What's your latest new old camera ? (Part 2)

[PatTrent]

A Canon EOS Rebel G, purchased from KEH and rated as "excellent" condition (although it looks brand new) for $19.00 USD. What a deal! I loaded it with Ilford FP4+ black and white film. Pure joy.

 

[Tamara]

In the box with the F5 was a K1000, which I will be happy to play with every now and again and set back on the shelf, and an FM-2n, which is singing these strange siren songs. It's such a solid camera...

 

[MartinCrabtree]

I'm still waiting for my FM2n to come back from restoration. He said he was slow.

 

[f/16]

I don't know if I would seriously waste the cost of a CLR on an old TX. Replace the mirror foam yourself. They were probably a reliable camera in their day but I don't know if keeping it in prime condition is worth the price. Find an old F1 to spend the $$ for a CLA. But this is just my opinion but look at what camera collectors as spending $$ on to keep favorites in prime condition. Probably just a quick cleaning yourself should make it last for many more years.

Normally I wouldn't spend what a CLA costs on such an entry level model. Since it was my late uncle's it would be worth it to me. But I discovered last night the shutter has a small hole so I'm not going to bother with sending it to a repair shop.

 

[f/16]

I'm still waiting for my FM2n to come back from restoration. He said he was slow.

Who is doing the restoration?

 

[flavio81]

Zeiss Contessa folder in very very good shape.

It is a very cute camera, but unfortunately the ergonomics of it are terrible, so it will be an "exhibitor's" camera then; sadly it will sit down on the shelf while I use the Kodak Retina IIIc; a better rangefinder.

 

[cuthbert]

Normally I wouldn't spend what a CLA costs on such an entry level model. Since it was my late uncle's it would be worth it to me. But I discovered last night the shutter has a small hole so I'm not going to bother with sending it to a repair shop.

You can try to shoot a test roll to see if it leaks or it's just a minor nuistoryance: I received a black FTBn won for little and it came out both camera and lens needed CLA, i spent £60 for it but I think it was worth because it came with all the paperwork of the original owner (including warranty with serial number and signature) so i thought it was a camera with some history and it would be a pity to scrap it.

I just received the test roll and I can say it's a very nice:

And by the way if it was your uncle's it's family memories and family memories are priceless, one of my prized possession is the first camera my father bought in 1947 and he used in all his entire "professional" career.

 

[dynachrome]

A chrome Miranda Sensorex II and a chrome Miranda Autosensorex EE. They are coming together.

 

[ColColt]

Within this week I've just boght a Nikon FTN Photomic and F2A. The F2A was from a collector who was getting rid of his stash and it looked like he had bought it and then put it up. It was immaculate. Look to be getting both by next Tuesday.

The one problem is the FTN Photomic. They used the old mercury 1.35v batterries no longer available so, I'm working on getting awork around to that. I may have to use my Gossen Luna Pro SBC for a while with that one.

 

[cooltouch]

ColColt, since the old PX625 mercury batteries are no longer available, the solution to powering your FTN Photomic economically is to use 675 hearing aid batteries. They're zinc-air and they put out 1.4v when you first peel back the tape, but they stabilize at about 1.35v which is exactly what you want. They're quite cheap. If your camera picks up the + voltage from the side instead of the cap (my early F with the first Photomic finder is like this), you can get rings that fit around the 675 so it will work correctly with these old F's from this guy:

http://www.paulbg.com/Nikon_F_meter_batteries.htm

 

[cooltouch]

I bought a Pentax LX a couple weeks ago. It's a great little camera. I found it as part of a small outfit -- a couple of lenses, an AF280T Pentax flash, a set of Pentax extension tubes and a decent little case to keep it all in -- all for less than what an LX sells for by itself. Unfortunately mine is afflicted with the sticky mirror syndrome as are so many these days that haven't had a restorative treatment. So I'll be sending mine off to have that taken care of. I got it at such a great price that, even after paying for the repair, it'll still be at the going price for most LXes -- with sticky mirrors, no doubt.

Yesterday, I bought a fairly rare Nikon Nikkormat FT3. I haven't seen one of those in years and then fell into a good deal on this one. It even comes with a decent looking AI 50/1.4. I'll know more by Thursday or Friday, when it's scheduled to arrive.

 

[ColColt]

ColColt, since the old PX625 mercury batteries are no longer available, the solution to powering your FTN Photomic economically is to use 675 hearing aid batteries. They're zinc-air and they put out 1.4v when you first peel back the tape, but they stabilize at about 1.35v which is exactly what you want. They're quite cheap. If your camera picks up the + voltage from the side instead of the cap (my early F with the first Photomic finder is like this), you can get rings that fit around the 675 so it will work correctly with these old F's from this guy:

http://www.paulbg.com/Nikon_F_meter_batteries.htm

I've heard about those but from what I understand the longevity of those batteries are not too good...maybe a few months from what I've read. Others say they last longer but I have no experience with them. It seems to me if you knew what you were doing you could add a diode of some sort under the battery compartment to drop the voltage from a standard 1.5 silver oxide battery to the needed 1.35v. However, that would take a repairman I would surmise.

 

[MattKing]

I've heard about those but from what I understand the longevity of those batteries are not too good...maybe a few months from what I've read. Others say they last longer but I have no experience with them. It seems to me if you knew what you were doing you could add a diode of some sort under the battery compartment to drop the voltage from a standard 1.5 silver oxide battery to the needed 1.35v. However, that would take a repairman I would surmise.

The 675 batteries are available as hearing aid batteries - for really low prices. So it is easy to pick up a pack of 5 or 10 for very little money.

 

[ColColt]

Looks like you'll need a couple of those adapters. It would be nice if he was located in the US to avoid possible delays with customs and their charges. The adapters look good and apparently work well.

 

[OptiKen]

Ricohmatic 44 TLR
The "ASA" knob is stiff to turn so I may be doing minor CLR before I cut down some 120 to 127 to try it out

 

[MattKing]

Looks like you'll need a couple of those adapters. It would be nice if he was located in the US to avoid possible delays with customs and their charges. The adapters look good and apparently work well.

Jon Goodman (who posts from time to time here) sells adapters that use the 675 cells for a reasonable price. I'm a satisfied customer.

 

[ColColt]

I'll be looking for him. It sounds like the solution to the problem many face when trying to put these cameras back into service.

 

[Jon Buffington]

oly om10 with zuiko 50/1.8, sigma 28/2.8, a cheap 60-300/4-5.6 sears zoom (wonder who made it?) and sears 2x tele. The om10 looks brand new and all came in a super cool, retro looking small leather camera bag from the 70's.

 

[Two23]

Nikon F3T silver/black in pristine condition (I feel guilty taking it out and using it!), and Nikon AiS lenses 28mm f2, 50mm f1.2, 105mm f2.5, plus four filters (red, orange, light green, pol.)


Kent in SD

 

[f/16]

Finally got an A1. Been wanting one for months. Ebay find. Haven't put a roll through it yet, but everything seems to working great except for the Canon shutter squeal.

 

[cooltouch]

I've heard about those but from what I understand the longevity of those batteries are not too good...maybe a few months from what I've read. Others say they last longer but I have no experience with them. It seems to me if you knew what you were doing you could add a diode of some sort under the battery compartment to drop the voltage from a standard 1.5 silver oxide battery to the needed 1.35v. However, that would take a repairman I would surmise.

Well, there's the Kris or chris adapter or some spelling like that, which will correct the voltage. But back to the 675 for a second -- my own experience wth them -- and I've been using them now going on five years in my old cameras -- is about 9 to 10 months under normal operating conditions. I can tell you, though, they don't handle cold weather very well, so it's important to bring spares in those cases.

But the reason why 675s are a great alternative is price. You can buy a card of six at a drug store for about $6, or if you've a Costco in your area, you can buy a card of 40 of them for $10. Yep, 40 cents each. So what if they only last 9 or 10 months? Just pack a few extras and toss them when you consider them suspect and keep on keeping on.

 

[cooltouch]

Sorry, duplicate post.

 

[cooltouch]

Nikon F3T silver/black in pristine condition (I feel guilty taking it out and using it!), and Nikon AiS lenses 28mm f2, 50mm f1.2, 105mm f2.5, plus four filters (red, orange, light green, pol.)

Don't feel so guilty. Is yours a "champagne F3T"? A light pink color to the "silver" tone? Way back in a previous life, about 25 years ago now, I was a camera dealer buying and selling used photo gear and I lived in Southern California. I can recall in about 1990 or so, the L.A. Times got rid of all their F3Ts, and they were the champagne ones, and suddenly a lot of the dealers I knew had one of more of these tools. Those cameras had been through the presscorps wars, lemme tell ya. Bumped and banged and abraded -- but you know what? None of them had a dent anywhere I could see. And I inspected several. Even took pics of a few for a book I was writing at the time. So anyway, I doubt seriously you'll subject your F3T to the abuse those cameras took, but it's nice to know it can handle it and survive relatively unscathed. So, use away, I say!

 

[cooltouch]

Finally got an A1. Been wanting one for months. Ebay find. Haven't put a roll through it yet, but everything seems to working great except for the Canon shutter squeal.

Congrats on your eBay find. The A-1 was my second SLR (AE-1 was the first). I had a real love/hate relationship with that camera, but I still own a couple. They've held up surprisingly well over the years.

About the annoying mirror box squeak, if you spend some time googling the subject you'll find a variety of ways to cure the problem, if you feel up to doing it yourself. Me, I prefer the method where you remove the top left mount screw (facing the camera). You have to first remove the facia -- the shroud around the mount, held in place by three small cross-point (not Phillips!) screws -- to reach this screw. So, using a bent insulin needle, drop a drop or two of very light machine oil down through the opening. It takes some practice, but it works better than other methods I've tried. And voila! No more squeak.

 

[drkhalsa]

Last month I was given a very nice Nikkormat FT 2 and some nice lenses (non-Ai 50mm f2 and non-Ai 43-86mm f3.5, both late models), camera bags, filters and a Gossen Luna Pro S.

Today I was given 2 Nikon FGs. One is brand new in box, never been used along with a new in box 70-210mm f4 Series E lens, never been used. The other FG has been lightly used and has a Vivitar Series 1 28-90mm f2.8-3.5 lens. One more new in box not used: a Promura (never heard of it) 28-80mm f3.5 macro lens.

Not sure what I'll do with some of this yet.