How should Kiev 4a and Fed 2 rf patches compare?

[hlpgtf]

I have pretty nice examples of a Kiev 4a and Fed 2 that I picked up on the auction site. I know they are both known for their long, accurate baselengths, but how should the brightness of the patches compare? My Kiev's is really bright and distinct, while the Fed's is much smaller and quite a bit dimmer (but still not terrible).

I'm trying to decide which camera to buy a portrait lens for - I'd like an Elmar 90 or a Zeiss Triotar 85, and it looks like the latter is going to cost as much as a "bargain" Elmar + CLA for the Fed. It seems like a Jupiter 9 for either is costing more and more every day (or at least sellers are trying to get more and more...).

Thanks!

 

[nzeeman]

yes kiev has much better patch - and also you can focus it slowly with that wheel - so i think it is very accurate.

 

[wolves3012]

From the examples I have, I'd say the FED tends to be dimmer VF but with a higher contrast RF patch - and it's round as opposed to the Kiev's square patch.

Despite what everyone thinks about the longer-base finders, they are at lower magnification so there's not really any big gain in resolution over the shorter-base ones. The only real advantage is that it's probably more precise (i.e. repeatable) on a Kiev.

 

[newspaperguy]

Agree... Kiev is brighter.
Perhaps because it's a prism,
rather than mirrors?

 

[wolves3012]

Agree... Kiev is brighter.
Perhaps because it's a prism,
rather than mirrors?

Er, no. The Kiev is only different in detail, not in principle of operation.