Re: Cameras that Last AND Last AND Last... (35mm bayonette mount SLRs in particular)
- From: "Max Perl" <max_perl@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 21 Jul 2007 15:03:19 +0200
Never had any problems with my Nikon F4 and I know many happy
F5 users. F2 with the simple eye level prism could be a good choice.
The F2's shutter seems to be quite reliable.
I know some will say you should go for a Leica SL2 and some for a
Canon F1, EOS1 and some for a Pentax K1000. Never tried these but have
looked into a Leica SL2 viewfinder and it seems to turn green by age.
Don't look into the Nikon EM, FG...etc.....it is plastic junk.....
<contaxman@xxxxxxx> skrev i en meddelelse
news:1185008273.656357.7950@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On my window sill, as "decorations", like fallen soldiers, sit the
conked out, worn out, shells of camera bodies from the late '70s
through the late '90s. All met an untimely demise for different
reasons. Some were "pre-owned" and others I bought new. Some died from
a built-in fault(s) common that brand's model, and some simply wore
out before their time. With the price of film cameras so extremely low
these days, all are uneconomical to repair vs. buying a "new" used
camera.
Nikon EM - Light streaking, and, if memory serves, unreliable/"jumpy
needle syndrome" (probably due to some kind of resistor failure?
2nd Nikon EM - Bought over eBay abd sent back because of same problem
as above.
Nikon FG - Ultra bright viewfinder with easy focusing but the lever/
gears? are locked up (no its not a battery problem or a failed circuit
board as is common for this model but the gears are literally
mechanically locked up. Also bought over fleaBay (the lockup happened
a few months after I bought it a couple of years ago so was/is not
returnable).
Canon 630 - I believe it was a faulty shutter stop so the shutter no
longer opens? (its been a few years now).
Maxxum 600si - Totally my fault. It was raining and I didn't protect
it well enough. Rain + electronics = flashing "help" signal. :-( (and
yes I did try removing/reinserting the battery after the camera dried
off/I dried the camera off but with no real luck.*
Contax 167MT - Not on the sill (but still in my camera bag). Same
problem as above but happened in a swimming pool, LOL. Minor water,
not really a full dunking, dried off the electronics came back to life
fine but the shutter itself no longer opens/closes.*
Nikon F3 - Also bought on fleaBay and sent back because it kept on
winding and winding and winding during the exposure (and after it
too?), there was no catch/lock to the shutter lever/wining mechanism,
the exact oppositte problem of my locked up wind lever on my FG. Also
sent back to original owner. It was beat to crappish and cost about
$75-$80 and I'm not sure how long and by whom it was used and abused
before me no how much film went through it, anyway, up till the point
I bought it and tried it out I thought that Nikon F3s were nearly
indestructible (I had two that I had bought new in previous decades,
long since traded in on Leica gear/whatever), boy was I ever
wrong... :-(
My other 35mm SLRs (Pentax ZX-5n and MZ-S) are working fine except for
a slight problem with banding (lighter and darker areas within the
exposure due to shutter variance of speed during the exposure,
probably) in the ZX-5n which has not yet resurfaced since I got a
battery grip FG that runs off of AA batteries (maybe the shutter
problem was a power problem?).
Anyways, I've heard that there is a plastic part that really should be
metal (cutting costs?) that also causes breakdown (the kind of
breakdown I can't remember) in the ZX-5n models so it may be only a
matter of time before my ZX-5n (also bought used on fleaBay) goes too.
Don't care about digital.
Don't care about screw mount cameras.
Don't care about rangefinders or Twin Lens Reflexes.
Just want to know others' experiences with which _35mm SLR bayonette
mount _film_ _ cameras, from any era, that are still reliable after
many years of use and/or abuse. Are there any? AND have you babied
your equip, use it often or beat it to heck and expose more frames
than a feature length motion picture through it?
Yes, film cameras are cheap(ish) to replace, but with older cameras
you never know what they've been though and whether you're going to
get a lemon (something bad/"sucky") or lemonade (something good/fun to
drink, though I prefer apple juice to lemonade ;-)), so if/when I get
another Pentax, Contax, Nikon or whatever, _used_, I would want it to
last a bit longer than just past opening the UPS box I got it in ;-).
Cameras are like milk, but without the expiration date written on the
top of the box so younever no what you're going to get... or for how
long you're going to be able to use it/keep it.
My window sill is pretty well filled up, don't want to add more
"decorations" to the window (or the Christmas tree ;-)) so any
suggestions would be appreciated. Cameras are for using/collecting
light, not collecting star dust.
*Yes, I've learned my lesson with water and will only drink it, bathe
in it, or swim in it from now on, sans camera ;-)
.
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