Best 35mm RFs under 50 American dollars.

[Vostok]

Hi, lads. I'm new and I apologise if these kind of threads are considered silly or redundant in here.

I love rangefinders, but my budget is quite small. Currently, I own a Fed-2 with two lenses: Industar-26 (red letter version) and 61 "Panda". I really like it but I think it is too bulky and heavy to carry it in my backpack every day. I'd like to purchase a small, not so heavy 35mm rangefinder under $50.

So, which RF do you consider most suitable for me?.

Thank you very much.

 

[rxmd]

Hi! Welcome to RFF!

We have a dedicated thread to discussions of sub-$50 rangefinders: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77821
The information there obviously changes as some cameras become more popular and others less so, but it should give you a good idea. Note that prices there refer to US eBay mostly, so you'll have to check what is available locally and whether the prices reflect what you can get in Argentina.

 

[Vostok]

Hi! Welcome to RFF!

We have a dedicated thread to discussions of sub-$50 rangefinders: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77821
The information there obviously changes as some cameras become more popular and others less so, but it should give you a good idea. Note that prices there refer to US eBay mostly, so you'll have to check what is available locally and whether the prices reflect what you can get in Argentina.

Thank you, and sorry!. 🙂

 

[rxmd]

Thank you, and sorry!. 🙂

Never mind 🙂

You will probably end up with a 1970s compact rangefinder, for which the bartender has a dedicated page on his site: http://www.cameraquest.com/com35s.htm

Personally I'd recommend an Olympus XA (see pages here and here), because it's the most pocketable rangefinder you'll get sizewise and robustness-wise, while having very good optics and ergonomics. You have to see whether you can get one locally for $50, you might have to wait a little bit, but I paid less than that for both that I've had.

 

[Vostok]

Great, I googled the XA and liked what I saw!. I'll see if I can get one here in Buenos Aires under $50 dollars.

I thought of Olympus RC but the battery issue makes it not suitable for me.

What do you think about Yashica Electro GSN?.

 

[PatrickCheung]

I got both my Electro GSN and XA for $20 each... best $40 I've ever spent.

The Electro died really quickly after purchase, but that was due to my mishandling of it... seem to have shorted out the circuits using a bad home-made battery adapter. The Electro needs an adapter to power the meter and thus shutter... without it, the shutter is stuck at 1/500. Now it's just a daytime camera for me, a good one though 🙂 Lens is beautiful, solid body, great looking camera! I find it hard to get a good deal on them nowadays though... at least in Canada. I've only seen one on a local classifieds posting that was under $50 CAD... the rest are overpriced at $120-150.

The XA... I was skeptical about at first, because of it's looks... looked like a crappy point and shoot. Boy was I wrong! Compact, automatic exposure, full and accurate control of focusing, variable aperture... nothing more to ask for! It's a truly pocketable camera... and is making a nice XA-shaped fade in my jeans 😛

Can't go wrong with either, really.

 

[GaryLH]

Never mind 🙂

You will probably end up with a 1970s compact rangefinder, for which the bartender has a dedicated page on his site: http://www.cameraquest.com/com35s.h...ry batteries if I remember correctly. Gary

 

[Vostok]

Bad news, there's none of the cameras mentioned above for under $50 in Argentina's eBay (MercadoLibre). All of the very few I could find are around $80, some in awful condition.

Are there any other models you can recommend?.

I guess I'll keep on searching. If I don't find anything, I'll wait for my trip to Paris and London in september and take a look over there.

 

[rxmd]

Just take your time - these things turn up eventually. Having to buy something RIGHT NOW is almost always a bad idea. If you have time until September, just continue looking.

 

[btgc]

Requirement for a "small, not so heavy" camera don't go well together with idea of rangefinders. Sure, first we need to define what is small and what weight is OK, but mostly those metal made things aren't as easy as polycarbonate shell cameras.

Yashica GSN certainly isn't compact camera, it's of size of good SLR. Can not see advantage over Fed. Yashica have smaller and lighter Electro models but most of them certainly are over $50 and then Av mode basically is all you have (just be prepared, not that Av is bad).

Olympus 35RC can be used in manual mode so battery is not issue, in fact. It's also one of well balanced cameras between weight, size and usability, if slow speeds aren't needed (it has Bulb, though).

 

[Vostok]

Requirement for a "small, not so heavy" camera don't go well together with idea of rangefinders. Sure, first we need to define what is small and what weight is OK, but mostly those metal made things aren't as easy as polycarbonate shell cameras.

Yashica GSN certainly isn't compact camera, it's of size of good SLR. Can not see advantage over Fed. Yashica have smaller and lighter Electro models but most of them certainly are over $50 and then Av mode basically is all you have (just be prepared, not that Av is bad).

Olympus 35RC can be used in manual mode so battery is not issue, in fact. It's also one of well balanced cameras between weight, size and usability, if slow speeds aren't needed (it has Bulb, though).

rxmd, You're right. Things like these need patience.

btgc, Didn't know about the size of a Yahica GSN, thank you for the info.

The Olympus 35RC is not fully functional without a battery, I presume. That's such a shame.

I just saw a couple of Konica S III at convenient price. Couldn't figure out the size of the thing, though. Seems large. Any help, please?.

Thank you all!.

 

[rxmd]

The Olympus 35RC is not fully functional without a battery, I presume. That's such a shame.

I just saw a couple of Konica S III at convenient price. Couldn't figure out the size of the thing, though. Seems large. Any help, please?

I remember them as being pretty big, no size advantage over a FED. Roger Hicks' site http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subscription/konica sIII.html confirms this, 145 x 88 x 70 mm.

BTGC is spot on - if you want small, your options are limited. If a FED-2 with an Industar-26 is "bulky" even the usual 1970 compact suspects (Canonet GIII-QL17, Minolta Hi-Matic 7, Olympus 35 RC/RD, Yashica Electro 35GX, ...) might be on the big side. The bartender's site has a picture of an Olympus 35 RD against a Leica M3:

(from this page: http://www.cameraquest.com/olyrd.htm)

Now the FED-2 and the Leica are pretty much the same size, so you get an idea of the degree of compactness that you'll get out of this, or rather the limits of it.

You would be better off looking for some of the really compact cameras (Olympus XA, Minox 35GT, Rollei 35 - the latter two don't have a rangefinder) and of those the Olympus is clearly the cheapest and most fully-featured. I'd say just spend a while looking for an XA.

You could also look for some of the better early 1980s autofocus cameras; the Olympus Stylus Epic / mju-II is a typical example, even though again you'd have to look for a while to find one for $50.

 

[Dana B.]

Try one of the Canonet QL series (17, 25, etc.). Many sell for under $50. You may have to buy a Wein cell battery to replace the mercury 625.

 

[Vostok]

I remember them as being pretty big, no size advantage over a FED. Roger Hicks' site http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subscription/konica sIII.html confirms this, 145 x 88 x 70 mm.

BTGC is spot on - if you want small, your options are limited. If a FED-2 with an Industar-26 is "bulky" even the usual 1970 compact suspects (Canonet GIII-QL17, Minolta Hi-Matic 7, Olympus 35 RC/RD, Yashica Electro 35GX, ...) might be on the big side. The bartender's site has a picture of an Olympus 35 RD against a Leica M3:

(from this page: http://www.cameraquest.com/olyrd.htm)

Now the FED-2 and the Leica are pretty much the same size, so you get an idea of the degree of compactness that you'll get out of this, or rather the limits of it.

You would be better off looking for some of the really compact cameras (Olympus XA, Minox 35GT, Rollei 35 - the latter two don't have a rangefinder) and of those the Olympus is clearly the cheapest and most fully-featured. I'd say just spend a while looking for an XA.

You could also look for some of the better early 1980s autofocus cameras; the Olympus Stylus Epic / mju-II is a typical example, even though again you'd have to look for a while to find one for $50.

I understand, Olympus XA is great but the only one I could find was $120 and had many scratches on its body. I will keep looking for one at a more reasonable price.

I've been looking all around for a Minox 35 for about ten months with no success. It has never been a popular camera in Argentina (and it's not a rangefinder). I'm willing to pay up to $120 for one in good condition.

Rollei 35s are out of the question due to their price and that it's too difficult (almost impossible) for me to get batteries for them here in Argentina.

Dana, will I have exposure problems to solve if I use the cell battery on the Canonets?.

 

[uinku]

Just take your time - these things turn up eventually. Having to buy something RIGHT NOW is almost always a bad idea. If you have time until September, just continue looking.

rxmd, did you mention September as a arbitrary time in the future, or because it's in the autumn? I noticed prices for film cameras have gone up and wonder if it's because of seasonal (summer) demand, or an overall trend.

 

[rxmd]

rxmd, did you mention September as a arbitrary time in the future, or because it's in the autumn? I noticed prices for film cameras have gone up and wonder if it's because of seasonal (summer) demand, or an overall trend.

I mentioned September because the OP mentioned it 🙂
But there is certainly a seasonal trend, such as people picking up stuff for Christmas.

 

[Vostok]

Still looking for a nice Olympus XA at the right price.

Thank you all for your help! =)

 

[pb908]

get a manual one, yashica lynx 1000 is agood example.
Canonet, olympus rc/rd, fed 2, lynx 14, all work without batteries.
For the light meter, if you have android/iphone, i believe a lot apps are available in the market to use your phone as lightmeter

 

[Vostok]

get a manual one, yashica lynx 1000 is agood example.
Canonet, olympus rc/rd, fed 2, lynx 14, all work without batteries.
For the light meter, if you have android/iphone, i believe a lot apps are available in the market to use your phone as lightmeter

Olympus rc/rd are quite tempting since I heard you can use hearing aid batteries as a replacement for the original ones.

So, It's either an Olympus rc/rd or an XA. I'll keep on looking for one of those.

Yesterday I found a Yashica 35me with a Hyuga 202 flash for $21. I'm getting it. 🙂

 

[2WK]

Canon A35F.

I have one as a backup for my m6. It is all auto exposure, but full manual focus. Nice 40mm 2.8 lens. It also is the first canon to have a built in flash. And it is a super flash! I think it is the last rangefinder canon made. Oh, and I got it for $9 including shipping on ebay!