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Old 26th January 2019, 04:48 PM
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photomi7ch photomi7ch is offline
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Question Praktica MTL3

I picked this camera up last year. It cost very little and looks like it has never been used. It has a number problems the main being it did not come with a lens. Second the battery cover was jammed shut which I have now solved. Third It needs a battery (PX625a) the one I found in side is knackered hence not being able to remove the battery cover. Fourth, there is or was some foam on the hinged side of the camera back door. I remember a thread that talked about where to get some replacement foam.

Any suggestions as to where I may get any of this from would be appreciated.
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Old 26th January 2019, 05:06 PM
alexmuir alexmuir is offline
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Hi Mitch. It takes M42 threaded lenses. There are hundreds of options available. They used to be very cheap. Camera shops were practically giving them away at one point. It would have come with a Zeiss, or Praktica branded 50mm. eBay and charity shops are a good place to look. As far as the foam is concerned, I would do a search on eBay for camera light seal material/repair. Some sellers offer kits for particular models, normally with instructions. Others sell loose materials you can cut to size. Go for a kit if you can find one. Cutting thin strips of foam can be done, but is more difficult than you would think.
Alex.


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Old 26th January 2019, 05:38 PM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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Hi Mitch,
This is a pretty good camera, very much under rated, M42 lenses are widely available and cheap as chips,as far as the battery, IIRC it was only needed for the exposure meter, so you could easily use a hand held meter, Can't help with foam, but I do remember using a Praktica screw mount camera back in my dim and distant past, and they were very well made camera, the lenses were made by Carl Zeiss, some rebranded praktica, but pretty much every maker of lenses made them in M42, for a instruction book I would look on the Butkess site, a good resourse for booklets

Richard
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Old 26th January 2019, 09:14 PM
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Rugged build, vertical running metal bladed shutter. Speeds 1-1000.
Pretty big viewfinder, with 'shutter cocked' warning in view. Match needle, stop-down metering, but if you can't find a battery (or your failed battery has muntered the contacts) works entirely mechanically- battery is only for the meter. Quirky front mounted shutter release, supposedly to help reduce camera shake. Excellent and reliable quick-load system.
Not exactly whisper quiet, but a good working photographers tool.

I used one years ago, and passed it to my bother when I switched to Minolta. I've actually been toying with getting a couple again- looking forward to the day when my electronic cameras finally go futz.
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Old 26th January 2019, 09:29 PM
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Rob Archer Rob Archer is offline
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A very nice camera and, as others have said, loads of really good lenses available in M42 screw thread. Some of the Russian lenses that fir it are remarkably good. Look out for a Jupiter 9 85mm. One of the best portrait lenses ever made according to some.
It was the first SLR I ever owned. I bought one when I started work at 17 and used it until it fell apart (through less than expert use!) about 5 years later.
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Old 26th January 2019, 10:22 PM
alexmuir alexmuir is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rob Archer View Post
A very nice camera and, as others have said, loads of really good lenses available in M42 screw thread. Some of the Russian lenses that fir it are remarkably good. Look out for a Jupiter 9 85mm. One of the best portrait lenses ever made according to some.
It was the first SLR I ever owned. I bought one when I started work at 17 and used it until it fell apart (through less than expert use!) about 5 years later.


My first working SLR! I bought a Fujica when I was 22, but it had problems, so I took it back and bought an MTL3. I liked the front mounted release, although I don’t know how much difference it made. I traded it fairly quickly for a Miranda G, because I liked the idea of a removable prism. That lead me to a Nikon F, and I’ve used Nikon since. I know this is an irrational view, but I always liked the look of the Praktica MTL3. It looked like the perfect SLR. I saw one on eBay recently and it brought back a lot of happy memories.
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Old 27th January 2019, 10:11 AM
John King John King is online now
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Oh for the simple life. When a camera was something you learned to handle quickly and easily. Praktica's, Pentax's, Minolta's, Miranda's, Exacta's, Nikon's, Canon's plus a good few more. Cable reases were directly actingand only cost a couple of quid

The battery (if it needed one) was a simple single cell mercury or two silver oxide ones. Otherwise use a selenium meter. (If you needed to. With enough experience the guide inside a film box was mostly good enough.

Film was cheap and easily obtained without having to get it by mail order.

Camera shops were just around the corner

The lenses were usually very good and not very expensive and all the world worked at a slower pace.

Rose tinted specs.....I suppose so, to a degree, but wasn't life a lot simpler?

Last edited by John King; 27th January 2019 at 10:16 AM.
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Old 27th January 2019, 10:45 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alexmuir View Post
Hi Mitch. It takes M42 threaded lenses. There are hundreds of options available. They used to be very cheap. Camera shops were practically giving them away at one point. It would have come with a Zeiss, or Praktica branded 50mm. eBay and charity shops are a good place to look. As far as the foam is concerned, I would do a search on eBay for camera light seal material/repair. Some sellers offer kits for particular models, normally with instructions. Others sell loose materials you can cut to size. Go for a kit if you can find one. Cutting thin strips of foam can be done, but is more difficult than you would think.
Alex.


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Thanks Alex and the search wording for the foam. Computers still do not search the way we talk I know what you mean about cutting foam of any size.
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Old 27th January 2019, 10:52 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Richard Gould View Post
Hi Mitch,
This is a pretty good camera, very much under rated, M42 lenses are widely available and cheap as chips,as far as the battery, IIRC it was only needed for the exposure meter, so you could easily use a hand held meter, Can't help with foam, but I do remember using a Praktica screw mount camera back in my dim and distant past, and they were very well made camera, the lenses were made by Carl Zeiss, some rebranded praktica, but pretty much every maker of lenses made them in M42, for a instruction book I would look on the Butkess site, a good resourse for booklets

Richard
Thank you Richard. I'm not to put out by the meter not working I just thought it would be nice to have it working because it is in very good condition. Had not thought about a manual I think I may need one as I have had a couple of senior moments that had me routing around looking for the clip to open the back
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Old 27th January 2019, 10:56 AM
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Also like to thank Skellum, Rob and John king for your support of the camera. I think reading between the lines you all need to pick up a Praktica and joint the club
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