matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jul 3, 2014 5:18:30 GMT -5
Rare Pentina II? Sounds like the sort of thing the people who run the Lomography site would try and sell for £300. Bit surprised, got a first bid on the Alpa within 20 minutes of it going on. This selling on ebay thing is not good for my nerves though, I've only sold a couple of bits and pieces before and I spent the whole week checking my ebay every five minutes during the day. Must go now, the Alpa is sat on the table looking at me and making me feel guilty for trying to sell it. I hope its not the Christine of the camera world.
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jul 3, 2014 5:07:50 GMT -5
Difficult decision to make. I use manual focus lenses on my film cameras, I find it really difficult to get sharp focus on my DSLR as my near vision is deteriorating (I seem to have got to that certain age.) I use Canon not through any particular brand loyalty or feeling that they are better than other manufacturers but because I seem to find EOS lenses and bodies at good prices in the local carboots and charity shops. I very rarely find any Nikon kit. If you have Minolta AF lenses Sony Alpha might be an interesting choice to use your old lenses with. Matty
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jul 2, 2014 5:59:44 GMT -5
Hello Everyone, Just to give you a heads up, I am putting my Alpa 6c up for auction on ebay starting tonight at 19.30 BST. I picked it up the other day from a junk shop but have decided that the restoration would be beyond my pocket or skill. The paint work needs seeing to and the front element on the Kern Switar is very hazy and the coating has degraded. I haven't attempted to clean this but the element does not appear to have any scratches so could probably be repolished. Otherwise the camera is in working condition, shutter fires, no dings or dents and the lightmeter works and it comes with the Practibag m42 and Nibag Nikon adaptors. It is a wrench to let it go but I have decided that I would rather see the camera move on and be restored than just sitting on my shelf gathering dust. At this moment in time I simply couldn't afford a replacement lens or to have the present one refinished. Anyway I can put some of the money earned towards something else, for some reason a FED1 would be nice or a Kiev 88, something a bit outside my usual price range but that I could use. Regards Matty
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 30, 2014 16:14:53 GMT -5
Finally managed to upload some pictures of the Alpa: I've gone through the bag it came with and found the body cap, the Practibag M42 adaptor and the Nikonbag Nikon adaptor. All of this is incredibly well made, the body cap is not a simple piece of plastic the lugs to engage with the lens mount are individually screwed onto the back of the cap. Matty
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 26, 2014 15:53:44 GMT -5
I'm going to get a valuation and then decide. I am very tempted to keep it as it is a truly beautiful piece of engineering but it could do with a bit of sensitive restoration to be its best once again which I could not really afford. The front element on the lens looks pretty shot, there appears to be fungus and it looks like there has been some damage to the coating. I could never afford to get the lens repaired or to find a replacement. I think it is a very good candidate for restoration, so it might be a good idea to pass it on to somebody who can afford to get it back to its true self. Especially as I have been told off for sitting and stroking it, the next comment will probably be "you love that camera more than you love me." In the meantime it is an Alpa, it is mine and it is beautiful. I'll try and post some pictures when Photobucket stops being stupid with me. Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 25, 2014 17:03:32 GMT -5
Can't believe it, found an Alpa Reflex 6c in a local junk shop this afternoon. The meter works, shutter fires on all speeds, the paint work is a bit ropey but there are no major dings. The lens is the Kern Switar 1.8 50mm, it is really dirty, possibly fungused but I haven't had chance to look at it properly yet. I paid £25 for it, now I am in a quandry, do I keep it or do I sell it? Once in a lifetime find but the ebay prices look so tempting. I'll try and post some pictures. Matty
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 10, 2014 2:54:45 GMT -5
I found a Centon DF300 at a carboot sale a little while back, picked it up more as a curiosity than as a camera to use. It came with 2 lenses for the grand total of £5. It does feel pretty flimsy in comparison to the original Minolta models and I do wonder about the quality of the lenses, most of the info on the web slates them. Camerapedia has a bit of info on the brand: camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Centon. In the UK they were sold through the Jessops chain, I suppose they were tempting as an entry level SLR kit at the time but there were plenty of other options with better glass.
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 7, 2014 16:44:18 GMT -5
After moaning about the rain this morning the weather changed dramatically as I drove into work, blue skies and the sun beating down. The dog had her walk in the rain, typical dog logic, doesn't like rain but ready to jump in the sea at the drop of a hat, once she got out the door she bounced around like her usual mad self. On an early shift tomorrow so the Spotmatic is ready with my car keys, some sunrise shots (hopefully!) Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 7, 2014 3:09:50 GMT -5
Its Wales, its raining (again), everything is very grey and miserable. Weather is so bad I couldn't even be bothered getting out of bed to go to the car boot sale, even the dog doesn't want to go for a walk. Not worth using film at all today. If I do shoot anything, it will be digital, probably monochrome to help bring out the 50 shades of grey that make up the Welsh summer. Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 3, 2014 6:59:17 GMT -5
Thanks for the info everyone, next time I'm in town I'll pick up some 120 and try this one out. Won't be for a few days yet as I've got a lead to follow up. Whilst I was looking at the Nettar a gentleman came up and said if I was interested in cameras he had a box full in his shed, so tomorrow I'm off to have a look at what he's got. Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 1, 2014 15:47:12 GMT -5
Thanks Stephen. The mark for export versions, is it like a Q with a number 1 through the top? There is one just by the Tessar mark on mine. I forgot to put in my original post, the lens is clear and the shutter seems to work on all speeds. I need to check the light meter (just haven't had chance yet) but the camera looks like its ready to go. Regards Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on Jun 1, 2014 15:26:16 GMT -5
Went to the twice yearly antiques fair at the Anglesey Showground today and found a Nettar 515, complete with its box: Quite a neat little camera, I thought it was a 35mm folder at first glance as it is quite a bit smaller than my other 120 folders. It has the Nettar Anastigmat 7.5cm 1:4.5 lens. The shutter is marked as Telma and has speeds B, T, 25, 50, 100 and 125. On the rear is marked E71514. Hansz, I would be most grateful if you could work your Zeiss magic and tell me a little bit more about this camera. The camera is in okay shape, the body is a little rusty and the covering has the usual bubbles but the lens is clear, the bellows look to be in good shape and the iris stops down properly, so I've got a working camera. I'll give it a little bit of a clean up but will leave it as found otherwise. Regards Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Post by matty on May 29, 2014 11:17:52 GMT -5
If there is medication for this please let me know. I start getting all itchy and restless on certain days of the week, Saturdays and Sunday mornings are the worst. If I'm working on a Saturday or Sunday its not too bad (I'm a staff nurse so work shifts) but if I'm off or on a late shift then the symptoms reach their peak. The only thing that seems to alleviate the itch is to tell the dog she's going for an early walk which usually turns out to around the local carboot or fleamarket. You are right the only way to ease the problem is to focus your collection. I've got rules that I follow (most of the time)to try and keep things in check. No more than £25 on one camera (FED 3 for £35 broke that rule); no dealers (again the FED broke that rule); charity shops, junk shops, fleamarkets and car boot sales are allowed hunting grounds (Spotmatic on Ebay broke that rule); no autofocus or plastic cameras, pre 1990 really (I keep telling myself that the Lubitel 166 doesn't really count as plastic.) The other good rule is to come home every so often with something that pleases the missus, for some reason she absolutely loves my Kodak Retinette 1b and bringing back something that can be sold on for a profit helps. I think the basic problem is that I am an addict, I just like cameras. Regards Matty
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matty
Lifetime Member
Posts: 126
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Post by matty on May 29, 2014 10:38:50 GMT -5
Though I'd share this little beauty I found last week. Came with the original case. The lens is the Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 2.8/50 (serial no: 5723307) and the shutter is the Prontor RVS with speeds up to 1/500. It has the coupled rangefinder, exposure meter and interchangeable lens mount so I think it is the mark 5 version. I would be grateful if someone could confirm my suspicions. The camera is in lovely condition, it doesn't look like it has been used out of the case much If at all. Full of mad features, the lens cover reverses to make a lens hood, the film wind on mechanism took me a while to figure out, I was stood in the shop for a while trying to figure out if it was jammed and only found out when I put the lens cap back on that the base of the lens mount moved and that this was the wind on mechanism. Also, the olive green colour really stands out for a camera of that age. Strangest thing about it is that there are no markings on the camera to say what it is, Werra is embossed on the lens cover on the case but that is the only marking. A bit different from this day and age when we go round with logos printed everywhere. It was a nice find at the end of a day spent looking at fungused Pentax K mount lens and overpriced Canons and Minoltas. Regards Matty
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matty
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Posts: 126
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Vito Bs
May 29, 2014 10:29:36 GMT -5
Post by matty on May 29, 2014 10:29:36 GMT -5
Hello Phil, First chance I've had to post anything for a while, been a little busy with work, poorly missus and mad puppy. Thanks for the offer, I've got a FED 3 (one of the few things I've bought from a proper dealer.) I would be interested in the Smena but I don't have much in your collecting time frame. The only thing that pops to mind is a Photax Blinde IIIVA with the Boyer Serie VIII lens, as far as I can find out this model was released in 1955 so might fit in with your collection's time frame.
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