A Contax II.5 or a III with a lumpectomy...

[wlewisiii]

I've had a user Contax III for sometime & recently had it CLA'd by Eddie Smolov turning it into a very nice, smooth, camera. However the meter didn't work & I've always found the lump ugly. OTOH, I kept getting outbid on user Contax II camera bodies.

Well, recently another RFF member won a Contax II that turned out to have a few too many issues. A wee bit later, he & I had agreed on a price for the parts to change the top of my III into a II. There is nothing particularly rare about the Contax III or historically significant about this camera, so I have no problem with this hack.

It's a pretty straightforward change. Only a handful of screws need to be accounted for. I've attached some truely dreadful phonecam snaps of the process but I'm happy. I have a nice recently CLA'd user Contax II & a collapsible Sonnar for my daily carry camera.

William

 

[raid]

Cool! Now change my IIIa to a IIa!

 

[dexdog]

I have always wondered how easy doing that conversion would be. I have one III and 3 IIs, and the III hardley ever gets used because I find the metered version to be kinda ugly.

Nice job, wlewisii!

 

[colyn]

Looks good..
The Contax never looked good with that big hump setting on top..

 

[ZeissFan]

Converting a III to a II or a IIIa to a IIa (or the other way around) shouldn't be too difficult. You simply need the top deck and the appropriate rewind knob.

 

[wlewisiii]

Yep, it really was quite simple. That's one of the few pluses to the meter being non-coupled 😉

William

 

[wlewisiii]

A couple of months later & somthing went flakey with the winding knob over the weekend - it pulls up too high & looses where it's supposed to be for shutter speed selection. Doubtless I assembled something incorrectly back when I did the conversion, so off to Eddie Smolov it goes. On the plus side, it gives me an excuse to send along my J-12 for the CLA it's been needing 🙂

William

 

[shadowfox]

I always thought that the lump is ugly...
Until I own one! Man, that thing is looking good now 🙂 🙂

Btw, Mr. Smolov also rebuilt the shutter on my Contax IIIa. Just passing a word for a good camera tech.

 

[wlewisiii]

I'll gladly grant that the one on the IIIA is much nicer than the origional III - which is what mine was. I have no regrets about changing it. When I've got a II with a Tessar or Sonnar collapsible on board, that's one high performance pocket rocket 😉

Yours is beautiful though & Eddie is a wonderful fellow & an excellect tech.

William

 

[xayraa33]

man, that meter head on the III is so art deco.
it is even cooler if the meter works.

 

[Doug]

New meter cells are available... I had the dead cell in my IIIa replaced during a CLA by Steve Serota. He has a source, and the replacement cell was $45.

 

[Highway 61]

New meter cells are available... I had the dead cell in my IIIa replaced during a CLA by Steve Serota. He has a source, and the replacement cell was $45.

Actually there is one source, worldwide, for new selenium cells.

http://www.megatron.co.uk/selenium/index.html

The Contax IIIa meter cell can also be replaced, at a lower cost, with :

- a meter cell taken off a beater Kiev 4 lightmeter (the only issue is that the Kiev cell, while having the proper size, is too thick so that some metal has to be removed off the ground side with a file or a rotative abrasive disk mounted on a dremel but it's very easy, only patience is requested for that job)

- the selenium cell from a vintage Zeiss Ikon Ikophot handheld meter (the white model from the 1950's). The Ikophot and the Contax IIIa cells are 100% identical (both were made by Gossen).

For mysterious reasons most of the cells found in the Ikophot are still working with a tangible power reserve, while most of the cells in the Contax IIIa meters are now dead.

Probably because the Ikophot cells have seen less energy drain over time, with their galvas not grounded to a large, heavy metal casting.

 

[shadowfox]

I'll gladly grant that the one on the IIIA is much nicer than the origional III - which is what mine was. I have no regrets about changing it. When I've got a II with a Tessar or Sonnar collapsible on board, that's one high performance pocket rocket 😉

Yours is beautiful though & Eddie is a wonderful fellow & an excellect tech.

William

Really? I didn't know there's a difference between the two meters (III and IIIa).

You said it though, a working Contax with a Zeiss glass is just awesome. I got the above IIIa with a Sonnar 50/1.5 😀

... and the meter still works 🙂

 

[raid]

Actually there is one source, worldwide, for new selenium cells.

http://www.megatron.co.uk/selenium/index.html

The Contax IIIa meter cell can also be replaced, at a lower cost, with :

- a meter cell taken off a beater Kiev 4 lightmeter (the only issue is that the Kiev cell, while having the proper size, is too thick so that some metal has to be removed off the ground side with a file or a rotative abrasive disk mounted on a dremel but it's very easy, only patience is requested for that job)

- the selenium cell from a vintage Zeiss Ikon Ikophot handheld meter (the white model from the 1950's). The Ikophot and the Contax IIIa cells are 100% identical (both were made by Gossen).

For mysterious reasons most of the cells found in the Ikophot are still working with a tangible power reserve, while most of the cells in the Contax IIIa meters are now dead.

Probably because the Ikophot cells have seen less energy drain over time, with their galvas not grounded to a large, heavy metal casting.

My Ikophot meter still works. You are right about this part.

 

[wlewisiii]

Really? I didn't know there's a difference between the two meters (III and IIIa).

You said it though, a working Contax with a Zeiss glass is just awesome. I got the above IIIa with a Sonnar 50/1.5 😀

... and the meter still works 🙂

Yep, the prewar meter was taller, heavier & much less sensitive. Even working it can barely handle high speed films like, say, ISO 100... 😱

I have a J3, a CZJ 50/2 Sonnar (collapsible) & recently added a CZJ 50/2.8 Tessar that I love the look from. There aren't that many lenses fo the Contax but they're all great.

William

 

[raid]

I also have a I-61L in Contax mount and an Opton 50mm/1.5. The 5cm/2 Sonnar is a classic.

 

[Highway 61]

Really? I didn't know there's a difference between the two meters (III and IIIa).

The III meter uses a graphite track ; the IIIa meter has a wired galvanometer behind the cell.

What is confusing is that the Kiev 4, while getting the IIIa meter casting design style (more compact "roof" over the camera top cover), kept the mechanical design of the old Contax III meter.

So, some Contax III meters don't work any longer although their selenium cells still could, but their meters graphite tracks are worn to death. OTOH, while the galvas by themselves are not prone to failure (unless some solderings get "dry" etc), most of the IIIa meters cells are now dead. I suspect that this is because of some continuous electrical drain through the cell even with the meter hood closed, or whatever (the IIIa cells may have been gifted with less "life duration" from the beginning).

Anyway - I have a IIIa with a working and accurate meter and a IIa, and I personally favor the unmetered camera for practical use.

 

[shadowfox]

Yep, the prewar meter was taller, heavier & much less sensitive. Even working it can barely handle high speed films like, say, ISO 100... 😱

I have a J3, a CZJ 50/2 Sonnar (collapsible) & recently added a CZJ 50/2.8 Tessar that I love the look from. There aren't that many lenses fo the Contax but they're all great.

William

Well then, that explains why I don't find the meter on mine objectionable 😛

Btw, you need a J12 (or be lucky and found a real Biogon at bargain price 🙂 )

I have a black Kiev 4A that does not have the meter on top.

 

[shadowfox]

The III meter uses a graphite track ; the IIIa meter has a wired galvanometer behind the cell.

What is confusing is that the Kiev 4, while getting the IIIa meter casting design style (more compact "roof" over the camera top cover), kept the mechanical design of the old Contax III meter.

So, some Contax III meters don't work any longer although their selenium cells still could, but their meters graphite tracks are worn to death. OTOH, while the galvas by themselves are not prone to failure (unless some solderings get "dry" etc), most of the IIIa meters cells are now dead. I suspect that this is because of some continuous electrical drain through the cell even with the meter hood closed, or whatever (the IIIa cells may have been gifted with less "life duration" from the beginning).

Anyway - I have a IIIa with a working and accurate meter and a IIa, and I personally favor the unmetered camera for practical use.

Interesting technical info. Very cool how old mechanical things work.

The meter on mine works, but you're right, if I dial the ASA way too high, the meter "responds" even when the metal hood is closed.

 

[wlewisiii]

Well, I heard back from Eddie &, as always, his quote is insanely cheap. I'm getting them both done for about 1/3 of what I expected - $30. I don't know how he can afford to do such good work for so little but I'm extreamly grateful that he does.

William