Canon Finder compatiability

[Alan B]

Hello,
I've been lured into the world of Rangefinder Cameras. I've fallen in love with my Canonet QL-17 and have recently purchased an old Canon II B.

Can someone tell me if there are certain specs on 'finders'. The II B I purchased has a Canon Serenar 50mm f1.9 lens. I was wondering if I would be able to get a finder that would fit on both cameras? Did Canon keep the fitting/housing the same for all the II / III / and IV series of rangefinders?

Can someone recommend a certain finder?

Thanks!

 

[Sonnar Brian]

The finders made for the Series V and VI cameras use a special parallax compensating mechanism that connects to the camera body. So any finder that has manual correction should work, ie a lever that you set separately from focusing the camera.

 

[Alan B]

Thanks Brian. Any thought on universal finders like this one... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140337827358&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Would I be correct in assuming that prime finders (is that what they'd be called?) would be better?

 

[John Shriver]

Very expensive collectible due to the rare 28mm adapter screwed in the front. The Leica VIOOH that is a copy of can be had for abour $50. Now, the Leica TUVOO 28mm adapter is about $350...

These finders are very accurate, and have very sharp frame edges. For careful composition they can be good. But by the 90mm setting, the image is getting very small, and is ridiculously small ate 135mm.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

That is SOME finder!

I am not too picky, and will mix and match finders from my Kodak Retina or Argus C44 with the Canon and Contax. As long as the finder is over the lens, parallax is not off at these distances. I would look for a TEWE zoomfinder for a one-size-fits-all. Not too expensive.

 

[dexdog]

I agree with Brian, the Tewe would be a good choice, as would the Nikon zooming finder. Neither are too expensive, and while kinda chunky, are smaller than the Canon with the 28mm attachment. Not a bad price for the Canon though, given that the finder itself often sells for $300 or more.

 

[Alan B]

Thanks for the advice everyone.