Godfrey
somewhat colored
Looks fine to me, modulo some minor cosmetic issues. Get it, check it out, send it in for a CLA, and then go use it.
G
mpaniagua
Newby photographer
Well sir, this is as clean as it will get. Dont see wear around shutter area. Check for the lower area on the back (the lower curved area). That is an common area for wear when used, not sure why.
Like stated, send it to CLA and used it. Seems like a damn good machine
Congratz.
robdeszan
Member
The camera does not look tired, neither does the glass but you will need to open the shutter and look against a strong source of light from both back (with the back open) and front to really examine it.
Don't be scared of dust and small scratches (the glass will have marks from the manufacturing process as well so don't be discouraged) but beware of haze or separation, though. If it has any signs of fungus (spider-like patterns) you would need to have the lens cleaned to make sure it has not etched into the surface.
Taking lens is less significant.
mpaniagua
Newby photographer
Agree. Came acroos a Rollei 3.5F that looked pretty good on first sight. While doing the inspection robdeszan said it reveled fungus etching. Some haze and fungus may be removed by technician, but some not. Haze or fungus may have impact on the IQ, most common reducing contrast and perhaps sharpness. But at that price I guess it was worth the risk
flvU3Dp
Member
Yes, I'm a little paranoid about the viewing lens potentially having fungus despite there not being any mention of it. There was no photo showing the viewing lens on the auction site so I am at the mercy of the Rollei gods.
I also won't be able to return the camera because the import tax and return shipping will probably cost me about as much as a service anyway. Fingers crossed.
I also won't be able to return the camera because the import tax and return shipping will probably cost me about as much as a service anyway. Fingers crossed.
astrosecret
Recovering rollei snob
if its just the viewing lens with issues and you paid a good price i wouldnt worry about it… just shoot it. unless you are a collector
KoNickon
Nick Merritt
Whatever you do, don't try removing the viewing lens to clean it -- you will throw the focus off. Trust me on this! I am sure those who know what they're doing can reinstall it correctly, but not I.
You can remove the viewing hood to get at the mirror if it's hazy, but I believe the front surface is silvered so any contact with it runs the risk of removing the reflective material.
Wait until the camera is in your hands and you can look it over thoroughly then. No need to worry unnecessarily.
You can remove the viewing hood to get at the mirror if it's hazy, but I believe the front surface is silvered so any contact with it runs the risk of removing the reflective material.
Wait until the camera is in your hands and you can look it over thoroughly then. No need to worry unnecessarily.
campy
Member
I have bought a 2.8C and a 2.8E both with slight separation and both take fine pictures. Reading about separation most agree that it would most likely take years to progress any further as long as you keep it out of a hot car for long periods. I am having trouble seeing the separation on the 2.8C which has the Xenotar lens and I guess is uncommon as compared to the Planar lens which is in my 2.8E. I also found someone on Photrio that will repair the separation at a reasonable price so I sent him the Planar cells. I bought both these cameras at discount because of the separation and figured if it became a problem I would try to fix it myself. Both cameras at first glance appear to be mint but are at least an 8+ mechanically and cosmetically and the glass and coatings are scratch free. The 2.8C is new to me and have only put one roll through and on a couple of frames the spacing was off a little but the advance is very smooth.
flvU3Dp
Member
So I thought I'd update this thread for all you Rollei gurus and nerds: The Rolleiflex 2.8F arrived in generally good condition but dirty and with somewhat stiff shutter speed and aperture dials. The ring around the taking lens was also a bit loose. The shutter button had some gunk accumulated around it and was a bit sticky. Taking lens was in very good condition--no crazy scratches when shining a light through it from the back, haze, fungus, or separation. I shot a roll of color film and all seemed good.
I then sent it off for a CLA. The tech confirmed that everything on the camera was good with one exception: on the inside of the focusing plate, the circular opening that fits around the viewing lens is slightly bent at around the 6 o'clock position. He suspects the camera has at some point taken a knock in that area and this is why the dials were a bit stiff as well. He was able to get the focusing plate straightened by creating a tiny little bit of separation between the plate and the part that fits over and around the viewing lens, which made the dials move much more easily as well.
The camera came back clean and in perfect working condition. However, this didn't last long. After only a week, the shutter started malfunctioning when I was testing the shutter speeds: it would trip when advancing the crank, and then again when cocking the shutter. I noticed the 1/15th and 1/30th second speeds were also slightly off--especially 1/15th.
Another trip to the tech and he identified that some spring that regulates that mechanism had come loose. He also advised that 1/15th was a bit hit-and-miss despite the shutter service. I've now had the camera back for about two weeks and put four rolls of film through it with no problems. I suspect this issue had something to do with repeatedly firing the shutter with no film inside as I was doing when it first occured. Anyway, all is good now.
I've finally been able to enjoy the camera and make pictures with it. Man, what an incredible piece of German engineering! It has inspired me to go out and shoot with purpose. It is also a conversation starter--random people stop me and ask about it, which is awesome. I've also learned to not fiddle with it when there is no film inside--I think if I just use it, and use it aggressively when I'm out shooting--there won't be any more issues.
Here are some sample images--all shot wide open and developed in Rodinal 1:25 for 7 minutes. First one in HP5+, the others Tri-X shot at box speed.
I then sent it off for a CLA. The tech confirmed that everything on the camera was good with one exception: on the inside of the focusing plate, the circular opening that fits around the viewing lens is slightly bent at around the 6 o'clock position. He suspects the camera has at some point taken a knock in that area and this is why the dials were a bit stiff as well. He was able to get the focusing plate straightened by creating a tiny little bit of separation between the plate and the part that fits over and around the viewing lens, which made the dials move much more easily as well.
The camera came back clean and in perfect working condition. However, this didn't last long. After only a week, the shutter started malfunctioning when I was testing the shutter speeds: it would trip when advancing the crank, and then again when cocking the shutter. I noticed the 1/15th and 1/30th second speeds were also slightly off--especially 1/15th.
Another trip to the tech and he identified that some spring that regulates that mechanism had come loose. He also advised that 1/15th was a bit hit-and-miss despite the shutter service. I've now had the camera back for about two weeks and put four rolls of film through it with no problems. I suspect this issue had something to do with repeatedly firing the shutter with no film inside as I was doing when it first occured. Anyway, all is good now.
I've finally been able to enjoy the camera and make pictures with it. Man, what an incredible piece of German engineering! It has inspired me to go out and shoot with purpose. It is also a conversation starter--random people stop me and ask about it, which is awesome. I've also learned to not fiddle with it when there is no film inside--I think if I just use it, and use it aggressively when I'm out shooting--there won't be any more issues.
Here are some sample images--all shot wide open and developed in Rodinal 1:25 for 7 minutes. First one in HP5+, the others Tri-X shot at box speed.
DwF
Well-known
Thank you for update and sharing. I was actually curious to see samples of "wide open" with an f2.8 Rollei. Also, I was curious what 1:25 would look like with HP5 as I often use the same film and developer but 1:50
I am enjoying my Rolleicord w 3.5 Xenar and find it serves me well when I've shot at f3.5- f4. I don't expect performance to be as good as stopped down but shooting portraits, I'm also less concerned with edge sharpness. Your first image here especially exemplifies that, the edges couldn't be better!
Enjoy your "new" camera!
David
I am enjoying my Rolleicord w 3.5 Xenar and find it serves me well when I've shot at f3.5- f4. I don't expect performance to be as good as stopped down but shooting portraits, I'm also less concerned with edge sharpness. Your first image here especially exemplifies that, the edges couldn't be better!
Enjoy your "new" camera!
David
DownUnder
Nikon Nomad
Many photographers I know in my 'age bracket' own and use Rolleis but are also buying them as collectables and putting them away. I have four, including a 3.5E2 I bought new as a 'demo' model in 1966 and still take out a few times a year, more for old times' sake than for any important photography as at my age I've shot almost everything I intend to in my life.
My other three - two Ts with black bodies and full kits, also a 'cord Vb I picked up dirt-cheaply from a deceased estate a few years ago - sit mostly on the shelf now. As for my E2 I try to take them out a few times every year for exercise and to keep the shutters ticking smoothly. The latter trio all have 16 exposure kits and the Vb even has a 24 exposure kit, the 16s give me excellent small negatives that print easily and well but so far I've only put one or two films through the Vb with the 24. Also in my kit is an original Rolleikin back dating to about 1950 which works as new but I have to say I've only used it one time in ten years. My bad.
So many of these fine cameras - and I've seen some that were not only 'as new' but still in their original wraps in their boxes with all the bits and pieces and even the original owner's papers intact. Worth heaps. Eventually they will all be part of someone's estate.
Ebay here in Australia is now mostly a junk shop for people to flog off their unwanted trash. I've seen several Rolleis on offer this year which had been tinkered with at home and didn't work properly, but still sold for >AUD$1000. If one unlucky enough to land one of these turkeys, expect a repair bill amounting to about half or more or the purchase price, and of course no warranty unless you raise the roof with Ebay admin, but even then still a long and difficult battle.
Savvy Rollei buyers now avoid the 1950s Automats which are mostly clapped-out relics. The Ts have a poor reputation as flimsy but none of the ones I've seen, nor my own two, have ever let me down. They wee amateur cameras and as such not as badly bashed about as the bigger 'pro' models which were used almost to death in studios, to shoot wedding and receptions and so on.
As in so many other things nowadays, with Rolleis you pays your money and you gets what you pays for. Often as not, this means a fair swag of dosh. So be it. Life in the real world isn't always pleasant, but it's what it is...
My other three - two Ts with black bodies and full kits, also a 'cord Vb I picked up dirt-cheaply from a deceased estate a few years ago - sit mostly on the shelf now. As for my E2 I try to take them out a few times every year for exercise and to keep the shutters ticking smoothly. The latter trio all have 16 exposure kits and the Vb even has a 24 exposure kit, the 16s give me excellent small negatives that print easily and well but so far I've only put one or two films through the Vb with the 24. Also in my kit is an original Rolleikin back dating to about 1950 which works as new but I have to say I've only used it one time in ten years. My bad.
So many of these fine cameras - and I've seen some that were not only 'as new' but still in their original wraps in their boxes with all the bits and pieces and even the original owner's papers intact. Worth heaps. Eventually they will all be part of someone's estate.
Ebay here in Australia is now mostly a junk shop for people to flog off their unwanted trash. I've seen several Rolleis on offer this year which had been tinkered with at home and didn't work properly, but still sold for >AUD$1000. If one unlucky enough to land one of these turkeys, expect a repair bill amounting to about half or more or the purchase price, and of course no warranty unless you raise the roof with Ebay admin, but even then still a long and difficult battle.
Savvy Rollei buyers now avoid the 1950s Automats which are mostly clapped-out relics. The Ts have a poor reputation as flimsy but none of the ones I've seen, nor my own two, have ever let me down. They wee amateur cameras and as such not as badly bashed about as the bigger 'pro' models which were used almost to death in studios, to shoot wedding and receptions and so on.
As in so many other things nowadays, with Rolleis you pays your money and you gets what you pays for. Often as not, this means a fair swag of dosh. So be it. Life in the real world isn't always pleasant, but it's what it is...
DownUnder
Nikon Nomad
Note to moderators/co-ordinators - it has taken me SEVEN TRIES to save my last post, I keep getting Invalid Server Responses and a box asking me to log in, time and again. This is most annoying, please fix asap!!!
(added later) An update. I've just finished another post to this thread - FOUR TRIES this time, logged out two times, Invalid Server Responses popped up 2x, also a demand that I reload and when I did, boom!! then I got logged out.
Enough. I will now stop posting anything at all until such time as I know I can do it without a massive rise in my blood pressure...
(added later) An update. I've just finished another post to this thread - FOUR TRIES this time, logged out two times, Invalid Server Responses popped up 2x, also a demand that I reload and when I did, boom!! then I got logged out.
Enough. I will now stop posting anything at all until such time as I know I can do it without a massive rise in my blood pressure...
flvU3Dp
Member
Hey ozmoose, I enjoyed reading your post and learning about the history of your cameras--really cool stuff. I'm in Australia too and agree with your observation about eBay. I actually got my 2.8F at an estate auction overseas.
Cheers
DownUnder
Nikon Nomad
Hey ozmoose, I enjoyed reading your post and learning about the history of your cameras--really cool stuff. I'm in Australia too and agree with your observation about eBay. I actually got my 2.8F at an estate auction overseas.
Cheers
Yes... When I was younger and (the few times I was) rolling in money, I bought gold - now I realise I should've put my money into Rolleiflexes!!
Oddly, given the minor diatribe I gave in my second-previous post about 1950s Rolleis, someone phoned today - they have lucked into two Rolleis from that long-ago era, an Automat and a 2.8C, with a box of bits, also a few Leica LTM lenses which may be of interest as I'm on the hunt for a wide-angle and a short tele for my iiif; all these are again from an estate - I'm invited to go and view them (about 100 kilometers each way so a day trip) as soon as my Melbourne friends gets out of lockdown and can escape to the regions - so I may be investing more of my retirement money into two more TLRs which obviously I need about as much as a drilled hole in my head. But if they are worth getting, I'll buy them anyway.
All my Rolleis and other good cameras will eventually be for sale, but as the old Aussie joke goes, I intend to be very, very late for my own funeral, so the wake and the follow-up flogging off the dearly departed's earthly goodies will I hope be delayed for some years yet. All those films I have yet to use and process, plus that good Victorian and Limestone Coast red wine to soak up...
wintoid
Back to film
I'm sure there are tons of Rolleiflexes out there. I don't believe the overall level of stock has been drastically reduced over the last 10 years or so by people damaging working cameras. I can't be alone in that I had a huge interest in photography for over a decade which has somewhat died down now. I have kept various examples of the nicer cameras I've acquired along the way, including a Rolleiflex, and don't really have any incentive to sell them, especially as I live in fear that I'd suddenly rediscover my interest!
What has changed, in my case, is the turnover. I am no longer regularly buying and selling cameras. I suspect others may be in the same boat as me, and this reduced turnover of cameras makes it seem like there's less stock.
What has changed, in my case, is the turnover. I am no longer regularly buying and selling cameras. I suspect others may be in the same boat as me, and this reduced turnover of cameras makes it seem like there's less stock.
KoNickon
Nick Merritt
They're out there. I got a very nice T (first one I have had) early this year from the nephew of the original owner, listed on Craigslist. Gray model with working and accurate meter, with case/strap in lovely shape, Rolleinar 2, hood, 16 exposure kit, and Rolleifix, plus some non-Rollei filters and a few rolls of black and white film. Paid $600.
rulnacco
Well-known
If you've got the bucks, get in touch with Michael Livera at Kiwi Camera Service in Orlando. He's got a 2.8F (I think it's an F) that has literally never been used--it's even got the internal seal that came with the camera which has never been removed, demonstrating that it is indeed unused. I can't remember what he's asking for it, but I have held it and it is indeed pristine. He does have a few cameras that have been used but are very, very clean indeed. He's a very honest, straight-up guy and he knows what he's doing.
Several months back, his repair service opened up a retail space selling old cameras, including the aforementioned Rolleiflexes, and it is truly a wonderful place, my favorite spot in Orlando to drop in on.
Several months back, his repair service opened up a retail space selling old cameras, including the aforementioned Rolleiflexes, and it is truly a wonderful place, my favorite spot in Orlando to drop in on.
mpaniagua
Newby photographer
As much as I would love a mint camera, I think it will be wasted on me. Although I consider myself to be careful, I tend to actually use the cameras (being a Rolleiflex, Leica or Kiev). It will take something like a year or less for camera to go from Mint to just great/excellent. A rub in her, a small scratch in there, etc. I normally don't keep 'shelf queens'. Thats why I sold my Rolleiflex 3.5F. It was on some great conditions that I feared it will lose it luster in little time by being used.
I'd love a clean Rolleicord myself!
Pál_K
Cameras. I has it.
For a long time I thought I’d never want to use a TLR, yet I admired Rollei’s craftsmanship. A few years ago, when I finally realized that nothing like this will ever be made again and even the newest of the main production Rollei’s are over 30 years old, I got these two. Not mint condition, but A quality. This is a 2.8D and a 3.5F. I’ve covered the selenium meter on the F to preserve it when not in use. Overall I prefer the D because it doesn’t have the complex linkage that the meter requires and is therefore easier to maintain and repair. The D also lets me lock or unlock the EV mechanism; the F keeps shutter speed and aperture always independent. These TLR’s are fun to use. Unlike the experiences of other people, not a single person has made a comment when I’m walking around with these.
