external rangefinder for MF folder needed

While looking for a rangefinder, make sure that it is demarked in the scale you are used to, ie: feet or meters. Some of them have shoes for mounting on your camera, some of them don't, but you can put a strap on it and hang it around your neck. And try to get the instructions with it, as they might give you details on how to realign it if it gets out of adjustment.

There is also one out there I saw that has a built in light meter, but it has been so long since they were manufactured I would be suspect of the operation of the meter.

PF
 
I've had a Voitglander of the type in the eBay listing above for about 40+ years and it is contrasty and easy to adjust. However it does have a fairly short base line so really only decent up through about 50mm or so. I 2nd the recommendation. I've thought about trying one of those laser rulers used in the construction business as a possible rangefinder but have not researched to see if a practcal possibility.
 
Do you need one in feet or meters? I sold the one that was in meters, but the one that's left is in feet and for sale here on the forum.

The problem w/ the laser finders is that I don't think they will work well for close up.
 
I normally work with a German "Telex Special" rangefinder. Has a range starting at 0,55 meter.

Also well known are the German rangefinders from Watameter.
Allways make sure that the one you want to buy is still in good condition and accurate. I have now about 8 rangefinders and some arrived completly de-adjusted.


Kopil Mod III Rangefinder on Display (06) by Hans Kerensky, on Flickr
 
I've got a couple of rangefinders I use on a regular basis. One is a DeJur that has no mount shoe, but a very nice fabric strap to go around the neck so that it can either hang down when not in use, or makes it easier to retrieve from a shirt pocket. It stays with my Vito B since it always has the Kontur finder mounted, so no room for a rangefinder.

The other is a Widor Universal that was made in Germany, and looks similar to the Voightlander model. It has a shoe mount, and I use it mostly for my MF cameras. The shoe has three mounting points so you can shift it left or right to suit whatever camera you are using.

Kodak made one that was verticaly mounted, to clear any topside obstructions on the camera. The ones made by Ideal are what you see mostly for sale, but again, no shoe mount. Norwood made one that while designed to be used as a calculator for flash bulbs, it can double as a rangefinder in a pinch, and is vertical like the Kodak. Kodak also made a more conventional model that is found more often.

PF
 
Brian Levy said:
I've thought about trying one of those laser rulers used in the construction business as a possible rangefinder but have not researched to see if a practical possibility.
Click to expand...

The laser in my signature refers to a Leica Disto that I use for surveying. While it is very accurate, also at close range, I don't think it is practical for photography with perhaps a few exceptions. It is kind of large for a photo gadget, it beeps loudly, and doesn't always work in bright sun light or on reflective surfaces. And as chippy said, you may not endear yourself to your subjects by pointing a laser dot at them. I have used a laser pointer as a focussing aid with a 4x5 in a dark space, which worked quite well.
 
Kodak made (or branded - at least some seem to have been made by German OEMs) a few nice ones as well, and these are more often foot-scale rather than metric.
 
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