Any here use their new $90 Bessa L?

[Huss]

Shooting the Bessa L with an adapted Minox Minotar 35 2.8 and Fuji C200:

 

[Imagesfromobjects]

Wait, so did your cameras break the same way mine did?
My replacement seems to work great, but it's only had one roll of film through it so far...
The shutter lock out is the same as my Nikon FM2n - lever has to be out. I really like the sharp instantaneous feeling shutter release on the Bessa.

Seems so. It arrived, body had some wear, but cocking and shutter release both seemed on point. I loaded a roll and before I even got past frame 2. something didnt feel right. Like the advance was slipping and/or the film was building up in the take-up spool.

Took the film out, gave it a look-see, and yep. The advance sometimes would move in sync with the teeth, but if you so much as touched it, it clearly had no tension. So, no matter how you loaded the film - I tried MULTIPLE different shananigans - and wound it, it would pop off once the teeth pulled it through to the point where the take up was unable to.... take it up. Tried pre-tensioning it on the take-up spool, but there's no tension.

Sucks. Anyway, it's going back. I don't want to mess with it, and don't want to have the seller try to stall on my refund, er, I mean, try to "fix" it. while I twiddle my thumbs.

Pics attached. I'm guessing this is a dsign flaw, I found another thread on this foum where the guy had the same issue. Maybe not every model, but prevalent. Possibly related to the "end of the roll" syndrome? I don't exactly know.

 

[Imagesfromobjects]

Shooting the Bessa L with an adapted Minox Minotar 35 2.8 and Fuji C200:

ARGH, you're killing me posting these. So bummed this didn't work out. Maybe I'll try to find one in working order, but this gave me flashbacks to my days of Zenits endlessly crapping out, so I'm a bit gun shy about wonky gear. The take-up mechanism seems super fragile on these. The shutter, like I said, seems great and I love the feel of the camera, but I have enough broken cameras serving as decoration right now, so I'll probably skip trying out another L.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

It went to Chicago with me. It gave as accurate exposures as with S16 meterless M4-2.

 

[Imagesfromobjects]

It went to Chicago with me. It gave as accurate exposures as with S16 meterless M4-2.

Nice!

25mm?

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Thank you.
It is 28 1.9.

 

[Doug]

ARGH, you're killing me posting these. So bummed this didn't work out. Maybe I'll try to find one in working order, but this gave me flashbacks to my days of Zenits endlessly crapping out, so I'm a bit gun shy about wonky gear. The take-up mechanism seems super fragile on these. The shutter, like I said, seems great and I love the feel of the camera, but I have enough broken cameras serving as decoration right now, so I'll probably skip trying out another L.

Have you considered a Bessa T? Similar, but produced later, with "improvements"... Still no viewfinder, but it sports a rangefinder!