Rheinmetall Exa roll.

[tunalegs]

For a short period of time in the mid 1950s, Ihagee Dresden was churning out Exaktas at max capacity. They needed somebody to step in and produce the Exa while they focused on meeting Exakta demand. The company that did was Rheinmetall. Better known for producing weapons, Rheinmetall at the time was producing typewriters and the Exa seemed like something that'd help keep the factory busy. After about 14,000 cameras were made, Exa production moved back to Ihagee.

Rheinmetall Exas are not exactly rare, but fairly uncommon. They got a reputation for being not as well made as the Ihagee version, but from what I can see the quality is pretty much equal. Anyway, I spotted this one on ebay for an incredibly low BIN, including the CZJ Tessar lens. I couldn't pass it up even though I already have several Exas.

woods by Berang Berang, on Flickr

cabriolet by Berang Berang, on Flickr

wall by Berang Berang, on Flickr

steps by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Untitled by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Smiley Porsche 356 by Berang Berang, on Flickr

47000008 by Berang Berang, on Flickr

47000005 by Berang Berang, on Flickr

The Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar is pretty decent lens, but I also had an Exaktar 2/50 I've been needing to try. The Exaktar mimics the look of the Zeiss Pancolar, but was made in Japan. It seems to have been imported by the Exakta Camera Co. of NY. It doesn't have much of a reputation online, but amusingly, its M42 variant (the Edixagon) sells for hundreds of dollars in ebay auctions.

Untitled by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Untitled by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Werner Piano Co Chicago by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Workmanship Warranted by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Also a pretty decent performer. Not sure if I'd pay $300 for one in m42, but it was an ok deal at $50 in Exakta mount.

 

[tunalegs]

Maybe I should make a Why Isn't Rheinmetall Cool? thread.

rheinmetall by Berang Berang, on Flickr

Here's the camera.

 

[farlymac]

I've always liked the look of the Exacta/Exa line of cameras. All that vast expanse of chrome with deep engravings. And you've shown they are also capable of making great images. Maybe I'll find a Rheinmetall Exa some day.

PF

 

[tunalegs]

I've always liked the look of the Exacta/Exa line of cameras. All that vast expanse of chrome with deep engravings. And you've shown they are also capable of making great images. Maybe I'll find a Rheinmetall Exa some day.

PF

The exa proves the point of the glass being more important than the camera. It's a very simple camera, but which could take some of the best glass of the era. The Tessar set the standard which other lenses were judged by, but many better lenses were available. The Schneider Xenon and Zeiss Pancolar are still wonderful lenses even today, and were just about the best in the business when they were new.

 

[farlymac]

Tell me about it. I've got user cameras dating back into the late thirties that could still give most modern film cameras a run for their money.

PF

 

[thawkins]

The exa proves the point of the glass being more important than the camera. It's a very simple camera, but which could take some of the best glass of the era. The Tessar set the standard which other lenses were judged by, but many better lenses were available. The Schneider Xenon and Zeiss Pancolar are still wonderful lenses even today, and were just about the best in the business when they were new.

I agree with tunalegs completely. The glass is the heart of the machine. The best glass in my closet is on a Retina IIa!!
Others in the closet include Leica, Nikon and Zeiss. The little Retina is the best!!