a Moskva 5 review

[chrisf]

I bought a very good example of a model 5. I paid up for it but it looked hardly used. I have put more wear on it in one year than it had for the previous 50.

I like the camera but when I use it as a 6x9 it is hard to get a sharp negative across the entire frame because there is no locking mechanism for the lens. It seems the bellows being closed so much prevents the lens from being parallel to the film plane.

I like it and should take it more often on outings.

 

[oftheherd]

I bought a very good example of a model 5. I paid up for it but it looked hardly used. I have put more wear on it in one year than it had for the previous 50.

I like the camera but when I use it as a 6x9 it is hard to get a sharp negative across the entire frame because there is no locking mechanism for the lens. It seems the bellows being closed so much prevents the lens from being parallel to the film plane.

I like it and should take it more often on outings.

I've noticed with mine I often need to pull it out and with maybe a little down pressure for something to click. I still have a front lens with tilts though. But if I am careful, I can ensure it is straight up and down.

 

[spanish_inquisition]

The first time I used mine it was a huge pain in the neck. The shutter would always get stuck and there would be significant shake visible in the photos. I sent it for a CLA to Jurgen (the Folder guy) and now it works quite well. I think a lot of the problems that people encounter with Moskva5 are due to the fact that these cameras are freaking old and most likely rusty somewhere inside. Once you learn to deal with their quirks, they are fun.

<br>

 

[smthopr]

Welcome Theburk and thanks for your insights.

As a photographer that never experienced the 6x9 format, I would like to ask the folks participating in this thread, something like "what is the life with the 6x9 format".

Of course that for one film per year, there is no much need to detail. But I would like to hear from those among you that use or used this format quite often, what subjects do you use it for, do you actually may do big enlargements out of it, and how do you manage all the related costs.

Cheers,
Ruben

Hi Ruben,

I received a Москва 5 a couple months ago as a gift and just developed my 1st roll from it. Woo Hoo, it works without light leak and the shutter is accurate enough for color negative. The rangefinder could use some adjusting though. (yes, I'll get to Ruben in a moment)

As a comparison, I am used to shooting 6x9 with a pair of Fuji GW690 rangefinders. (to see examples of the fuji go to http://www.fujirangefinder.com/folder.php?id=118 )

My conclusion after one roll through the Moskva 5 is that the images are not really good enough (usually) to compare with my Kodak Retina IIIc which costs much less per frame to shoot and is smaller and easier to use. The reason for this is that the Москва и-24 10.5cm lens is not the sharpest tool in the shed and the 1/250th maximum shutter speed is really not fast enough to handhold this camera and receive the maximum benefit from the 6x9 film. If I'm going to lug a tripod around, I'll probably use my Fuji GW690 cameras as their lenses are superb and I already own them. The Москва и-24 10.5cm lens does have a unique bokeh and overall low contrast foggy look that may look quite cool on some dreamy portraits or other shots with the lens at F3.5 or F4.0, if I can adjust the rangefinder to that type of accuracy.

Now for Ruben, I like the 6x9 format as it is capable of making images that are much more detailed and finer grained than 35mm. For landscape work where detail is desired the difference if visible easily on a print of 8x10 or larger.

That said, shooting 6x9 is expensive. I spend about $1 every time a press the shutter button for film and processing. (that is film only, no prints). I do scan on a Nikon LS8000 film scanner which isn't cheap either. And the results are now just a little bit better than one can get with a quality 35mm full frame digital camera...

The main advantage of the 6x9 over digital ( I have a Canon 5d) is that I can use color negative film in the 6x9 camera and record a very large dynamic range with a single exposure and color negative excels at long night time exposures which I like to make. There are some night shots at my Fuji Rangefinder site,
http://www.fujirangefinder.com/folder.php?id=118

That all said, if anyone knows how to adjust the rangfinder on the Moskva 5 let me know🙂 Maybe I'll try it with a tripod and see it at it's best.

 

[CuS]

Mee too - how is your Moskva-5

Mee too - how is your Moskva-5

I too just won an auction from the same fellow - very excited to get the camera.

How has your experience been with yours?

I have a lovely Moskva 5 that I bought from eBayer 'Grizzly Bear' that I'm sad to say I haven't got around to using yet. I bought an Iskra at the same time and that has commanded my attention with it's inique qualities. The Moskva is slowly working it's way up the 'please use me' list and should hit the start line any day now!

I'm crossing my fingers that it has no light leaks and no other issues! :angel:

 

[FallisPhoto]

ok im new but i felt it would be good to contribute a a review. well recently i went to france, and i bought a moskva 5 about 2 weeks before going, because i wanted a 6 x 9 range finder, as far as 6x9 goes i have an old ziess maximar with a 6x9 back, but it was too ardous to switch backs all the time, so i gave in and because i couldnt afford a ikonta c i got a moskva, i was apprehensive, i got it off ebay but the pictures seemed good, and id read decent things, but of course it all depends on weather you get a good one or not. fortunately i got a good one, it smelled of boot polish and the leatherette got a little tattered in my backpack (i know i know horrible, but it will be getting reapoulstered soon) but all in all its a solidly built camera, it had some filler putty and bubbling on the plastic part of the foreward rangefinder assembly, and a screw replacing the button on the 6x9 frame counter window, and it also smelled of boot polish, all of which frightend me at first. but i found the range finder was very clear, not bright enough but clear, and seemed accurate (i shot at a high f-stop just to be safe but because im used to large format i shoot as high as is reasonably possible) but after developing my pictures the negatives look great, havent printed them yet, but the focus is sharp, a decent problem was the viewfinder, as a good portion of the viewfinder was blocked by the foreward part of the rangefinder. it wasnt hard to work around though. the biggest problem was definately the film advance, the winder has double exposure lock, which locked the film advance after only advancing a full 6x6 frame, not 6x9 i havent figured out how to resolve this but you can force it onward to the next 6x9 picture fairly easily. the second largest problem was fairly common from what i understand, light leaks, it appears they mostly came from the frame window, so basicly if i kept it closed i wouldnt have had trouble. aside from the back having a little trouble fully locking in, but that was easily remedied. i do reccomend it as a fairly cheap alternative to the ikonta ($50-60 usd for a good moskva vs $400-500 usd for a ikonta c)

When buying a Moskva, one thing to really be sure to check is whether the rangefinder is tracking horizontally. If it is tracking diagonally, it is repairable, but it is such a long and tedious job that you'll be sick of the sight of it for months afterward.

 

[oftheherd]

...

I do scan on a Nikon LS8000 film scanner which isn't cheap either. And the results are now just a little bit better than one can get with a quality 35mm full frame digital camera...

...

Just read your post. I hope you are referring to your method of scanning being only a little better than 35mm full frame digital.

I don't know that anyone believes digital has bested film in any format. I am sure no digital P&S or DSLR can touch any film MF. Especially 6x9, there is just too much negative there.

If you can't beat full frame digital 35mm with MF negative of any size, I would respectfully suggest you need to double check your technique with MF.

Again, I don't know if you are only referring to the Moskva. I have problems with lens standard sturdyness with mine. But my Zeiss 6x9 with novar lens, or any of the press cameras in 6x9, such as the Mamiyas and their superp lenses (and I only have 6x7 backs), simply can't be put in the same league with small digitals.

 

[Spider67]

Welcome and thanks fro starting that topic!
My Experience great for landscape and medium range....used it once close to its minimum range and parallax ate away 1/5 of the frame. But i'll find a remedy.
Does anyboy know how to calibrate the Moskva 5's RF if necessary?

 

[FallisPhoto]

Does anyboy know how to calibrate the Moskva 5's RF if necessary?

Yes. http://www.dantestella.com/technical/superfix.html I do hope yours is aligned vertically -- because if it isn't, you're not going to like doing the fix. I repaired a Mokva 2 with the rangefinder tracking diagonally once and it was two or three months before I wanted to even look at it again.

The problem is that you can't just "run the thumbwheel back and forth," as he says in the article. You have to reassemble the swing arm first. Then you can run the thubwheel back and forth. Well, there are a lot of teeth on that gear, and all the tiny little screws are painted black, so it is hard to see to do that. Add to that, the fact that the gears want to fall out when you disassemble the swing arm, and then you have to start over. It can easily turn into a full day job.

 

[ZeissFan]

Without sounding really vicious, I'm sorry, but I had to give up trying to read this.

All words are lower case. No paragraph marks. It makes it nearly unreadable. I'll try again when I have more time, because I'm interested in what you have to say.

 

[smthopr]

Just read your post. I hope you are referring to your method of scanning being only a little better than 35mm full frame digital.

I don't know that anyone believes digital has bested film in any format. I am sure no digital P&S or DSLR can touch any film MF. Especially 6x9, there is just too much negative there.

If you can't beat full frame digital 35mm with MF negative of any size, I would respectfully suggest you need to double check your technique with MF.

Again, I don't know if you are only referring to the Moskva. I have problems with lens standard sturdyness with mine. But my Zeiss 6x9 with novar lens, or any of the press cameras in 6x9, such as the Mamiyas and their superp lenses (and I only have 6x7 backs), simply can't be put in the same league with small digitals.

Yes, I was referring to the Moskva 5 in my comparison. And handheld.

I can beat the 35mm FF digital with my Fuji 6x9 on a tripod pretty easily, but not by as much as one would have guessed. (I know good technique 🙂 ) If I were shooting 4.5x6 color negative film, I'm not so sure it would beat the 35mm FF digital in overall appearance.

I know shooting reversal film, it's easier to beat the digital cameras, but it just doesn't offer enough exposure range for the subjects I like to shoot. And it's awful tricky to use a grad filter on a rangefinder...

 

[snip]

Well having read this thread I have gone ahead and bought a Moskva 5 from a dealer in Ukraine - Paid $125 with shipping, a bit steep I know but it was in red leatherette and I just love red cameras. I look forward to getting it, Widest roll film I have done yet is 6x12 on my Monorail and I was quite pleased with that.

Are these things easy to carry in a pocket or satchel? I understand they can be a bit hard to handhold? I usually managed 1/30 and 1/15 on a good day with my Bessa so I am hoping I can do some handhelds with this one.

This will be my first folder, well if you don't count my large format field camera which I never really use now I have the monorail, I am one of those people crazy enough to take a monorail into the field.

the wife won't be happy, as this will be my 16th camera. 🙂

//Jan

 

[FallisPhoto]

And it's awful tricky to use a grad filter on a rangefinder...

Short of using a sheet of ground glass on the film plane prior to inserting a fresh roll of film in order to see where the graduated part of a grad filter would go on the horizon, I can't think of a way to do this. How would you do it? There are some kinds of filters that I just don't use with rangefinders, and an ND grad is one of them. On the other hand, there are other types of filters that will bring out sky details and I use those instead.

 

[mh2000]

Good luck snip! Hope it is all adjusted (mine certainly wasn't!). Had mine out shooting today though... and man! these things are really big and uncomfortable to hold. The camera is big and heavy, carrying it is a pain if you don't have a case (I do and it makes it no worse than an SLR), there are no real ways to attach a neck strap.

You will find that everything is placed in the wrong spot. The RF lens/arm blocks part of the VF and the VF is small and squinty and way away from the lens so parallax is going to be an issue.

There is something likable about the camera though 🙂

 

[snip]

Good luck snip! Hope it is all adjusted (mine certainly wasn't!). Had mine out shooting today though... and man! these things are really big and uncomfortable to hold. The camera is big and heavy, carrying it is a pain if you don't have a case (I do and it makes it no worse than an SLR), there are no real ways to attach a neck strap.

You will find that everything is placed in the wrong spot. The RF lens/arm blocks part of the VF and the VF is small and squinty and way away from the lens so parallax is going to be an issue.

There is something likable about the camera though 🙂

Well they say it has been adjusted and that

Uncomfortable to hold and heavy you say? Quirky and with things in all the wrong places? Sounds like just the right kind of equipment for me!

It will come with a case.

//Jan

 

[CuS]

New Moskva skin (for the later 4 and 5)

New Moskva skin (for the later 4 and 5)

Well,

I ended up with a late moskva-4 with the moskva-5 styled top plate and I've fallen in love with it.

Got the rangefinder dialed in and the negs are awesome (I'll post some later). Now to tackle the diagonal tracking issue - must be strong . . .

Anyway, mine needs new skin and this guy outa japan sells new cowhide coverings.

http://aki-asahi.com/store/html/moskva-5/index.php

I ordered both the blue and black (he should make red too - perfect for this FSU camera)!

 

[FallisPhoto]

Now to tackle the diagonal tracking issue - must be strong . . .

Yes, you must. Good luck and remember to take a few breaks while you are doing it. Not a job for the impatient.

 

[CuS]

Moskva-5 Focus Dialed in!

Moskva-5 Focus Dialed in!

Yes, you must. Good luck and remember to take a few breaks while you are doing it. Not a job for the impatient.

Well I took the plunge and finally got all the focus kinks out of the Moskva-5 (I actually also acquired another 5 (for parts) as well as two wonderfully functional and CLA'd Moskva-2s.

I think I like the ergonomics of the Moskva-2s better that the 5. But, here are some results with my Moskva-5 shooting Fuji Acros and souped in Rodinal 1:25.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/colusite/3003868805/

I'm pretty happy with it and I'll post some more recent close shots where focusing ability of the camera will be more aparent.

Thanks!

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

hey, anyone with sample images to share from this camera ?

 

[oftheherd]

I'm sure some do. I will have to look since I haven't used mine that much. But I do have a roll in it now that I expect to finish by this weekend. Developing it? Who knows. 😀