Tough / mudproof camera

Alexander Ivashkin · Jun 22, 2020

(post updated after the helpful comments I've received)

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for a 35mm camera that can be used in tough conditions such as winter mountaineering, hiking in rain, plodding in mud or boating in the ocean.
A film GoPro of sorts (forgive me mentioning anything d**ital

Criteria:

Available online, not a rare and unusual bird

Inexpensive (as it can be destroyed during my adventures)

Doesn't have to be 100% waterproof (i.e. for swimming/diving), but should be able to continue working after being soaked in rain for the whole day (maybe with simple wiping or drying), so no or minimal amount of electronics

Reasonably tough built (i.e. can survive falls from a couple of feet or abuse such as being banged on the rocks while walking / climbing)

...Does not have to be metered, judging from the comments. I think I can deal with Sunny16 and a wide-latitude colour neg film

Reasonably compact to use with one hand or to haul up a mountain clipped to a harness

What would you recommend?..

Cheers,
Alexander

johnha · Jun 22, 2020

Pentax Zoom 90-WR http://camera-wiki.org/wiki/Pentax_Zoom_90-WR Tough, Weather Resistant, fast (for a compact) zoom lens, good grip and controls for single-handed use.

Nige · Jun 22, 2020

I have a Nikon ActionTouch (L35 AW). Waterproof with 35/2.8 lens. Never bounced mine off rocks so no idea if really tough, seems solid. No idea how cheap though. There were Minolta Weathermatics and Canon SureShots

AndyH · Jun 22, 2020

There is still nothing like a Nikonos. I used to have one when I canoed regularly in white water, but sadly, sold it years ago. Fully waterproof (not water resistant) with controls optimized for use while wearing gloves. They're still widely available on eBay at under $200, and with several lens choices. You can do everything but drop it into an active volcano.

Andy

Paul Howell · Jun 22, 2020

I gave the same answer in OP post in MF, Pentax IQ WR or Konica Off Road. Nikonos is good, needs to late model, but you can get a Pentax WR or Konica Off Road for less than $50.

Donald Qualls · Jun 22, 2020

Nikonos was the first thing I thought when I saw the thread title. As long as the o-rings are good, it's a dive camera. Nikonos muddy? Just hose it down.

Paul Howell · Jun 22, 2020

Forgot the Minolta Weathermatic, good to about 15 feet, has 35mm and 80 mm lens, if you get a complete set you can get the sports finder, weather proof film canisters.

Huss · Jun 22, 2020

AndyH said:
There is still nothing like a Nikonos. I used to have one when I canoed regularly in white water, but sadly, sold it years ago. Fully waterproof (not water resistant) with controls optimized for use while wearing gloves. They're still widely available on eBay at under $200, and with several lens choices. You can do everything but drop it into an active volcano.

Andy

I have the Nikonos V, Nikon ActionTouch LW35AF, Pentax WR 90 - all mentioned above.

The Nikonos is indestructible. I fell off my skateboard with one and it flew down the street like a hockey puck. It just had a few scratches on it (which bummed me out as before it was perfect!). Any other camera I own (Nikon F, F2 etc) would have exploded into a million pieces.. Fantastic lens too. Superb massive optical viewfinder.
The Nikon ActionTouch LW35 has a superb lens, excellent flash that you decide when you use it, and waterproof down a few feet. However it is not that rugged from drops so try not to drop it! Really fun to use camera.
The Pentax is splash proof/good for rain. Has a zoom lens. You cannot turn off the flash - it will fire when it decides. Super cheap. Absolutely fantastic lens - see the image below with 1:1 crop:

grahamp · Jun 23, 2020

When I used to work for a geology department, we had a Nikonos that was used for diving work. However it was great for documenting field work on mudflats and sandbanks around fresh and salt water. Finding something that is water/dust safe and robust enough to survive being dropped is a challenge.

Chan Tran · Jun 23, 2020

I have 2 Nikonos V. They are truly mud proof.

GRHazelton · Jun 23, 2020

http://www.southern-nikonos.com/ specializes in the Nikonos cameras, and can replace the seals AND pressure test in water the completed job. My understanding is that for splash and shallow immersion, to perhaps 3 or 4 feet, their full service might not be needed, but why take the chance? They have orange rings and seals for storage, to avoid flattening the underwater seals. Their turn around time is fast and IIRC, they charged about $125. for re-sealing my Nikonos III.

Ko.Fe. · Jun 23, 2020

Konica off Road as it was mentioned.
It was made to be in use on construction sites. I used it under the rain.
Here is also Canon Sure Shot WP-1 weatherproof point and shoot 35mm film camera.
Simple camera, but Fred Herzog was OK to use it.

Alexander Ivashkin · Jun 24, 2020

Thank you so much for all of your replies folks!

Analyzing the answers:

Minolta Weathermatic looks good... what I really didn't like is the fully auto flash that you can't switch off
Fuji ToughGuy also looks good, but it seems to be rarer and more expensive than other models. Moreover, in most of the listing on eBay the seller warns about "Self-timer doesn't work... also some problems with flash", so maybe it's a known issue with that one?
Nikonos... of course... I'm a diver also and have been eyeing them for a long time The only thing I don't like about it is that it's a bit bulky and expensive. And paying $125 for re-sealing it doesn't sound like a good deal
Pentax WR is actually a great one and very cheap... but the lens is crummy (long, dark zoom; can't imagine using it in field conditions without a tripod, less than adequate lighting and no flash due to long distances, for example)
Nikon ActionTouch L35 AW: nice one but again, can't really find it online for a "normal" price (not $170!)
...while browsing, I stumbled upon Sea&Sea Motor Marine cameras! Will review them
I think that I'll go with the Konica Genbakantoku (Off-Road). Lots of offers online for $60 or so in exc condition. It looks like precisely the answer to my predicament: dust/waterproof, moderately lightweight and portable, and built for extreme conditions such as daily abuse by construction workers

k.hendrik · Jun 24, 2020

Nikon FM

BAC1967 · Jun 24, 2020

I used to have a Chinon Splash GX that I would take snowboarding. I bought it new in the early 1990's, It worked great, I used it for years. It has a heavy duty latch to close the film chamber, eventually that's what broke on mine. I continued to use it after that using a rubber band to hold it shut. I remember they advertised how tough it was, I did land on it a few times snowboarding without damaging it. I was damaged but the camera wasn't. They made several Splash and Active models, I think they meet all your requirements.

Alexander Ivashkin · Jun 25, 2020

k.hendrik said:
Nikon FM

Hmmm not really I've actually got Nikon FE and don't want to use it in such conditions! I've just came from a trip with FE and that's exactly why I'm asking this question.
FE (or FM for that matter) is built like a tank but they have a lot of fragile mechanical parts... it will survive the drizzle and banging around I guess (in fact mine FE did , but I'd be loath to CLA it after every outing!
Thanks for the advice though.

jtk · Jun 25, 2020

Pentax IQZ...miserable viewfinder (like old Leica!) Amazingly good zoom lens.

Paul Howell · Jun 25, 2020

The WR version, well sealed, not for underwater, but rain, mud, ok. but OP does want the zoom popping out.

Huss · Jun 25, 2020

Alexander Ivashkin said:
Thank you so much for all of your replies folks!

Analyzing the answers:

..Pentax WR is actually a great one and very cheap... but the lens is crummy (long, dark zoom; can't imagine using it in field conditions without a tripod, less than adequate lighting and no flash due to long distances, for example)..

Crummy lens???
Did you miss my post above?

Paul Howell · Jun 25, 2020

I use mine in the field without a tripod, use 400 or 800 speed color or push Tmax 400 to 800, the lens is somewhat slow 4.5 to 10.5, but rereading the manual " do not drop the camera or hit it on a soild objuect, do not subject it to strong vibrations, use a cushion when traveling by motorcycle, so not for rock climbing. The Konica Off Road is more durable.

Paul Howell · Jun 25, 2020

of the Konica Off Road Cameras, this is the one you want

Konica Genba Kantoku DD

image by nik.jalopx (Image rights)
Part of the "Off-Road" series, Konica's Genba Kantoku DD (現場監督ＤＤ) is a weather-proof, heavy duty (IPX4 certified) autofocus camera with two focal lengths. It can be regarded as the ruggedised version of the weather-proof bifocal Konica MR.640, with similar controls and features, though it adds a third autofocus sensor for higher focusing precision. Intended for use by construction workers (genba kantoku means "site supervisor") the finder has marks for making panoramas to be stitched together from prints. After 15 minutes, the camera shuts off to conserve batteries.

Specifications

Wide angle: 40 mm f/3,5 (3 elements, 3 groups).
Tele: 60 mm f/5,2 (6 elements, 6 groups).
Shutter: Programmed electromagnetic shutter/diaphragm, speeds from 1/5 to 1/500 s. Electronic self timer.
Focus: Active infrared autofocus, closest range 0,9 m.
Exposure: EV 6–17 (wide): EV 7–17 (tele).
Finder: Bright frame viewinder with parallax corrections marks, focus confirmation, low light warning.
Flash: Built-in flash (flashmatic). Auto-flash, forced flash, flash off modes. Slow sync flash possible.
Flash range: 5 m (wide, ISO 100), 4 m (tele, ISO 100).
DX decoding from ISO 50 to 3200. Non-DX film is set as ISO 100.
Power: 2CR5 6 V lithium battery. CR2025 3V cell for date back.
Dimensions and weight: 144x74x74 mm, 385 g (without batteries).

Huss · Jun 25, 2020

I like the Cosina CX-2 with the Cosina dive housing:

Huss · Jun 25, 2020

I also like my Fuji Work Record. This has an excellent 28mm lens:

Paul Howell · Jun 25, 2020

Is it AF or fixed lens?

Alexander Ivashkin · Jun 26, 2020

Huss said:
Crummy lens???
Did you miss my post above?

Nope, and thanks for sharing the picture with us Huss.

I wasn't referring to technical IQ or sharpness; in fact, I've never cared too much about it even when I was bowing to the false prophets of Numeric Gods
What I meant is that the zoom is very slow... of course, like Paul said, I could shoot something like Tri-X and push it to 3200, but more often than not I prefer Ektar 100 for travel photos And light conditions could be challenging in travels... in fact, last time I was using 135mm/3.5 which is much faster than WR's lens but couldn't take some shots due to slow shutter speeds!

Tough / mudproof camera

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