Is Kiev 4 bigger then original Contax II ?

[bolas]

I always thougth that there are almost no differences between Contax II and Kiev II (and also Kiev IV). Few days ago i bought original leather case to Contax II, and it do not fit onto my Kiev IV. Kiev IV seems to be quite bigger. Both cases are almost the same ... but, there is a small difference in dimensios so i can't use it with Kiev.

I've heard that pre- and post war Contax II can have different dimensions ? Is it true ? Or maybe just Kievs and Contax are not equal in dimensions ?

 

[furcafe]

The Kiev 4 should be the same size as the Kiev II & IIa, which were in turn the same size as the Contax II. Perhaps your Contax case has shrunk w/age (it's @ least 70 years old).

The post-WWII Contax IIa & IIIa are smaller than the prewar II & III.

 

[brachal]

A Kiev should be the same size as a pre-war Contax. The Kievs were originally made on Zeiss tooling with help from Zeiss engineers. The entire Contax operation was granted to the USSR as war reparations in the late 40s. While some changes were made over time, I don't think the cameras overall dimensions changed.

 

[Paul T.]

The 4 did have a different back plate though.

 

[bolas]

Well i tried 3-4 times and it's really going not so easy to put my Kiev inside this Contax case ... it's a bit smaller then original Kiev case ... Finaly it's possible to put Kiev in Contax case but i would not say that it fits naturaly ...

Any ideas why ? I don't think it's because Contax case is older ...
Maybe i was wrong and this case is not to Contax II ?

few pics (Contax case is smaller - on the left, Kiev on the right):

I asked on Contax forum:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65615

... and someone replied:

...that looks to be a post war Contax IIa IIIa ever- ready case.
(...) make sure it fits the pre war Contax body you plan to buy, as this post war Contax IIa/IIIa camera case is made for these post war smaller bodies and might not fit a pre war Contax II.

 

[Paul T.]

Yep, that is a !!a (or IIIa) case, made for the post war camera. Which is smaller than its predecessor.

The later Kiev case with the rounded top was a copy of the IIa case; the earlier ones were a copy of the prewar II or III case.

 

[xayraa33]

The pre war Contax II is a bigger camera than the post war Contax IIa, do not confuse the two models.
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65615

 

[acheyj]

My understanding is --
Contax II 5 1/2 inches wide
Contax IIa IIIa 5 5/16 inches wide

ron

 

[MXP]

Here is a picture of both a Kiev IIa and a Contax II. They are quite similar in size. The Kiev IIa maybe a bit lower.

 

[acheyj]

MPX the image you have is the Contax II not a IIa, the Contax IIa/IIIa is a post war production, has entirely new shutter system.

see -------------
http://www.cameraquest.com/conrf.htm

Best regards

ron

 

[MXP]

MPX the image you have is the Contax II not a IIa, the Contax IIa/IIIa is a post war production, has entirely new shutter system.

see -------------
http://www.cameraquest.com/conrf.htm

Best regards

ron

Yes....the Contax is a II.....no doubt about that. But as far as I remember the Kiev II without the lightmeter on the top is called a IIa ......but my memory may be wrong.......

 

[acheyj]

OOPS Sorry MXP got your name wrong, foolish me !

ron

 

[MXP]

Now I found out.....both Kiev II and IIa are without a light meter......II is just a bit older....so my is a IIa.......

 

[acheyj]

Yes maybe right I'm no expert. Also thorougt the same, its just I'm lusting after a postwar Contax without meter and doing some reseach

cheers
ron

 

[MXP]

Yes maybe right I'm no expert. Also thorougt the same, its just I'm lusting after a postwar Contax without meter and doing some reseach

cheers
ron

I think my Contax II is from about 1939 or so......it is the "O" serie......think it was the last letter serie for the Contax II......but Contax serie numbers are a bit difficult. But a nice camera......you could go for this model and use it with a postwar lens. The IIa has the shorter base......so in theory the rangefinder is not as accurate. It is the nice thing with the Kiev.....they kept the longer rangefinder base.......