Hello!
First of all, I want to say I love this forum and the wisdom provided here -- I've been posting a decent amount of questions and was always helped substantially.
I bought a Pentax 67 as my first entry into serious MF (I've used a Holga before). The winding mechanism almost immediately broke, and the seller agreed to take it back for a full refund. I'm now wanting to do more research about which camera I should get. I've always really liked the look of the Pentax 67, and went for it on sort of an impulse, but I want to make sure to explore my options in more detail.
I mostly take 35mm and am interested in half frame for everyday photography. I want to use MF for more planned out, slow photos. I'd like to be able to carry it around in a backpack and ideally go on some short hikes, but I'm not going to be carrying it on crazy 10 mile hikes, doing street photography, or carrying it around for very long periods of time. It will mostly be used for street and nature scenes and portraits. I also don't need ultra super mega high definition sharpness. More sharpness is better, but I'm not going to be making gigantic massive prints of everything I take. I am just a hobbyist and am fine with very mild concessions in quality that you can only witness when looking at things ultra close up, for a lower cost. I expect to shoot almost entirely on a tripod.
I'm interested in 6x7 SLR ideally, but one rangefinder is also here. The camera is unlikely to get heavy use. I may shoot 4 rolls a month, on a heavy month.
I don't want to spend more than $1,000 on everything I need to get shooting (body, lens, finder, etc).
Current options I'm considering:
Pentax 67 MLU
Pros: I like the look and workflow on the one I used, good array of lenses, seems fairly available
Cons: seems prone to breaking (may just be my experience), cost
Mamiya RB67
Pros: modularity, availability, all mechanical which I like
Cons: Have heard that it is also prone to breaking randomly and suddenly, but not sure how accurate this is. Size seems inconvenient but not that big of a deal for my usage.
Fuji GX680
Pros: Really cool modularity and options, lens movements are interesting to me, I kind of like that it's a bit insane, cost is good
Cons: lots of electronics which seem hard to replace and prone to breaking at their age, gigantic size
Bronica GS-1
Pros: cost is good, I like the modular options and handles and such
Cons: from what I've researched, it's harder to find a version in really good condition because fewer were made. Build quality seems somewhat lower than rb67
Fujica GM670
Pros: lower cost, seems really easy to use, all mechanical and I haven't heard anything about them failing or being very difficult/expensive to repair
Cons: rangefinder rather than SLR. I don't like this as much for framing. Also, the fact that it is a smaller and lighter camera is weirdly a slight con for me. I like being forced into a very very slow workflow, but I realize this is a bit of a silly "con".
I am open to also trying out an even cheaper 6x6, maybe a cheap TLR, and then continuing to wait and save up. Not that interested in Hasselblad. Would consider other options like the Kiev 60, but doesn't seem to have any distinct benefits.
Any insights here are much appreciated. I am continuing to do more research, but every time I've posted here, I always heard something new! Thanks.