alw 0 Posted December 12, 2008 I´m into watches, gens and reps again. I yesterday walked out of a second-hand watch shop with a vintage golden Chronographe Suisse watch and now am mailing with PT about a Pam GMT. And oh, I think I just bought a vintage Radiomir rep from RWG2.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AllergyDoc 40 Posted December 12, 2008 Best you give up the Leica's then! How many vices can a man have and not get his ass kicked by his wife? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
onzenuub 309 Posted December 12, 2008 Live is hard for you Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alw 0 Posted December 12, 2008 OK, the Rad is secured... Give up Leicas? No way, but I still need to upgrade my Elmarit 2.8/90 to a Summicron 2/90! Btw. it pays to visit an AD. I´m writing a small article on Panerais and at the end of the visit I got a MASSIVE 35cm x 35cm Panerai history book (http://www.panerai.com/s_news_eve.xpd?id_sezione=7&id_lingua=2&id=7974&mode=view_news) weighing a few kilos AND a Rolex Swiss knife. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 13, 2008 I´m into watches, gens and reps again. I yesterday walked out of a second-hand watch shop with a vintage golden Chronographe Suisse watch and now am mailing with PT about a Pam GMT. And oh, I think I just bought a vintage Radiomir rep from RWG2.... There's only one cure for the addiction - give in to it! ... but then, I see you have Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iabounty 8 Posted December 15, 2008 I have my rep addiction under control with 1 Rolex and 1 Breitling and I am miserable........ At least you are happy Out of control and happy......... Enjoy the watches bro........ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Poohmonster 0 Posted December 15, 2008 Let the Breitling bug bite you on the arse !!!!!....then buy buy buy !!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iabounty 8 Posted December 15, 2008 Poohmonster replying to Oh shit.... I like it.......... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnG 41 Posted December 15, 2008 Give up Leicas? No way, but I still need to upgrade my Elmarit 2.8/90 to a Summicron 2/90! Rep Leicas? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 15, 2008 Give up Leicas? No way, but I still need to upgrade my Elmarit 2.8/90 to a Summicron 2/90! Rep Leicas? Russian made mostly - crap, but collectable Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Luthier 1 Posted December 15, 2008 Give up Leicas? No way, but I still need to upgrade my Elmarit 2.8/90 to a Summicron 2/90! Rep Leicas? Russian made mostly - crap, but collectable Ha.Ha.Ha. Blast from the past. Zorkiy. Mean - sharpeyed. By the way, in 60's it was quite decent camera. INDUSTAR lenses... with visible bubbles in the glass. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 15, 2008 Ha.Ha.Ha. Blast from the past.Zorkiy. Mean - sharpeyed. By the way, in 60's it was quite decent camera. INDUSTAR lenses... with visible bubbles in the glass. hmm - even in the sixties/seventies they were crap. Capable of taking a semi-reasonable photograph, for sure, but very poorly built and hideously unreliable. If you got a good one, they were okay, but most of 'em weren't good ones... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Luthier 1 Posted December 15, 2008 Ha.Ha.Ha. Blast from the past.Zorkiy. Mean - sharpeyed. By the way, in 60's it was quite decent camera. INDUSTAR lenses... with visible bubbles in the glass. hmm - even in the sixties/seventies they were crap. Capable of taking a semi-reasonable photograph, for sure, but very poorly built and hideously unreliable. If you got a good one, they were okay, but most of 'em weren't good ones... Yes, not the best camera I've ever had, but one thing is wrong here - it's very reliable. Mine was beaten to death, was in extreme conditions - minus 45 degrees C, plus 50 degrees C, and worked perfectly. Quality of pictures, ofcourse, wasn't great. But mostly because of shity films. Ofcourse, I'll never compare it to my Rolleiflex. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 15, 2008 Yes, not the best camera I've ever had, but one thing is wrong here - it's very reliable. Mine was beaten to death, was in extreme conditions - minus 45 degrees C, plus 50 degrees C, and worked perfectly. Quality of pictures, ofcourse, wasn't great. But mostly because of shity films.Ofcourse, I'll never compare it to my Rolleiflex. You obviously got a good one - I sold photographic gear for a while many years ago and we used to dread people buying Zorkis - we reckoned that for every five we sold, we got six back faulty You did occasionally get a good one - and even more occasionally a very good lens. We eventually got to the point where we'd test every camera before putting it on sale - would never sell a customer a fresh, un-opened one as we got too many complaints. Out of every batch, we'd send about 70% of them back - the rest were okay, though and quite a few Leica wannabes used to swear by 'em. It may be that importers in some countries actually checked 'em before sale, which would increase the chances of getting a good one - certainly that wasn't the case in the UK However, any that have lasted this long, must have been pretty much perfect to begin with - there was nothing wrong with the design of the mechanism - they were just poorly assembled. (sound familiar? ) The same factory also produced a 6x6 Hasselblad copy that was astonishingly good (again, provided you got one that worked - most didn't). I still have some photos somewhere that I took on one of those... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnG 41 Posted December 15, 2008 I sold photographic gear for a while many years ago and we used to dread people buying Zorkis - we reckoned that for every five we sold, we got six back faulty But I was serious, I saw someone on RG once posting about replica Leicas. They were branded counterfeits of old Leicas... here is one of them (found the thread): Original thread: http://repgeek.com/showthread.php?t=33211&...highlight=leica Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 15, 2008 I sold photographic gear for a while many years ago and we used to dread people buying Zorkis - we reckoned that for every five we sold, we got six back faulty But I was serious, I saw someone on RG once collecting replica Leicas. They were branded counterfeits of old Leicas... here is one of them (found the thread): Original thread: http://repgeek.com/showthread.php?t=33211&...highlight=leica Yup - I know. I've seen one or two myself over the years, although the build quality is generally a dead giveaway. A lot still came from Russia - they used Zorki or Fed parts in a lookalike body. The easiest way to spot one, however, was to take a look at the lens coating - the reps generally had either no coating at all or a seriously funky and/or uneven coating (much like rep AR! ) I've seen rep Minox and Zeiss gear too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Luthier 1 Posted December 15, 2008 Yes, not the best camera I've ever had, but one thing is wrong here - it's very reliable. Mine was beaten to death, was in extreme conditions - minus 45 degrees C, plus 50 degrees C, and worked perfectly. Quality of pictures, ofcourse, wasn't great. But mostly because of shity films.Ofcourse, I'll never compare it to my Rolleiflex. The same factory also produced a 6x6 Hasselblad copy that was astonishingly good (again, provided you got one that worked - most didn't). I still have some photos somewhere that I took on one of those... Yeah, I had that 6X6 KIEV too, and it was a good camera. FED... do you know what it mean? Felix Edmond Dzerjinsky. A man who created KGB. I didn't know they exported cameras to UK, all I knew I saw Soviet cameras in Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany. Also they had plastic body SMENA, MINOX copy - Kiev-Vega, spy camera, and Smena-Stereo with 2 lenses, and large format high quality KIEV models. As you can see on samples - quality was quite good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 15, 2008 Yeah, I had that 6X6 KIEV too, and it was a good camera.FED... do you know what it mean? Felix Edmond Dzerjinsky. A man who created KGB. I didn't know they exported cameras to UK, all I knew I saw Soviet cameras in Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany. Also they had plastic body SMENA, MINOX copy - Kiev-Vega, spy camera, and Smena-Stereo with 2 lenses, and large format high quality KIEV models. As you can see on samples - quality was quite good. Yep, yep - there were some other varieties too. We had a fairly enthusiastic importer of Russian cameras (everything from Zenit junk through to Kiev and the Horizon panoramic camera). Dunno whether they're still in business, though - my time in the photo business was a loooooong time ago. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Luthier 1 Posted December 15, 2008 Yep, yep - there were some other varieties too. We had a fairly enthusiastic importer of Russian cameras (everything from Zenit junk through to Kiev and the Horizon panoramic camera). Dunno whether they're still in business, though - my time in the photo business was a loooooong time ago. Same as my time in Europe... December 19 year 1989 is a Day I arrived to USA... Will celebrate with good cognac. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alw 0 Posted December 20, 2008 In my absence this thread has mutated into a fake-Leica topic? Well, here you go. I´ve got two of these babies: http://stores.ebay.de/moscowStore_Leica-co...0QQftidZ2QQtZkm Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 20, 2008 Cool - surprised to see that eBay is still allowing those... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alw 0 Posted December 20, 2008 They´ve hidden most of their "Berlin Olympics 1936" / "Luftwaffe" / "Kriegsberichter" / "Wehrmacht" versions though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 20, 2008 They´ve hidden most of their "Berlin Olympics 1936" / "Luftwaffe" / "Kriegsberichter" / "Wehrmacht" versions though. I wonder why? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnG 41 Posted December 20, 2008 They´ve hidden most of their "Berlin Olympics 1936" / "Luftwaffe" / "Kriegsberichter" / "Wehrmacht" versions though. I wonder why? They put them in the section with the Nazi Pit Bulls. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 83 Posted December 20, 2008 I guess we know who bought them all, then... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
