FED-2 front curtain

[35mmADDICT]

G-day from Australia!

So I'm looking at buying my first rangefinder and wanted something special.

I stumbled upon a camera called FED - so i researched it and made up my mind that the FED-2 was for me.

Now! To the questions I wanted to ask...



Should I buy a FED with the shutter looking like this? (the cam isn't cheap, isn't expensive)

And, is it an easy job to replace the curtain?

BTW the rear curtain looks fine, just the front looks shabby.

CHEERS!

 

[Coldkennels]

That will probably leak light all over the bloody place. I mean, you COULD buy it if it was cheap enough (and otherwise good enough) to warrant the expense of buying the new material and the time of fitting it.

In terms of replacing the shutter, you'd have to get the whole camera stripped to bits (if I remember right, there's no way to the Fed 2's shutter box without taking literally everything else off as well), and it's quite a fiddly, time-consuming job. If you like such things, you might enjoy it as a project. If you're not very dextrous or get annoyed quickly, stay away.

Another thing to note is that the ring fitted to the front is the mount of an Industar 22, which suggests to me that the lens is missing its close-distance stopping screw. Not a massive problem, but it might be a bit irritating.

To be honest, Fed 2s are common enough that you could probably get one for the same or similar price in better condition.

Or, of course, there's always fedka.com if you're willing to spend a bit more but get a Fed that's guaranteed to be in good nick.

 

[wolves3012]

I'll second Coldkennels' advice - if you enjoy tinkering and the camera is CHEAP, then do it as a project. If you just want a FED 2 to use, stay well away from this one!

 

[konicaman]

HI 35mmADDICT and welcome to the forum - nice place here, you are gonna like it, I am sure.

A serviced (CLA'ed) FED 2 can be had for some 30-40 £ in very good condition on the auction site; just add film, and you'll be ready to rock. So unless you really, really want to do the DIY project, stay away from the one in your pics (other things may be faulty apart from the shutter).

And a word of warning, if this is your first Russian camera: Never change shutter speed unless you have cocked the shutter!

 

[wolves3012]

And a word of warning, if this is your first Russian camera: Never change shutter speed unless you have cocked the shutter!

In general, for russian cameras that's good advice. The FED 2, however, can safely be changed whether cocked or not. This is true for nearly all of the russian cameras where the index mark rotates with the dial (2-piece design). If you own several models, it's a good habit to set *after* cocking so you don't muck it up!

 

[35mmADDICT]

Ok I ending up buying another FED2 with better curtains.

Cheers for the info guys!