Black paint LEICAFLEX SL

The SL and the SL2 are the best viewfinder SLR's ever. I have F2's and 3's, a 5 and the SL's finder is the nicest.
 
Oh my gosh I think I'm on an Leicaflex kick now. I just purchased a pristine black SL.
I may sell the others off and keep this one.
 
I see a ton of batteries out there for the Leicaflex and even more on eBay.
What do you recommend I get for it? The last one I bought still had a PX-13 in it.
 
Vobluda said:
I cant agree with that, owning both SL and Fujica I dare to say that the Fujica ST801 and ST901 are better.
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Maybe your SL prism has aged too much :) . Never used the Fujicas so can't compare. I've heard they are ok however I don't believe that the Fujicas have a complete microprism screen and therefore for me the SL is more suitable.
 
nobbylon said:
Michael,
the SL is a compact compaired to my F5!
j
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:)
John, I know, I sometimes make fun of my father's F5 and call it "the cupboard"
When you compare it to a Barnack or an Oly, it's kind of unbelievable that they all shoot the same film format.
Of course, the abilities of the F5 are something else...
 
The F5 is a wonderful camera but after owning an F6 there is no comparison for me.
I'm not sure what it is about the AF on the F6 but I believe you could put a seized up lens on it and it would brute force it back into action.
 
steveclem said:
Because the R6.2 is the pinnacle of modern mechanical cameras. Everybody bangs on about the viewfinder of the SL series as if that's the holy grail.....yeah, ok, that's all you need right?
SL's are lovely old cameras,meanwhile R series fit so much better in the hands, but those clumpng R8's and R9's are just a fat,ugly pig with suspect electronics. The R6.2 was as far as Leica could go with an SLR.
Listen to the shutter on the R6.2, a gentle purr as it ticks off the micro-seconds before release, lovely.
I think the SL is a fantastic, old mechanical work but it's like comparing a tractor to a cafe racer.
There is only so much snobbery directed at the Minolta side of Leica that can be tolerated without response. As if Minolta made complete bag of ****e cameras. Ooh la la.:bang:

Anyway, that's a shiny beauty you have there Nobby,, almost as nice as my SRT 101b,I love mechanical cameras me.
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I would take a Leicaflex over an R6 just to get away from the shutter lag of the R. Add to that the great, big, high magnification viewfinder, and the effective braking of the Leicaflex cameras, which allows you to shoot a stop or two slower, and the reason to opt for an R comes down to weight and the meter, but these are really non-issues, in my opinion. The Leicaflex SL weighs only 120 grams (about two ounces) more then an R6, and the Leicaflex SL meters accurately down to hand held levels (I've metered down to 1/15).
 
I have two SLs (one chrome, one black) and an R8. All three are great. I like my friend's R6 as well: it's nice and light, but doesn't have quite the feel (or the mass) of the SL or R8.

The SL was my high school dream camera, the R8 my "mid life crisis" dream camera. I couldn't afford either when they were new in that day. They are part of my "working nostalgia collection"—cameras I wanted in the day, and either had then or could only fantasize about. The 'Flex SL and the R8 turn out to be every bit as great as I'd always fantasized they were.

I just remember that in the fantasy they were much lighter ... Or was it that I was much younger? :)

G
 
I'm a new black SL2-MOT owner. Only paid $279.00 at Adorama, but the prism has issues and I think this camera became a shelf queen because of its wonky meter. I ended up buying a black SL2 as a donor camera that displays mucho heavy wear, but it has a clean prism and a working meter. Last week sent both bodies to Sherry with instructions to build me a fresh camera from the two. I anxiously wait for my "new" camera.

The SL2-MOT otherwise is like a camera that has not been used in 40 years. I own a F3P and I would agree with John that the SL2 VF'er is better. I also own a R8 and would say the SL2 VF'er again is better. The shutter on a SL2 is kinda quiet and nicely damped. For some unknown reason I find that the SL2 VF'er avoids the vague focus that I experience on other SLR's when shooting wides like a 28.

Cal
 
nobbylon said:
Cal, try an F6 with manual focus wides! Even better than the SL.
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John,

Next month my gal is giving me the money to buy a D3X so I can cover her fashion blog. Partially due to you I got the SL/SL2 bug. I can tell you that 1975 styling and straight forward simplicity reminds me of art school in the seventies and my old Nikon F2.

Thanks for the heads up on a F6.

Cal
 
Tom A said:
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I had one for many years - but it is a bit heavy to lug around. This was a fairly scarce version SL Mot Black Paint. At one time it was given to one of the founding fathers of LHSA and about 15-17 years ago I got it. Used it quite a bit, mainly for Macro stuff with the 60f2.8, the Apo Elmarit 100f2.8 and also with the Elmar 100f4.0 - and of course with the 180f3.4 Apo Telyt. Last year I gave it a friend in Japan as I picked up a R6 - which has a better meter.
The Leicaflex SL Mot is probably the best built of any 60's SLR's. Everything is over dimensioned and with that motor (10 AA batteries) - it would tear through a film in no time flat. Only problem is that if anything goes wrong with it - it is a nightmare to fix!
Enjoy your black beauty - still one of the best viewfinders made in an SLR.
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Snap!!! Although I think my SL MOT is black chrome, not back paint. 60 2.8 is great as is 21mm SA...also have a 560 Telyt which is another handful.

Camera fine but motor dead, well I think it is and don't know if I can be bothered to have it mended (by whom in UK I wonder?).

It is a great (and rare) camera built to what appear to be industrial or military standards!
 
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