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  #11  
Old 12th March 2017, 03:16 PM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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Mark, as a final word, for myself, on FSU cameras, with Zorkis and Feds the quality and finish is very variable, as is the QC at the factorys where they were made, if you get a good one it can be very good, but if you get a bad one then nothing will make it better, the best of the FSU cameras were the Kiev's, especialy the early ones, they were clones of early Contax's after the last war the Contax factory was ein East Germany ans as part of war reparations the whole lot, all the machienry for making them, the whole production line with all the parts made to make Contax cameras, were shipped back to the USSR, along with the experts to set the line up,and teach the workers how to make what were in effect pre war contax's, indeed the early ones were made from the parts removed from the Zeiss factory in East Germany, you can fit Kiev lenses to old contax bodies and vice versa, FSU Lenses are another matter, they are very good indeed, I use a couple or Russian lenses on my LTM cameras and I would defy anyone to tell the difference,
As you probably gather I would advice you to steer clear of the FSU zorkies Ect, another suggestion would be one of the Canon copies of Leica, they tend to be a little cheaper, but are as well made, and get id CLA'd should last you a long time indeed, plus if at a later date you need lenses then there are plenty of LTM lenses around, or, if you want to go for broke, get an old Leica TTM, expensive, but worth every penny,I would always also go to a good dealer, may cost a little more than Ebay but Simon at Collectable Cameras stands by what he sells and will always do his level best to sort out any problems you might have, he goes the extra mile I have bought cameras from him for 15 years, and when there has been a problem, he always sorts it out, to the point that one camera I bought, a VitessaT, was damaged in transit, and he replaced it with a more expensive Vitessa, it was in better cosmetic condition, and he is a nice chap to talk to
Richard

Last edited by Richard Gould; 12th March 2017 at 03:39 PM.
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  #12  
Old 12th March 2017, 03:18 PM
Lostlabours Lostlabours is offline
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Originally Posted by Richard Gould View Post
I have had a Fed, the Fed 5, and while it works well enough it is a big and ugly camera, The Zorki cameras are smaller,easier to handle, but with the viewfinders on Zorki's I would get a seperate viewfinder that covers 50mm, I have a number of RF cameras, including a Leica TTM. and with all bar my Canon 5 I use a seperate viewfinder for the 50, also you say you will sending the camera for a CLA, that will cost you 3 times the value of any FSU rangefinder, on one of the dealers I buy from Collectable Cameras, they have a Fed 4 for £39, a fed a fed 5 for £29 and a Zorki 6 for $39, maybe worth your looking, or, if you are certain you will not need extra lenses then have you considered a fixed lens rangefinder, they can be very good value for money, and far more reliable than FSU rangefinders, they are often more expensive than Fed's or Zorki's but as a start in RF photography are a better bet, plus they nostly have leaf shutters and you can change shutter speeds cocked or uncocked,
http://collectablecameras.com
Richard
I see Simon from Collectable Cameras at a Camera fair, he sells at very reasonable prices and has a good reputation, he prices items so they will sell. I've had 3 Jupiter 8 lenses of him and a Fed 3.

Ian
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  #13  
Old 12th March 2017, 03:30 PM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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I see Simon from Collectable Cameras at a Camera fair, he sells at very reasonable prices and has a good reputation, he prices items so they will sell. I've had 3 Jupiter 8 lenses of him and a Fed 3.

Ian
Yes, I have bought a lot from over the years, I find his prices are very fair, and on the odd times I have had a problem with a camera (sometimes they do go wrong in transit, maybe not handled as well as they should be by the PO) there is never a problem,he will either have them repaired, or, in at least one case,with a Voightlander Vitessa T that had been thrown around, the box was badly damaged, he replaced it with another one he had in stock, which was a lot more expensive, in better cosmetic condition, at no extra cost, so I can reccomend him without hesitation from many years of personal experiance,
Richard
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  #14  
Old 12th March 2017, 06:12 PM
John King John King is offline
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Default Fed 3 V Zorki 4k

I have used both in the past and would suggest, of the two, the Zorki is the better bet. Especially if it has the F2 lens.

So long as it is not a 'Friday Afternoon' version, the F2 Jupiter lens can be outstanding. The 52mm F2.8 'Tessar clone' can be a bit indifferent at any time.

Someone mentioned the Kiev 4 or 4a. They are an almost direct copy of the Zeiss Contax models and have some of the inbuilt problems, mainly associated with the shutter, but so long is it working they can be a delight to use.
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  #15  
Old 12th March 2017, 07:11 PM
MarkH MarkH is offline
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I've been looking at his prices and he is really cheap. Definitely going to buy a 40mm and a prism viewfinder for the Bronica off him and a longer lens to compress my image. I like the idea of Canon as I already have 5 (including 3 digital) but I am well aware this time it is a totally different camera type and lens fitting.

I was quite close to buying a Kiev when I was looking for a MF, people whose reviews I've seen speak very highly of the build quality. The Kiev rangefinder is quite a good looking camera, but I'm notorious for bad taste. It was also the looks that attracted me to the 4K. I think I will keep on eye on the link Richard gave me along with the one Brock gave me to find the right camera. I've no need to rush and I'm also buying C-41 and darkroom printing chemicals this month and a V850 to get my coloured photos on my computer (hope saying that is ok) and finally I need a timer for my enlarger that works and this will be my third attempt. So I have quite a bit of stuff to get past Mrs H this month as the eyebrows raise with that "What have you got now and where are you going to put it?" look, an incredibly tolerant lady.

I do like the slight softness of the Jupiter 8 as a starting lens, and I'm sure there may be times I want something crisper, so maybe one camera 2 lenses. I certainly only want one rangefinder, so it may be worth saving and getting an entry level Leica. I want to use all my cameras rather than collect them as I want to learn the photography associated with each one of them. This will be number 9 and then I want a 67 MF bringing it up to 10, which is plenty for me.

I'm not sure how much longer I can work, especially at the level I am now, and I want/need to keep my mind active. I've come to film on a serious basis quite late (56), so I have a lot of catching up to do. But I can see it keeping me busy for many years.
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  #16  
Old 12th March 2017, 08:38 PM
Lostlabours Lostlabours is offline
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My personal favourite is the Zorki C, I think I have 2 of them, it's the one in the middle.



The other2 cameras are a Fed 2 and a Leica IIIa, I bought the Jupiter 8 lenses after this image was made. I have 2 Zorki 4s but they look less like a Leica both need attention but cost me £2 each.

Ian
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