Yashica 124 question

[LyleB]

Does anyone know if some of the Yashica 124s came with the two-hole, sliding film pressure plate as opposed to the four-hole design that needed to be removed and rotated to adjust between 120 and 240 film?

Reason I ask, I'm looking at one on the auction site. The body is labeled and has the chrome as the 124, but the photo of the pressure plate shoes the sliding version that is standard on the 124G.

At first I thought that the rear door had just been replaced with one from a 124G, but the open/close knob on the bottom is chrome, not black as the 124G has. Could just the pressure plate have been replaced? If so, would this still work for both types of film?

I sent a question to the seller, he said he will look into it and get back with me. I just thought some of you may be able to shed some light.

 

[LyleB]

No one has any thoughts? Is this something I should be concerned with or just make the assumption that it should work?

Not holding anyone to a definitive answer.

 

[DWThomas]

I only have a 124 G, but somewhere I got the impression the 124 designation was to indicate the camera could take 12 exposure rolls (120) or 24 exposure rolls (220). But I hardly consider myself any authority on the matter.


This guy says a straight 124 takes either.

DaveT

 

[LyleB]

I only have a 124 G, but somewhere I got the impression the 124 designation was to indicate the camera could take 12 exposure rolls (120) or 24 exposure rolls (220). But I hardly consider myself any authority on the matter.


This guy says a straight 124 takes either.

DaveT

Right, they both should take either length of film. Both have film pressure plates that you adjust, depending on which you want to use. These were different in the 124 as opposed to the 124G, and worked differently. My concern is that this particular 124 has a 124G pressure plate in it. I'm just wondering if this modification may preclude one or the other type of film.

Guess I'll have to wait and see what the seller tells me.

 

[DWThomas]

OK, I see what you're saying.

Other than the adjustment (height or pressure) for the difference in film thickness, the sliding flavor engages/disengages a plunger that tells the winding mechanism whether it's a 12 or 24 exposure. If I were designing an enhanced model that avoided taking out and flipping the plate, I would leave all the other stuff alone. That leads me to suspect the rotating one moves a tab to the other side, whereas the slider just moves the tab a ways along the same side. I would be surprised if the tab/plunger interface wasn't in the same location in both models,; e.g., either pressure plate could work, but I admit that's speculation!

Hopefully the seller can allay your fears and you'll have a new toy!

 

[Rick A]

The main differences between the 124 and 124G are the G model has gold electrical contacts for longevity and a switch to plastic innards to lighten weight. Obviously, the straight 124 model is prefered for having metal workings and is more durable. Both models utilize 12 or 24 exposure compatability. IIRC, both use the four element lens design and are quite capable of producing high quality images.

 

[Brac]

It was the 24 model that took only 220 (24 exp) film. The 124 & 124G take both 120 & 220. Whether there was a difference in pressure plates between the 124 & 124G I don't know, but sometimes when changing from one model to another, there are transitional models which might contain parts which were used in the earlier model but which are to be changed in the new model. But it does sound as if the camera you are interested in can cope with both film sizes, not that there's a great deal of 220 film made these days, so it will probably soon be an academic point!

 

[LyleB]

It was the 24 model that took only 220 (24 exp) film. The 124 & 124G take both 120 & 220. Whether there was a difference in pressure plates between the 124 & 124G I don't know, but sometimes when changing from one model to another, there are transitional models which might contain parts which were used in the earlier model but which are to be changed in the new model. But it does sound as if the camera you are interested in can cope with both film sizes, not that there's a great deal of 220 film made these days, so it will probably soon be an academic point!

What I was hoping someone would suggest - just a transitional model, combining some of the newer components. That was one of my thoughts too.

Thanks everyone. Will see what the seller says. If I pull the trigger, I'll update.

 

[Too old to care]

I thought mine had the sliding back plate, but I looked at the owners manual and it shows that it had the plate that had to be removed and rotated. You can download the manual here. http://mikec62.tripod.com/manuals.html

 

[LyleB]

Well, mystery solved. The seller got back to me. Seems he sold a 124G a while back (confirmed by examining his feedback). The photo of the pressure plate was inadvertently left in the listing. Says all other photos are correct. He assured me that the camera he is currently selling has the "remove and turn" pressure plate.

Unfortunately, it has gone higher than I hoped in price. It is a nice looking specimen though.

 

[Ian Grant]

Factor in that most 124's and 124G's need a CLA as the shutters are quite old, nowhere near as reliable as old Compur's

Iasn

 

[LyleB]

Yep, I always do with these old cameras that I want to shoot. This one sold for $177, but with an estimated $130 for a CLA (maybe more), I just didn't want to go that high, sight unseen. There are plenty of others out there, some going quite reasonably, but needing some work. Since I will spring for a CLA anyways, not a huge issue for me.