F3HP fragile?

[joachim]

Hi,

I had been looking into F3HPs recently. I see many samples which are quite dented, in particular the top of the HP finder (DE-3). The F3 is supposed to be pretty tough (even the non-T version). Are they so easily dented or is it just heavy abuse?
It seems to me, the FE/FM variety is typically in a better state here, despite being not the professional guy. Also F2 seem better.

Any comments?

Thanks, J.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

They are dented because they were used professionally and lived a hard life! They are not fragile cameras, though. You can find plenty of them in better condition, though.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I got one from KEH for about $200 last year that looked near new. The dented ones were used by photojournalists who often carried 2 or 3 of them swinging from their necks with big lenses and the gigantic MD-4 motor drive attached, so they banged into each other. The cameras are near indestructible, but avoid the beat up ones, they've been used hard. Good ones are common, a lot of rich amatuers bought them because the F3HP was the professional camera of the 1980s, and these guys wanted to have 'the best', but didn't use them hard.

 

[Steve Bellayr]

I agree with the above. The F3HP is one of the most rugged cameras ever made. As a matter of fact the entire Nikon line is famous for its ruggedness. The F3HP was also one of the longest production models.

 

[sevo]

The DE-3 finder was its Achilles' heel (along with the rather poor readability of its LCD). It was vulnerable compared to the DE-2 - the cap is soft and so exposed that the prism edges frequently got damaged when the cameras banged into each other in the usual dual (80-200+35mm) press configuration.

Smart press photographers had it replaced with spare titanium DE-3's intended for the (otherwise luxury/collectible) F3/T after the first shattered prism, and Nikon eventually addressed the issue by offering a F3P (for "press") that came with a special DE-5 finder (a titanium DE-3 that also added a standard flash socket).

 

[Sonnar Brian]

As rugged as any other professional camera.

Brass dents fairly easily, but also is good at absorbing shock. Like a fender in a car. Titanium is much stronger, does not dent. The shock can be transferred to the internals of the camera.

Buy one in EX or better condition if you want a good looking one. The dented ones go for under $100, and will work just as well.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

My only gripe with the F3 was that badly placed, tiny lcd in the finder. Great camera, though.

 

[FrankS]

My only gripe with the F3 was that badly placed, tiny lcd in the finder. Great camera, though.

+1, that's why I have 3 of them.

 

[PKR]

I agree with all the others who like them. Tough camera. An ugly one will likely work just fine. If you want a really clean one, try to find one owned by an amateur as Chris suggested.. maybe one that wasn't mated to a motor drive (MD4). Have the rubber seals changed if necessary. Check your local Craig's List or camera store for a look at the camera. If there are a lot of scratches around the motor drive cap, the camera likely spent time on a motor. I used the F3 w/ motor for years. Way too heavy. Live without the motor if you can.

Be sure to check or ask about a clean battery chamber. There are a lot of them around and plenty of repair parts. The finder optics are hard to beat.

 

[Field]

FE/FM series are in good shape to this day because they were used my casual shooters mostly. You can dent the bottom plate on one of them by breathing on them. The F series you have to take a rock too - or another F as mentioned.
Even without a working finder I would roll with it (would not pay much money for it); that is what people like to do with the F1/F2.

Hell there is not even a shoe to break off! (requires freak adapter like the F/F2)

 

[sanmich]

I must have had a special F3 model...🙄

Over the years, I had two of them.
For a glass wearer, they are heaven, but I had reliability issues.
I knocked the prism of one of them, and the optics allowing reading of the speed went out of place. Then, the other one went for two repair on the electronics about two years one from the other. The prisms on both were dented by pretty light shocks.

If you need a pro camera with metering, AE, 100% viewing and hp finder, there may be no other choice in Nikon realm, but I don't think their reliability is anywhere near the F/F2 one (not the meter on them though)

 

[maddoc]

I have one F3HP and one FM, both bought new and only occasionally used, never abused. The FM still looks close to new, the F3HP has two small nicks on the prism housing though.

Different topic, the seal around the mirrors became sticky, easy exchange ? DIY job ?

 

[maddoc]

Easy DIY job. Better still, take your camera to the Nikon Service Center and pay them 1,000 yen to do it.

... and off to 28th floor in Shinjuku ! 😀

 

[sanmich]

I have one F3HP and one FM, both bought new and only occasionally used, never abused. The FM still looks close to new, the F3HP has two small nicks on the prism housing though.

Different topic, the seal around the mirrors became sticky, easy exchange ? DIY job ?

Gabor,

What seal do you mean?
I see a foam only as a shock absorber at the end of the mirror trip.

 

[maddoc]

Gabor,

What seal do you mean?
I see a foam only as a shock absorber at the end of the mirror trip.

Michael,

that one, the shock absorber. Also, there must be some seal around the backdoor (inside the camera body) since there also some black stuff (sticky) comes out.

 

[sanmich]

Michael,

that one, the shock absorber. Also, there must be some seal around the backdoor (inside the camera body) since there also some black stuff (sticky) comes out.

In that case, it's quite easy to DIY.
A few years ago I bought a seal kit from John Goodman:
http://www.kyphoto.com/classics/sealreplacement.html

Lots of material there.
All you need is Nafta, some cotton tips, a clean table and a free hour.
Really, it's easy...

BTW, John is a very nice person to deal with and very responsive and helpful about his products.

 

[joachim]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all your input. So it sounds as if the DE-3 prism is indeed dented quite easily. I didn't know that this sort of comes with a brass camera.
I am aware of the foam issue. The cameras are now around the 20 year mark.
People seem to suggest DE-2 finders are more stable (since smaller). How are these regarding eye-point (I wear glasses), also compared to the FE/FM cameras.

Thanks again for your inputs.
J.

PS: One thing I really enjoy about my Rolleicord: No foam 🙂

 

[lynxkcg]

My DE-3 is dented to hell, but I can't see how I'd manage to crack a prism.
The only thing I've managed to break on either of my F3's is the iso ring. I left a sb-12 on mine in the car and the ping that reads the film speed slipped over the nub it reads off off, I had to crank it off pretty hard and now the exposure compensation is loose between 0 and +1.
I don't usually use flash so I just put compensation at -1/3 and underrate my speed by 1/3. Unfortunately when I so use a SB-11, it reads off the iso excluding compensation, so I have to carefully set it back at 0.

I wear glasses and wouldn't trade my F3hp for anything, except maybe an F5.

 

[Rob-F]

I had a used F3hp for a while. I didn't think of it as vulnerable, but I did feel that it was really loud, and had a lot of mirror slap. I could feel a sort of shock wave travel through the camera, which seemed to "jump" in my hands. By contrast, I find my FA to be very quiet. I don't feel much vibration in the body, either. It seems to be a more advanced design in this regard, with an action, though softer, that remains responsive and fast. I can say the same for my F100 (though being autofocus, it is a very different kind of camera).

In general, Nikon seems to me to have a very solid and confidence-inspiring shooting feel. For fully manual cameras, I prefer the FE2 and the FA. I never thought of them as vulnerable nor easily damaged (never thought this of the F3 either).

 

[Calzone]

There is a very long thread titled, "Nikon F3 Tribute." that has lots of info.

I own three: F3 non HP; F3 HP; and a F3P. All are equipt with motordrives, and I often carry two F3's at a time.

The camera was designed to be used with a MD-4 motordrive, and the design is well intergrated. I found that the shear mass helps mittigate any mirror slap, but you have a big and heavy SLR that is obnoxiously loud. BTW I do a lot of street shooting in NYC, even on the subway, with my Nikon SLR's. They are very fast shooters, and most of the time I see people looking for my camera after I already have taken the shot. (I wear hand straps, and the camera most of the time rests at my side out of view.)

Comparing a FM to a F3 is not a fair comparison: one is a Nikon "Pro" camera and the other is not.

Also I posted on the tribute thread is a mod that I performed on two of my F3's that bypasses a switch so that the LCD's for the meter is on whenever the meter is activated. Requires the use of a MD-4 because battery drain is an issue.

Also the metering in auto is very accurate and heavily center weighted. The metering will even work for night photography while using a tripod and bulb exposures.

BTW a Nikon F3 equipt with MD-4 is like carrying a deadly weapon in plain sight. It is an aggressive camera.

Cal