Mr. A., I need your help....

You can also find an extra hobby. I have recently gotten into the vinyl world and that has helped control my preoccupation with photo stuff. Of course I've spent quite a bit on building preamps and upgrading my record player, but buying records is much cheaper and easier to enjoy than acquiring and or cleaning gear.
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My theory is that collecting records is one of the most expensive hobbies, since unlike pretty much any other obsession we have, you can never have enough records.

With cameras, there's always a point when you have enough, even if enough is a ridiculous number like the OP, same with amps etc., there just comes a point where there's no point in buying any more.

But with a record collection.... It's indefinite, there's always more out there that are worth buying....
 
You are not alone. Some of us are worse off than you. I have much of what you have listed plus a goodly assortment of Fed, Zenit, Zorki, Kiev, Exakta, Praktina, Practica, Pentax screwmount and Retinas. Clearly I am not suffering from insanity, I am enjoying it. Joe
 
Just yesterday I gave away a Retina IIIS to a friend for free. It felt good.....otherwise I am already collecting the wood for my funeral pyre as I've heard that you can take it with you and that most westerners will end up in the afterlive with nothing more than a black suit, shoes and a necktie.......
 
I might have 60 Nikon cameras alone. over 100 lenses for them.

Takes me a while to pick and pack gear for a vacation. But I manage.

I'be been giving some cameras away. Best was a Contax II with Sonnar.
 
If you use it, keep it.
If you want to keep it, use it.

Take out 2 camera bodies; either both B&W or both colour but attach different lenses; or a chrome body for colour and a black body for other but with same lens.

I think your system of open doors can only be improved by installing a large glass cabinet (mostly air/draft proof) with a small extractor fan but then set up a single inlet pipe with dust filter. Why glass? So you can enjoy looking at them before fondling them (dont let the missus catch you though or you will be in the dog house faster than if you fondled another woman)
 
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I am driving my girlfriend crazy

just wait till she has 97 pairs of shoes then home life will seem quite normal:eek:
 
I am currently looking at cleaning up some systems. To no avail as I already bought another Robot!!!
This addiction never ends - just enjoy it.
However, a friend of mine is just helping disposing of an estate. The man was a pack rat and had the money to be one too. So far 350 boxes of cameras and lenses!!!!!!!!
Oh well, there is a small swap-meet here on the 8 Nov. so I will dump some stuff in a box and drag it there. It is sells, fine - if it doesn't I drag it back. There is an informal recycling program with those small swap meets.
You buy something weird. obsolete and play with it for a while - then you put it back at the next swap-meet and somebody else goes "Oh, always wanted one of those" and buy it - and 6 month later it shows up again. Occasionally you break even, rarely make a profit and sometimes you loose a couple of $'s - but so what - it was fun to play with it while it lasted.

On the other hand, Brian's stash of 60 Nikon's and 100+ lenses might fall into the excessive accumulation - though it is nice to have a number to aspire to.
 
Dont' Sell anything!! If you do you will start to something else.! Keep it!
An empty space is a terrible thing.

Just get some drawers like Tom says.

After get more space, fill it with more cameras! Ah Life is back!
Oh! get a schedule, one body + one lens every week, just different ones!
Take pictures from your super (she got to be!) girl-friend and give a set to her (I know it's hard to split from it, but is worth it, she will understand... and let you buy more).
 
Ok, you guys think you are bad accumulating. Had coffee with a friend this morning and he admitted to having 660 cameras "and I haven't put the Chicago Plastic Cameras in the database yet!!" What is even worse - the majority are 127 cameras - for which film, though available, is difficult to find.
Find people like that and you instantly feel better! When my friend with 660 cameras feels overwhelmed, we all meet with another friend, who has something like 3000 cameras (though no database so the exact number is not known - but that's when he stopped counting).
 
Tom A said:
Find people like that and you instantly feel better! When my friend with 660 cameras feels overwhelmed, we all meet with another friend, who has something like 3000 cameras (though no database so the exact number is not known - but that's when he stopped counting).
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do the nice men in white coats attend? :eek:
 
3000 cameras.... I agree Tom...one instantly feels better!
Leicavirgin1... avoid Vancouver.... you may never recover!! (just joking, Vancouver is great!).. 3000 cameras... my mind can not compute!
 
Tom A said:
On the other hand, Brian's stash of 60 Nikon's and 100+ lenses might fall into the excessive accumulation - though it is nice to have a number to aspire to.
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That's only two Nikons per year since 1978, when I bought my first one! Two per year.... Not so bad...
 
historicist said:
My theory is that collecting records is one of the most expensive hobbies, since unlike pretty much any other obsession we have, you can never have enough records.

With cameras, there's always a point when you have enough, even if enough is a ridiculous number like the OP, same with amps etc., there just comes a point where there's no point in buying any more.

But with a record collection.... It's indefinite, there's always more out there that are worth buying....
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this is quite true..
 
As previous posters said decide what you like and what you use and keep that, thats what I did recently I kept one Leica and one lens my F4s's (5 of them) with lenses etc a black f and F2 with plain prism and lenses mmmmmmmm maybe I need to get ebaying again!
 
I just filled a box with stuff to drag to a Swapmeet here on Sunday. Nothing exotic - turned out I had 7 Nikon F's in the SLR cabinet. Decided to cut back to 4. Some odd lenses that I haven't used for a white too. I will probably come back with an equal amount of stuff - possible Nikon still, or maybe something else!
These occasions are typical "recycling" events. You sell what you bought the last time and aquire new (to you) stuff to play with for 6 month (until the next Swapmeet).
Occasionally you find things you keep - but not too often.
It is not terminal though and the cost is moderate - if you break even you are doing well and if you loose a couple of $ - not a big deal.
 
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