Current Rolleiflex CLA Cost?

[david.elliott]

I would have sent mine to Krikor too and many weeks ago I sent him an email asking if I could send him my recently acquired E3 for a checkup. I got a form bounce back from his address promising a reply but I never heard back from him. Then I read some rather uncomplimentary things on APUG and decided to send it to Essex Camera as reported above in post #65.

It took exactly 5 weeks to come back but they've done a beautiful job with it. It's not the first time I've used Essex so I'm not really surprised at the quality of the work but they clearly took note of my comments and acted on them. Essex is not a famous name like Fleenor or Maralian but they are very competent (and apparently have a good supply of spare parts). I had no qualms about sending my new-looking E3 to them and I'm very happy with the results. The cost was $170 including return shipping.

good to know. thanks!

 

[hyatt]

Does anyone have contact information for Karl Ehlers? I'd love to have him take a look at my newly acquired Rolleiflex Automat Model 1.

 

[bugmenot]

It will cost $200 here in Vancouver.

I would highly appreciate to know where in Vancouver I could take my Rolleiflex as well. Seems like a reasonable price, and I know there are a lot of good camera technicians around town. I just have a hard time finding them. :bang:

 

[jwicaksana]

May someone please refer me to a Rollei technician in Asia region? Preferably in Singapore? Thank you.

 

[craygc]

May someone please refer me to a Rollei technician in Asia region? Preferably in Singapore? Thank you.

Drop a line to Jimmy Koh at sales@kohscamera.com and ask for his brothers contact details (in Singapore) for Rollei repairs. Both Jimmy (whose in the US) and his brother were factory trained repairmen.

 

[Crazy Fedya]

+1 for Jimmy Koh.

 

[jwicaksana]

Drop a line to Jimmy Koh at sales@kohscamera.com and ask for his brothers contact details (in Singapore) for Rollei repairs. Both Jimmy (whose in the US) and his brother were factory trained repairmen.

+1 for Jimmy Koh.

Many thanks! 😉

 

[sharpey]

hey jwicaksana, would you mind letting me know if you get a reply from kohscamera... may need my 2.8c serviced here in Singpaore also.

Cheers.

 

[mccolalx]

I just got a white face 2.8f back from Krimar. It had been sitting for about 30 years in a less than ideal storage place and needed about everything that could be done to it done to it (CLA wise)...shutter wouldn't fire, all kinds of fungus in the viewing lens, meter wouldn't work, etc.
I got it back from Krikor very quickly, and even with a new maxwell screen, it was incredibly reasonable. Plus, Krikor is great to deal with...super communicative and just an all around pleasant person.
The camera is like brand new and operates flawlessly. I'll definitely send more stuff to him.

 

[jwicaksana]

hey jwicaksana, would you mind letting me know if you get a reply from kohscamera... may need my 2.8c serviced here in Singpaore also.

Cheers.

Hi sharpey, I haven't wrote to Jimmy simply cos my new Rolleicord turned out to work just fine. As for Singapore Rollei tech, many recommend Mr. Philip Tay, who was factory trained. Maybe he's Jimmy's brother?

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Rollei Repair in Washington DC

Rollei Repair in Washington DC

I don't know if he was factory trained, but I recently had my 2.8E overhauled at Pro Photo here in Washington DC. It had a complete cleaning, shutter lube and adjust, film transport lube and adjust, focusing mechanism lube and adjust, and the lenses adjusted to synch focus, for $450. He had it done in about 3 - 3 1/2 weeks. Even though it was a bit more than what some others have paid, the fast turnaround and (for me as I'm local) no shipping made up the difference. I think his price is probably within the ballpark, as he quotes the same price as Harry Fleenor and Kirkor for installing the Maxwell screen, which I may have him do come christmastime. Pro Photo's URL is

http://www.prophoto-dc.com/

 

[peter_n]

I think Fleenor and Maralian are at the high end of the market in terms of pricing and I'm not quite sure why they're so expensive. There are a number of highly competent technicians who charge a lot less.

 

[f16sunshine]

Karl Ehlers....

Technically he is retired. That said I have had two Rolleiflex overhauls done by Karl Ehlers. He lives not far from Seattle as I do so I actually picked the 2.8D up in person. Great guy and, he has all the factory calibration equiptment right there in his home shop. If you are in the pacific NW try to find him. I think he is among the best you can find. Very reasonable fee as well!

 

[Argenticien]

Essex Camera have just done done my 2.8E for USD 186 + return shipping. That's their standard CLA price of 160 + 26 extra for some aspect of this camera's repairs that counts as being beyond a CLA. (Presumably, the repairs of two fiddly little pins.) A very good deal for some high-quality work, I think. I'd recommend them. They also did well with a Voigtlander Vitessa (yikes!) that I sent a few months ago.

See this thread for discussion of what was wrong with the 2.8E, and especially post No. 22 saying which problems got fixed (basically all except the meter and the screen/fresnel).

--Dave

 

[peter_n]

Essex Camera also did a terrific job on my 3.5E3 at $170 including shipping. See post #83 above. The camera is like new.

 

[DerekF]

Great timing for this thread to come back because I have to send my Rolleiflex to get checked out for a shutter problem. I contacted both Krikor and Fleenor (who had done an overhaul on this Rolleiflex a few years ago for its previous owner) and both of them said they couldn't guarantee the lubricants would work in sub-zero temperatures due to the lubricants they use.

Can anyone recommend someone who might be able to get the Rolleiflex to work in cold temperatures?

 

[Dan Daniel]

My recent dealing with Harry Fleenor lead me to believe that he has a flat rate system for basic services. I had some focus system problems that need adjustment. WHile he has it apart I figured this was ag ood time to get the wind system overhauled and checked out. This is on a 2.8C Xenotar.

Focus system overhaul- $189
transport overhaul- $134

I haven't received the camera back, but it certainly won't be worse than the poor work Krimar Photo did on my focus system, along with $150 of unauthorized work.

 

[peter_n]

Did you not send it back to Krimar Photo to fix the focus problem?

 

[Dan Daniel]

Did you not send it back to Krimar Photo to fix the focus problem?

It came back with worse focus slop/backlash and with increased movement and noise during film winding, as if the lens board or focus rails were loose. After that, I gave up on him and sent it to Fleenor. Krimar may be excellent on F models, but I wouldn't recommend him for a 2.8C in any form. And doing unauthorized work is not the right way to run a business. I hope others continue to have success with him, but I did not.

 

[Gumby]

YIKES... your total investment in that particular camrea must be, ummmm, a lot.