MISH
Well-known
Krikor serviced my MX-EVS which had sat unused for 30 years and really brought it back to life
andredossantos
Well-known
I was planning on shipping my 2.8D to Fleanor for a CLA but may instead drive it over to Krimar in NJ if his turnaround time is quick. I don't think I could be without my Rollei for 12 weeks!
Thanks to all who posted for the info in this thread
Thanks to all who posted for the info in this thread
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
When I sent my Rollei 3.5F to Harry Fleenor last year, the costs were $134.00 for a shutter rebuild and $134.00 for a transport rebuild. At the same time I got a Maxwell screen upgrade and a discount for having it aligned/installed. The whole boat cost $470.00 which included insurance and shipping as the final cost.
I think there needs to be some clarity between a CLA and an overhaul. To me a CLA for $120-$150 is kinda different than a rebuild or overhaul. In a CLA are parts replaced that are worn? I doubt it. Do you expect your shutter to was totally disassembled when you sent it in for a CLA? To me a CLA is like a tune up.
BTW when other people have tried my Rollei that has been "Fleenored" the often ask, "Is there film in this camera?" because it is so smooth. And then there is the silent shutter, where I have to see if I can advance the frame to verify that the shutter was tripped.
To me there is a reason why Harry remains so busy and he was right on schedule as promised. He is simply the best, and there is no DAG factor.
Cal
I think there needs to be some clarity between a CLA and an overhaul. To me a CLA for $120-$150 is kinda different than a rebuild or overhaul. In a CLA are parts replaced that are worn? I doubt it. Do you expect your shutter to was totally disassembled when you sent it in for a CLA? To me a CLA is like a tune up.
BTW when other people have tried my Rollei that has been "Fleenored" the often ask, "Is there film in this camera?" because it is so smooth. And then there is the silent shutter, where I have to see if I can advance the frame to verify that the shutter was tripped.
To me there is a reason why Harry remains so busy and he was right on schedule as promised. He is simply the best, and there is no DAG factor.
Cal
Gabriel M.A.
My Red Dot Glows For You
That is certainly good to know. I was going to say: $350 for a CLA?! Yikes. It's more than what I paid for my Rolleiflex (OK, six years ago).
ChipMcD
Well-known
Got my 3.5F from Krimar today. Shutter, self-timer, transport and focus--all like buttah.
mtargz
Established
What's with the high prices? Are they specific to Rolleiflexes, or do the "international" celeb-repairers allow themselves to charge a premium?
In my city, there's a street where pretty much all the camera-folks set up shop: From the authorized Nikon importer, through the we-stock-everything "supermarkets" and down to the rarity-dealers. The two best repairers in the country work across the street from one another; both worked together as watch-makers earlier last century, so their workmanship is top notch. I try to use both.
In any case, a Mamiya C330 was overhauled for the equivalent of 125$: The CLA included readjusting film transport, replacing the "dark-slide", cleaning a total of four (two pairs) of lenses, restoring a completely-bent filter ring and readjusting both Seiko leaf-shutters (used to hang). It now works as good as it gets - I wouldn't hesitate to give that guy a Rolleiflex.
In my city, there's a street where pretty much all the camera-folks set up shop: From the authorized Nikon importer, through the we-stock-everything "supermarkets" and down to the rarity-dealers. The two best repairers in the country work across the street from one another; both worked together as watch-makers earlier last century, so their workmanship is top notch. I try to use both.
In any case, a Mamiya C330 was overhauled for the equivalent of 125$: The CLA included readjusting film transport, replacing the "dark-slide", cleaning a total of four (two pairs) of lenses, restoring a completely-bent filter ring and readjusting both Seiko leaf-shutters (used to hang). It now works as good as it gets - I wouldn't hesitate to give that guy a Rolleiflex.
ChipMcD
Well-known
I think steep repair prices might be for Rolleis and in this country in particular. There are not a lot of repairers left. Sherry Kräuter for Leicas is less, I think. I hear that Hasselblad's in-house repair is quite expensive. There are probably independent shops that are cheaper for those, and for Rolleis for all I know.
flyingpalm
Well-known
It will cost $200 here in Vancouver.
Vics
Veteran
I've had lots of experience with Harry Fleenor, all good, and here's his info: http://www.rolleirepairs.com/
I took 2 Rolleis in to him at Thanksgiving and at that time he was 12 weeks out. He fixed one while I waited, and I expect the other sometime this month. I don't get CLAs on Rolleis because mine seem a bit repair intensive, so I just get 'em fixed as they break down.
I took 2 Rolleis in to him at Thanksgiving and at that time he was 12 weeks out. He fixed one while I waited, and I expect the other sometime this month. I don't get CLAs on Rolleis because mine seem a bit repair intensive, so I just get 'em fixed as they break down.
Harry Lime
Practitioner
Harry Lime
Practitioner
Harry Lime
Practitioner
I really don't agree with this.
I went to one of the cheaper repair shops that were supposedly reputable and they butchered my 2.8F. I ended up having to take it to Fleenor and he showed me how the other guy had screwed everything up. He even found loose and missing screws inside the camera, resulting in a lightleak.
A Rolleiflex is mechanically more complex than most people give it credit for. Just getting the focus 'sled' properly aligned in all axis is not a trivial task and there are plenty of specialized tools that you need from Rollei.
The average price for a full Leica M CLA at one of the reliable shops is between $250-360 dollars these days. But these are service technicians who worked for or were trained by Leica. They have the tools to do the job right, unlike some fly by night guy, who read the repair manual and is going to pour 3-in-1 oil in your camera.
I just send my M7 to Kindermann for service and he actually asked me who had previously worked on the camera, because he had noticed some strange things in there, that he claimed no Leica trained technician would do. Two years ago I was in London and the camera got jammed . I did not have the time to send it to Leica Germany. So, I had a local guy fix it through a Leica dealer. It was relatively cheap, but I guess I got what I payed for...
So, in my experience spending the extra money to get the job done right by a repair shop with a good reputation is more than worth it and in the long run sometimes cheaper.
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David Murphy
Veteran
Many local repairmen have both extensive factory training from camera repair schools and from most of the existing and some defunct camera companies - not exactly amateurs. I am extremely suspicious of the self-appointed repairmen out there that "specialize" in one type of collectible camera or other. This perpetuates the "only I hold the sceptre of knowledge" attitude (coupled with outrageous prices and waiting lists for work). A narrow skill set actually indicates a lack of training.
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mtargz
Established
Exactly that. When someone specializes, it might be a good sign - if it's common work. But when a "regular" guy has walls of cameras that he repaired, and every local pro visited him, it's probably just as safe a bet - if not safer, in case the problem is out of the specializer's field of expertise.
Plus, I've never seen a repairman, in any field - from car-mechanics through leather-workers to plumbers, praise "the previous guy". I once took my watch to a repairman - brand new, directly from the manufacturer - and he complained that "whoever worked on it didn't know what to do". Part of their business - diss the old guy, show every flaw you could find, even if it's a factory flaw. Every plumber will discover some "major" problem that only he, as a trained professional, will see and fix for a certain price.
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Uwe_Nds
Chief Assistant Driver
Ok, what's the USD-equivalent man-hour rate for your plumber in your country?
How many hours would the abouve CLA probably take if done properly?
Cheers,
Uwe
mtargz
Established
Minimum wage is around 5-6$ per hour, ye average office drone would probably earn 8-10$. Prices seem to translate well to European prices, from what I saw in my extensive European tours.
Total turnaround was 2 days, but then again, I was pretty much the only job he had on that day. He opened it up within two hours, gave me an estimate by noon, and phoned again the next evening saying I could pick it up. It may sound like a quick-and-dirty, but there wasn't much majorly wrong - he did reassemble two Seiko shutters (an aperture-blade was pretty much glued to a shutter-blade), but as an ex-watchmaker, I don't think that was much of a problem. The Mamiya is a complicated beast, but pretty straightforward and self-explanatory.
Vics
Veteran
I have my guys. My Leica guy is Youxin Ye. My Contax guy is Henry Scherer. My Rollei guy is Harry Fleenor. The last time I took a camera to a local repairman, he looked at my Nikon F and basically told me to get lost.
el fotografo
Established
This is Krimar in his shop in New Jersey. I took my Rolleicord V to him last year for a CLA and brought my M5 to take his photo.
My 'cord was in good shape so the cost was $200.
Very nice man. I spent some time talking to him about how he started repairing Rolleis.
He is Armenian and was raised in Cairo, Egypt.
He started working in a camera shop as a kid and was sent to Germany twice for training on Rolleis and Linhofs. He came to the US in the 1950's and raised his family in NJ.
His small shop is like going back in time- everything in original plastic bags with Rollei hang tags.
FYI- he told me to always travel with the camera with the bellows compressed in so the front plate cannot get knocked out of alignment.
My 'cord was in good shape so the cost was $200.
Very nice man. I spent some time talking to him about how he started repairing Rolleis.
He is Armenian and was raised in Cairo, Egypt.
He started working in a camera shop as a kid and was sent to Germany twice for training on Rolleis and Linhofs. He came to the US in the 1950's and raised his family in NJ.
His small shop is like going back in time- everything in original plastic bags with Rollei hang tags.
FYI- he told me to always travel with the camera with the bellows compressed in so the front plate cannot get knocked out of alignment.
Attachments
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Jani_from_Finland
Well-known
150 euros is what my current CLA costs at my local repairmans shop for a Flex 2.8E and some 80-100 euros for a Cord K3C
MC JC86
Negative Nancy.
Essex Camera $140.95 a couple months ago... I've had some terrible experiences with other places that charge less. OTOH, I've had multiple Rolleiflex and other TLRs done by Essex with a 0% refusal/return rate and all looking and working beautiful. Essex is one of those places that does almost EVERYTHING from digital to really esoteric Russian cameras and everything in between. I have, however, dealt with a few places with the same MO that were just butchers plain and simple, despite people extolling their virtues simply because they could fix the squeal in an A-1.