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Post by Just Plain Curt on Mar 23, 2008 20:31:41 GMT -5
My latest arrivals:  Praktica IV B with Zeiss Tessar 50 f2.8. Is it just me or does anyone else hate screwing around with Photobucket's new resizing program? And also:  Start SLR with bayonet mount Helios, different than my other Start with M39 Helios. |
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tuna
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Post by tuna on Mar 23, 2008 21:13:21 GMT -5
How's the focusing on the Praktica? I have an IV-F and the ground glass is hard to use.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2008 22:18:15 GMT -5
Interesting. The start body is essentially a Zorki 6 RF body that has been modified as an SLR. Some new FSU collectors get confused buying M39 Start lenses and thinking they will work on M39 Rangefinder. Backfocus is all wrong.
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Post by davesworld on Mar 24, 2008 1:34:03 GMT -5
Curt, you are not alone!
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Post by Rachel on Mar 24, 2008 4:01:34 GMT -5
Curt, I notice that your IV B has conventional carrying strap fittings. My IV F has these odd ones.  Oddly enough they are the same fitting as my Mamiya 645 !! Tuna, it's that fresnel viewing screen that can make focussing a little difficult with the IV F. I use the split-image aid in the centre of the screen and that circle of plain ground glass around it. |
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Post by Just Plain Curt on Mar 24, 2008 4:28:08 GMT -5
Hi Rachel,
Oddly enough of all the SLR's I own, this is the only one with a plain glass screen, no focus aids of any sort so it's actually pretty straightforward and clear. If it weren't for a tiny mark or two I'd swear this Praktica had never been out of the case, it's like new. The strap lugs you mentioned are used on both my Voigtlander B series as well as a few other oldies I own. The strap for them doesn't inspire confidence. Beautiful IV F you have there.
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Post by Randy on Mar 24, 2008 10:27:25 GMT -5
Great finds Curt, I like the Praktica for sure!
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PeterW
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Post by PeterW on Mar 24, 2008 12:32:13 GMT -5
Some Prakticaphiles rate the IV and V models as the best-made, though possibly not the best looking, of the mechanical Prakticas. I haven't got a Praktica IV but last year I picked up a rather nice VF. The Praktica V is the same as the IV except that the V has an instant return mirror. I believe it was the first camera to have this feature. It also has the later geometric speed progression, but not the simplified turn-only speed dial of the later Novas. As far as I know the Praktica IV and V were the only SLRs to have two forms of wind-on, a knob at the top and a lever on the bottom. When I asked KW about this some years ago I was told they wanted to give it a lever wind but it was akward to use when the camera was on a tripod. So I asked why they didn't put the lever on the top and the knob on the bottom. The answer was that the camera wouldn't fit in the ER case with a knob on the bottom. OK, ask some silly questions! As you can see it also has the button knobs for strap attachment. They don't strike me as being over-secure if the strap gets pliable, so I don't use them. I carry the camera together with a couple of other lenses and some spare film in a hardish fitted shoulder case that came with the camera. BTW, F in a Praktica's designation stands for Fresnel Schirm, or Fresnel Screen with a split image circle, and B stands for Belichtungsmesser or light meter.  PeterW |
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Post by olroy2044 on Mar 24, 2008 12:46:17 GMT -5
Curt: It's a PAIN! I've gotten to where I resize in another program, then upload a "ready to post" image into PB just to avoid working with that thing!  Nice new equipment, BTW Roy |
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Post by Rachel on Mar 24, 2008 14:45:13 GMT -5
Thanks Curt and lovely V F Peter. With the proper strap the "button" fitting is secure but it can rotate without restriction so you end up with a twisted carrying strap. This happens with my Mamiya 645 as well. Most annoying.
The IV & V series Prakticas are very solidly built and seem very reliable. Much more so than my Exaktas of the same period.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2008 14:41:13 GMT -5
Yep ALWAYS cock the shutter on FSU gear before changing shutter speeds. I don't think it would hurt a Kiev because the shutter isn't a Leica-Type but it's probably best to follow the same rule with the Contax copies.
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PeterW
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Post by PeterW on Mar 25, 2008 17:00:09 GMT -5
Hi Wayne, It won't exactly hurt a Kiev in that nothing will actually break if you alter the shutter speed before winding on, but there's a very good chance you'll put things out of kilter inside and the sequence will go haywire. It isn't all that difficult to put things right, but it means a lot of dismantling. This page on Russ Pinchbeck's Kiev Survival site explanis it with good pictures: www3.telus.net/public/rpnchbck/changing%20shutter%20speeds.htmlThe rest of this site is essential reading for anyone going inside a Kiev. Recommended. I don't know whether or not this would apply to a Contax II, I haven't seen anything from Zeiss Ikon about it, but I'm not going to try on mine just to find out. I play it safe and wind on first. PeterW |
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Post by doubs43 on Mar 26, 2008 12:52:49 GMT -5
All of those Prakticas are very appealing to me and thanks to all who have posted pictures of them. Once the speed dial is understood, they are easy to work. The quality of construction is high, IMO.
The Soviet START camera is a horse of a different color. It was intended to capture the Professional Photographer market which it reportedly did. Produced in quantity - over 76,000 - from 1958 ~ 1964, there seems to have been two versions; the second version eliminated some features such as the finder lock. In 1962 it was announced that the START 2 would have a fully automatic internal lens activation mechanism and a built-in meter. Announced at the same time was the START 3 which would lack the meter. Neither the model 2 or 3 was ever produced beyond an extremely few units.
Although the START was initially displayed with several lenses, only the Helios 2/58 normal lens was ever produced in the START mount. An adapter permitted M-39 lenses intended for the Zenit to be used. The START had both waist-level and pentaprism finders, interchangeable screens and reloadable cassettes similar to the Zeiss cassettes.
Princelle reports that the advance mechanism was the camera's weak point. And, of course, the lack of dedicated lenses once the camera was in actual production.
Walker
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2008 14:12:07 GMT -5
I believe there was a Kiev 5 rangefinder that also never went anywhere because it had a different lens mount and about the only lens ever made for it was a normal. The Kiev 5 was only produced from 1973 to 1975.
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Post by doubs43 on Mar 26, 2008 16:06:01 GMT -5
I believe there was a Kiev 5 rangefinder that also never went anywhere because it had a different lens mount and about the only lens ever made for it was a normal. The Kiev 5 was only produced from 1973 to 1975. Wayne, the FSU decisions on what to manufacture photography-wise is sometimes down right baffling. Their biggest failing IMO was allowing central planning to dictate production numbers to the exclusion of quality control. It seems that they never quite understood that precision requires..... well, precision. It was better to turn out 1,000 items with a 50% failure rate than turn out 750 with a 100% success rate. Lord knows that they had the skills and talent to produce world-class goods but their government was almost dedicated to foiling any such thing. Consumer goods across the board just about redefined the word "shoddy". Walker |
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