Contax AX -- Is there ever a happy ending after purchase?

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mthomas

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I have had a mad fascination with the Contax AX since it came out. I love the eccentric ingenuity of its design.

But I am also aware that post-production, all available AX spares were destroyed -- so that repair parts can now only be harvested from other bodies on the used market. (And this of course presumes that a competent repair person could subsequently be found to fit them.)

Given this situation, would the purchase of an AX *for regular use* truly be an utter folly?

Thanks, Marc
 
james.liam said:
Then buy 3. One for use, one for backup and a third one for spare parts.
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Agree, a good approach. Also find someone willing and able to work on it. My AX works, but I have never used it much, and it never needed any work apart from the usual mirror slip fix. It’s a heavy beast to use all the time, but they are pretty cool. Do not expect modern AF performance either, but it does work.

Buy the cameras asap if you decide to. I got mine for <$100 but they now go for ~400+.

I’m Marty and I’m a Contaxaholic*...

*A real illness, I am coming to believe.
 
There was a time when I lusted for a Contax AX; as well as just about any other camera that bore the Contax name. What got me in to Contax cameras was a lucky purchase of a Contax 139 from the PX in Korea about 1980. I think I paid about $80 for it. I got the 50mm f/1.4 for $20. It seemed people were smart enough to know Nikon, Canon, Minolta, and even Yashica as a cheap camera. But they weren't going to be fooled by some stupid Japanese knock-off. 😀 I quickly fell in love with that camera and especially the lens.

When it died I waited a bit and got a Contax 167MT off ebay, which I still have. Always thought I would like to have the AX but didn't think I could afford one. I had plenty of other cameras and lenses so it just wouldn't have made sense. But they are really nice cameras and especially the lenses.
 
I did not have a happy ending. I enjoyed the camera, but had to fix mirror slip, which is easy. Then AF was not accurate, but it is also not difficult to adjust once you have a repair manual. But then it died. It would power on, but shutter would not fire. Sold for spares. I bought back 167MT which I once owned and sold. I would buy AX again would it cost less than 200$, but not at current prices considering the reliability record.
In general, I love Contax (due to lenses), but AX was not the only camera that failed. Aria also developed a problem (started rewinding film mid roll) and was sold for repairs. The the exposure meter in S2 failed (OK, I did not use it much anyway and it works fine without a meter). Contax G2 had a shutter issue (luckily prices went up so much that by selling “for repairs” I got back everything I paid for “good”).
 
I am also one of those people lusting for a Contax since adolescence. I remember reading the photographic press back in the early 90s when the ST was released - I was in love with that camera for a long time (and still am). People reporting faults with electronics and the high prices have kept me off buying one. I keep an eye open for an ST, RX or AX but I am not actively looking for one.
 
I've got 8 different Contax cameras and have never experienced any electronics failure or any other type of failure for that matter. The AX is from 1996 and one of the newer Contaxes. It is on the heavy side, and the focusing possibly a bit slow if you're into action photography. I think the best reason for buying into the C/Y system is those fabulous lenses.
 
I am also a big fan of the Contax SLR line of cameras and lenses.

Never had any problems with mine and I've dropped my 139Q on the concrete more than once.

That being said, I've always bought mine in pristine condition from Japan and I'll keep buying them because they are an absolute joy to use.
Just bought another mint ST a couple days ago.

You can't beat the luxurious feel of these cameras and the rendering of the lenses. I am so grateful, because there's no way I could ever afford these back in the day.
Enjoy them while you can !
 
littleearth said:
I am also a big fan of the Contax SLR line of cameras and lenses.

Never had any problems with mine and I've dropped my 139Q on the concrete more than once.

That being said, I've always bought mine in pristine condition from Japan and I'll keep buying them because they are an absolute joy to use.
Just bought another mint ST a couple days ago.

You can't beat the luxurious feel of these cameras and the rendering of the lenses. I am so grateful, because there's no way I could ever afford these back in the day.
Enjoy them while you can !
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It occurred to me as I read this thread again, that no one (myself included) mentioned the horrible covering many of the Contax and Yashica cameras had. I know coverings can be bought but I just lived with it. It didn't affect the operation of the cameras or lenses.
 
I've never had any of the pre-Kyocera models, but I had a Konica T4 for a short while. The coverings of those cameras were all shrinking and leaving a gap around them. It was not a pretty sight. I changed the covering on the T4 before I sold it, I was fed up peering through a very dark viewfinder.
 
Count me in the 'lusting over but reluctant' camp. Early in my photographic journey my father gave me his old RTS I and a pair of lenses—it had seen better days (a loose collimating lens in the finder, and something dangling in front of the shutter, neither of which I've fixed yet, two decades on). Back then Contax was still producing 35 SLRs (Aria, N1, RTSIII, etc) and boy did I ever want one, and still do. I really love odd idiosyncratic cameras, and these are just gorgeous.

Definitely thought of picking another up (albeit not an AX) but since moving away from 35 SLRs can't really justify the surprisingly high secondhand costs, unless one dropped in my lap again. I've got enough Zeiss glass for other systems, too.

As for repair, honestly I've made a few attempts at reaching out to techs to get the RTS fixed and either don't get an answer, or hesitate to work on anything modern Contax. I can imagine something as bizarre as the AX would be more difficult to. Very strange that spares were destroyed rather than liquidated to technicians.

On the covering—the leatherette on the RTS is very smooth and hard, and shrunk but didn't turn tacky or crumble like some others of the era. The worst I've come across was always that very thin rubber coating used on early consumer AF bodies in the late 80s-early 90s, like the N8008 and such. Those would turn to glue.
 
The AX was one of the worst camera purchases I ever made in 30 years, which includes the Leica M8 and M9.
I traded in my trusty RX and a handful of cash for an AX, which was new. I had it for less than a month and one morning, before an important shoot, it was simply dead. Battery change, nothing. Another battery, nothing.
I went back to the shop where I bought it, showed the guy who sold it to me the problem and he asked me what I wanted to do. The Contax rep was there and asked me what it would take for me to stay with his brand. I said that I wanted to trade it all in on a Nikon F3HP with MD4, a bunch of lenses, a couple bricks of film, and the balance in cash.
When it comes to the AX, just run the other way.

Phil Forrest
 
I’ve got four Contax cameras — 167MT purchased in the mid-80’s in Hong Kong, a couple of RTS II cameras that are problematic (one fires as soon as the film is advanced), and an Aria that, like the 167MT, works just fine. I paid less that 100 Euros at the photo fair in Bievres, France for the Aria because the button that lets you change exposure modes is missing; I can overcome that with a toothpick. I really, really like the red LEDs in the RTS II cameras, much preferable to LCD that are harder to see. All in all, I am a fan of the Contax line and lenses (25mm, 28mm, 50mm, 28-85, 80-200), and have some of their outstanding sales brochures, really lovely presentation of their products. BTW, I understand that Nippon Photo Service in NYC still works in these Contax cameras.
 
Thank you all for your input.

Thank you all for your input.

Sigh. It appears that the power of wishful thinking is not as great as I had hoped. I believe that I will have to give the AX a pass.

Marc
 
Never had interest in the AX due to size. And with film there is no need for a motor drive any longer. This eliminates the Aria, too, even though it is small and light and has a great view finder with excellent eye relief and high magnification, a highly desirable and rare combination.

The 139 is notorious for disintegrating coverings. They are otherwise fine little cameras, but the 159MM is the same size and offers 1/4000 with better ergonomics (built in grip) and a much improved rubberized cover. It also has red LED aperture readout, as well as red LEDs for shutter speed indicator. And the preferred manual wind. 🙂
 
Hi for those of you who have more than one camera can anyone tell me which could be a donor for a contax ax viewfinder? I think it's just the outermost glass.
 
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