those with an RF, either, though there were a few pretty good TLRs). And for "really small" the Bantam Special was the only folder with RF that beat out the Retina for size and weight after WWII -- and it took 828.

Mind you, those were really good cameras, with the best lenses Kodak offered at the time, and pretty small -- but 828 isn't even semi-available any more the way 127 is, and was never as popular as 127 in the first place (tiny roll film was harder to load than 35 mm, hence why 126 came along to replace it with drop-in loading). If you don't mind recutting and respooling to turn 120 into 828 (you'll get 16 on a roll with suitable trimming of the paper leader and tail, 28x40 mm image area), or recycling backing paper with 35 mm film rolled in (giving 8 or 12 on a roll, depending on the backing you get) a Bantam Special is a compact and convenient camera to pocket. Decades expired 828 film isn't hard to find on eBay (albeit at collector prices) to supply spools and the tiny metal cans Kodak used to protect the film rolls.
 

__Brian

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Not the smallest- but viewfinders are big and not as hard on eye glasses.

The-Capital-Gang.jpg


If you could get these three for a total of $100, you probably would also. All needed work, shutter cocking rack on the IIB, new front element on the IIIC, and just shutter flood cleaning on the 1B.

The Retina II



Knob wind (Left hand threaded if you need to take it off) and manually cocked shutter. Means it does not have a cocking rack that gets blown out.
 

Bill Burk

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Wouldn’t you know the one I like goes for $700, there’s a Retina II with f/2 Ektar on eBay right now …
 
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The last camera I got, I got it for its small size and for its high quality, both if we talk about camera or lens: it's the Olympus 35RC. A totally wonderful camera!
I use cameras and lenses from Nikon, Leica and Hasselblad, and the Olympus 35RC is just as good.
 

cliveh

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I have a Retina IIa, which when I can get around to photographing it I will put on ebay.
 

choiliefan

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Retina IIa is a very good choice.
Certo Dolina is another small option.
 
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The Retina IIa is a good camera in case we want to focus constantly, or do photography with time, and portraiture...
In case we want zone focusing or fast street photography, it's not the best camera because of its 50mm lens and because it's more noticeable -with its extended lens- than other cameras.
It depens, as always, on what the OP wants the camera for.
 

Sirius Glass

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Tessina which is a twin reflex and twin lenses and all mechanical that shoots 35mm film.

iu
 
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