Stop Me From Tossing My Bessa R2 Off The Veranda

[P. Lynn Miller]

Good day to all,

I bought a Bessa R2 with 35mm f2.5, 50mm f2.5, and 90mm f3.5 about 6 months ago. After years of shooting Nikon SLR's, I wanted to try using a rangefinder and found the Bessa to be the answer. But I must say the Voigtlander Bessa R2 has been the biggest disappointment of my photography experience.

This is not a bash Voigtlander post, but rather a cry of frustration from someone who loves his Bessa but cannot trust it. In the 6 months of ownership I have had to have the rangefinder re-aligned 3 times. And the last 3 rolls of film I developed from the Bessa indicate there is trouble again.

I will readily admit I am hard on equipment, but I have been more careful with the Bessa than I have ever been with any of my Nikons. My Nikon F's, F2's and Nikkormats are treated mercilessly. And I have never had a lick of trouble with any of them. I really like the Bessa and it is incredibly well-built for the money. But I simply can no longer trust it, so I have gone back to my trusty Nikkormat FTn and Nikon F.

Anyone else have the same experience? Any suggestions on handling? Bags? Etc? Is the an exception the rule? Should I send the camera back to Cosina?

I want to love and use my Bessa, but...

 

[peterc]

RF alignment in the Bessa is a problem. My first Bessa R was misaligned out of the box. I sent it out and had that properly adjusted. It was still fine when I sold it.
Decided I needed a Bessa again. This one is off on vertical alignment. But the focus is fine so I'll live with the vertical strangeness.
Coming from a background of Nikon SLRs as well, I find the Bessa to be quite delicate in comparison.
I'm using the never-ready case to carry the current camera. When shooting I remove the case top.

 

[cmogi10]

You should sell it and get a Leica MP 😉

 

[irq506]

uh... want to share this bottle of Maalox?
Ok so Ive got an R3a, and no Im not hard on gear, Im very careful with it, I just use it thats all.
My R3a has in one year had about 380 rolls through it, two RF adjustments, COUNTLESS shutter issues, battery issues, transport issues, spacing issues etc. Finally after mor ethen a few minor fixes (I am a tech), just after warantee the shutter exploded out the back of the camera one day there last month, literally popped out the back of the shutter window. I thought Id put my finger through it until I saw that it was the protruding the wrong way for that to have happened.
So I find that for the $500 I paid for it, its going to cost me well over half the price of the camera to have the shutter replaced on it.

Well to say the least Im pi**ed about it. I could go on but I wont.

 

[payasam]

After all this, you'll never be happy with it. Best to let it go.

 

[szekiat]

i think its somewhat harsh to compare the bessa against top end pro built SLRs like the F and F2. A more even match would possibly be a leica as the others have suggested. That said, if your only problem is the RF alignment, u can possibly add a dab of loctite or a small drop of balsam glue to the screw to lock in the settings. Works on a hexar RF, don't see why not on a bessa.

 

[irq506]

Nail Varnish is better then Loctite. Just be extremely careful because it you dont know what you are doing itll get into the mech. Still, this doesnt always prevent VF mis-alignment.

I think you should throw it off the Verandah and take pictures of it hitting the ground.

 

[P. Lynn Miller]

Thanks to all for the replies.

First, I do not want this to turn into a Bessa bashing thread. That is not my intent or goal.

Secondly, I understood the limitations of the build of the Bessa when I bought it. And I am not equating a Bessa with a Leica or Nikon. The Bessa is many times less than the price of a new M6, so you would be very unwise if you bought a Bessa thinking you were getting a similar build quality to a Leica. As for the Nikon F or Nikkormat FTn, these bricks could be considered multi-purpose tools for hammering in tent pegs, breaking windows to escape burning buildings, wheels chocks, used as weapons in crowd control, and they happen to take photos well. The Bessa is no match.

I like my Bessa R2, it is a very sweet little camera that is fun to use. I just did not realize how fragile the rangerfinder system is. This is not just confined to Bessa, Leica's can be knocked out of alignment with relative ease from what I hear from people that I know that use them.

I guess the last straw was, I was asked to photograph the christening of the son of a friend, and I used the Bessa. All of the photos from the Bessa are slightly out of focus, not terribly, but compared to the rolls shot with my Nikon F, it is very apparent something is amiss with the Bessa.

So I started this thread not to bash Bessa, but find out how gentle or rough others are with their Bessa rangerfinders and train myself to work and live with a camera I really love.

As for a Leica, I would seriously consider upgrading to a M2 or M3, since my next lens investment will be the Nokton 40mm f1.4 or 35mm f1.2. And I do not use the built-in meter anyway.

As for the rangefinder adjustment, I have used nail polish everytime I re-adjusted it and it still comes unstuck.

It is tough to teach an old dog new tricks...

 

[Pherdinand]

P.,

If you use no built-in meter, i don't see why you bought a Bessa at all.
For the same price (i mean a new bessa) you can get a user m2.
Works reliable, feels sturdy, never runs out of battery 😀, and it's about as good in terms of features (e.g. highest shutter speed) less the meter related stuff.
The only thing i miss in my M2 is, with a biggish lens like a 90/2 my hands can't find a comfortable grip on the camera. The strap lug is in the way, and the camera is too heavy without a good grip. I guess it will be the same with the 35/1.2 lens.
But it's no problem with a small lens like the collapsible 50/2 or stg like the 40/1.4 nokton that looks also small.

I would suggest not only to think about the upgrade. DO IT.

EDIT: if you fear you'll knock your Leica out of alignment too...there's one more solution.
Contax. The old one. A ii(a) or a iii(a).

 

[rxmd]

As for a Leica, I would seriously consider upgrading to a M2 or M3, since my next lens investment will be the Nokton 40mm f1.4 or 35mm f1.2. And I do not use the built-in meter anyway.

Then an M2 sounds like a good idea for the 35mm frameline.

I normally recommend M5s to everyone; even when not using the meter I like mine as a very good body with fine ergonomics, especially since I've got large hands. But that's a matter of taste. 🙂

As for the rangefinder adjustment, I have used nail polish everytime I re-adjusted it and it still comes unstuck.

I am under the impression that there is some variation between Bessas in the solidity of their light meters. A friend has been using a Bessa R for four years or so, lugging it around on field research in Turkey and the Balkans, and has never had a rangefinder misalignment problem. On my own Bessa R I've had to realign the rangefinder two times after particularly sharp bumps, but given that I don't treat my cameras very kindly I can't really complain (one of the bumps was against another camera when I was carrying the two in a plastic bag on a bicycle on Dutch cobblestone streets, which counts as stupidity when I come to think of it). Others seem to be constantly suffering from drifting or jumping rangefinders. Since I don't think everybody else bumps their cameras around all the time, I can only assume that not all Bessas are created equal in this respect 🙂

Another problem is that the rangefinder is so fiddly to realign; if it was just a matter of having two easily accessible screws for vertical and infinity, it would be a lot less unnerving, I guess.

Philipp

 

[rxmd]

Hi Pherdinand,

if you fear you'll knock your Leica out of alignment too...there's one more solution. Contax. The old one. A ii(a) or a iii(a).

Doesn't the postwar IIa/IIIa have a different rangefinder setup that is easier to knock out of alignment?

Talking about Contaxes, another recommendation would be to buy a good, $50 or so Kiev and try it out for the ergonomics, and if the camera works for you and you still want the original (unlikely enough IMHO) to go looking for a Contax.

Philipp

 

[nzeeman]

you can also take some kiev 4 or fed 2.they are hard to knock out rf, and have wide rf base, also they are beautiful and not very big. 😀

 

[P. Lynn Miller]

If you use no built-in meter, i don't see why you bought a Bessa at all.

I will make a confession, I never intended to buy a Bessa. I have toying with the rangefinder notion for about a year. Having researched the subject to death, I had pretty much settled on a Nikon S2 or S3 or a Canon 7, when a customer walked into my shop with this Bessa kit. Of course, I like anything to do with cameras and by the time he left I owned the Bessa and he had a set of custom bicycle wheels. The Bessa was like new, with 5 or so rolls of film run through it. The customer no longer wanted, because he was in love with his new Contax Titanium G2 kit. So that is how I came to own a Bessa.

The whole kit was like new, not a single mark or scratch. The seller even had all the boxes, plastic bags, everything down to the silica gel packs. So by all intents and purposes the kit was new.

So the Bessa came to me by circumstance and fate...

 

[Sparrow]

Is it insured? and how high is your veranda, circumstance and fate may have a hand in your solution

 

[P. Lynn Miller]

I am under the impression that there is some variation between Bessas in the solidity of their light meters. A friend has been using a Bessa R for four years or so, lugging it around on field research in Turkey and the Balkans, and has never had a rangefinder misalignment problem. On my own Bessa R I've had to realign the rangefinder two times after particularly sharp bumps, but given that I don't treat my cameras very kindly I can't really complain (one of the bumps was against another camera when I was carrying the two in a plastic bag on a bicycle on Dutch cobblestone streets, which counts as stupidity when I come to think of it). Others seem to be constantly suffering from drifting or jumping rangefinders. Since I don't think everybody else bumps their cameras around all the time, I can only assume that not all Bessas are created equal in this respect 🙂 Philipp

Phillipp,

You have probably hit the nail on the head. I own a bicycle workshop in Sydney, ride my bike pretty much everywhere. I have a handlebar bag on the bike which is where my camera lives along with a lock, tools and whatever happens to crawl in there. I usually just toss my Nikkormat FTn with a 35mm f1.4 in with a 20mm and 180mm and hit the road. Lenses on the bottom and the camera on top, no padding, nothing. This has been my routine for years and the Nikons are none the worse for wear.

The Bessa R2 has lived the same life, except that I always kept it padded in a towel, etc. with the lenses in big, thick wool socks underneath. Nothing rattled or touched, but I guess the constant bumping and jarring albeit padded is too much for the Bessa. I find putting the camera in a case completely defeats carrying a camera, since till you stop, get the camera out of the case, the photo op is long gone.

So just tell me that I have been slowly destroying my kit. And, of course, no point in trying to sell, as now no one will want it!!

 

[P. Lynn Miller]

Is it insured? and how high is your veranda, circumstance and fate may have a hand in your solution

My veranda is about 5 meters(16 feet) above the sidewalk below. So tossing the Bessa off the veranda would be pretty much insure the rangefinder would go out of alignment for good!

Don't think the insurance would cover the toss, but I could make it look like an accident! I am too honest to pull such a prank, plus I still like my Bessa.

 

[Sparrow]

My veranda is about 5 meters(16 feet) above the sidewalk below. So tossing the Bessa off the veranda would be pretty much insure the rangefinder would go out of alignment for good!

Don't think the insurance would cover the toss, but I could make it look like an accident! I am too honest to pull such a prank, plus I still like my Bessa.

Me too, it was intended as a joke
🙂

I should use the smileys more

 

[rxmd]

Hi,

interesting hypothesis, but it sounds reasonable. Constantly getting carried around on a bike is probably one of the worst environments for a rangefinder.

So just tell me that I have been slowly destroying my kit. And, of course, no point in trying to sell, as now no one will want it!!

I don't think you can do long-term damage to the rangefinder mechanism this way. The rangefinder itself is probably fine - only the constant jostling makes it go out of alignment.

Just realign it and take it with you in a different bag for a month or so, then you see if it works. It really should. If it does, sell it. No problem.

I'm not sure if a Leica would fare better in the long run - then again, nothing beats trying it out 🙂 A Contax II or III or a Kiev would have no problems.

Incidentally I ride the same model Peugeot, except mine is orange and has a carrier. Excellent choice, but it's been getting difficult to get spare parts. Did you have the frame modified to take a standard bottom bracket for the foot pedals? I still have the old ones mounted that are locked in place with wedges, and those are a pain in the rear. (This paragraph may be a terminological mess due to my limited knowledge of English bicycle terminology. 🙂)

Philipp

 

[Photog9001]

now where was that diy for a bessa adjustment.
i just got mine back from the dealer i bought it from, new, now out of vertical alignment. funny, cause when i sent it it was out at infinity, now it's the opposite. well, funny isn't excactly how i feel about it. but it's a shame, cause if the camera was able to handle normal use (i never carried it on a bike btw), the vf would be just wonderful!..

 

[Bill58]

I just never felt, from reading a lot here and there, that the bessas were up to traditional (high) Japanese quality, so I bought two Canon Model Ps and have never looked back.