Kiev 4a aka "World's Finest 35mm Rangefinder Camera"

[former member]

Cambridge Camera- so bad that Pop Photo refused to run their ads anymore.

Bait and Switch champions.

 

[ray*j*gun]

Yep, a thousand years ago I sent them money for a Yashica TLR when they were still being manufactured and never got the camera nor the money back.

 

[Derek Leath]

Finally got around to dev the film in this camera.


finishedmopping
by
Derek Leath,
on Flickr



Gardenman_again
by
Derek Leath,
on Flickr


Locked
by
Derek Leath,
on Flickr

 

[hap]

So in 1983 some Americans in New York said the worlds finest 35mm camera came from the Soviet Union...just too funny

I will wait u ntil I see one around Putin's neck, shirt on or off.

 

[Guest]

The day I own anything made in russia will be a historical one. Not that they have ever invented anything, all they do is COPY and even when doing that their reputation is atrocious.
Their Spce Shuttle copy was comical. But the wooden dolls and vodka are supposed to be good. But I refuse to be connected with anything out of that system.

 

[David Hughes]

The trouble is that you can say that about a lot of countries. The list is endless especially if you look at copyright books etc. and as for cameras...


Regards, David

 

[keytarjunkie]

The day I own anything made in russia will be a historical one. Not that they have ever invented anything, all they do is COPY and even when doing that their reputation is atrocious.
Their Spce Shuttle copy was comical. But the wooden dolls and vodka are supposed to be good. But I refuse to be connected with anything out of that system.

Thanks for letting us know.

 

[Graybeard]

The trouble is that you can say that about a lot of countries. The list is endless especially if you look at copyright books etc. and as for cameras...


Regards, David

The Russians copied the Contax and produced the Kievs. Maybe OK at the start but unrepairable junk at the end of the run. I speak from experience with cameras that even Oleg couldn't put right.

The Japanese set out to copy the Contax and produced the Nikon rangefinders (with Nikon glass).

Select your copy with care.

 

[BillBingham2]

Cambridge Camera- so bad that Pop Photo refused to run their ads anymore.

Bait and Switch champions.

AAAAhhhhh NYC Retail,

One of the parts I do NOT miss.

B2 (;->

 

[BillBingham2]

I remember hearing something about the folks in the USSR and China early on making a few cameras for export to the US that were hand-tuned to improve their street-cred.

B2 (;->

 

[johnf04]

The Russians copied the Contax and produced the Kievs. Maybe OK at the start but unrepairable junk at the end of the run. I speak from experience with cameras that even Oleg couldn't put right.

The Japanese set out to copy the Contax and produced the Nikon rangefinders (with Nikon glass).

Select your copy with care.

They didn't copy the Contax - they took the design as war reparations, and had Zeiss build a number of assembly lines, and provide technicians to train the workers to build the camera. The original Kiev cameras were Contaxes in all but name.

 

[David Hughes]

They didn't copy the Contax - they took the design as war reparations, and had Zeiss build a number of assembly lines, and provide technicians to train the workers to build the camera. The original Kiev cameras were Contaxes in all but name.

Thanks saved me a bi of typing.

I see a lot of Japanese cameras are made in Chine but - oddly - no one calls them Chinese copies. Same goes for Chinese "replicas" of lenses...

Odd how a lot of people can't see why the Soviets were entitled to compensation from the Germans. I guess they don't teach history any more; nor maths, English, geography and so on.

Regards, David

 

[keytarjunkie]

I guess they don't teach history any more; nor maths, English, geography and so on.

Yes, the only thing they teach us in school these days is how to eat avocado toast and complain about you lot. 🙄

 

[Graybeard]

They didn't copy the Contax - they took the design as war reparations, and had Zeiss build a number of assembly lines, and provide technicians to train the workers to build the camera. The original Kiev cameras were Contaxes in all but name.

After all that, as I said, they initially made some OK cameras. This devolved over time to the manufacture of unreliable junk. With assembly lines provided by Zeiss they lost the ability to make "Contaxes in all but name".

 

[leicapixie]

Thanks saved me a bi of typing.
Odd how a lot of people can't see why the Soviets were entitled to compensation from the Germans. I guess they don't teach history any more; nor maths, English, geography and so on.

Regards, David

Read "Russia at war".. The Russians lost about 50~60 Million people.
If that doesn't count for repatriations what does?
Personally never had the guts to buy Russian after working on their watches.
Dismal failures one and all. Nikon was way to go.. even if a "copy" but better.

 

[David Hughes]

Don't you mean reparations which Collins defines as compensation paid after a war for damage and injuries.


So what did I get wrong?

 

[Sarcophilus Harrisii]

The day I own anything made in russia will be a historical one. Not that they have ever invented anything, all they do is COPY and even when doing that their reputation is atrocious.
Their Spce Shuttle copy was comical. But the wooden dolls and vodka are supposed to be good. But I refuse to be connected with anything out of that system.

Pray tell, (since you brought up Soviets, and space technology) who did they COPY when they launched Gagarin into orbit? It certainly wasn't America. When Shepard flew a few weeks later it was a brief, suborbital flight. The USSR hit a home run first time out.

We get it—you dislike the former USSR, Communism, maybe modern Russia, too. That is your prerogative. Pretending that they've never made any technological achievements of their own on the other hand is preposterous, and blinkered.

 

[Derek Leath]

"ouch"
I collect cameras, and this was just one of the cameras I came across to add to my collection. Just thought I might be nice to put some film through it, and see the results.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

It would seem you've never read history of WW2..
Read "Russia at war".. The Russians lost about 50~60 Million people.
If that doesn't count for repatriations what does?
Personally never had the guts to buy Russian after working on their watches.
Dismal failures one and all. Nikon was way to go.. even if a "copy" but better.

They lost this many because they never learned how to stand and take care for lives, first. They would use hundreds of thousands without ammo just to send on machineguns fire and mines fields. Where is common phrase from Soviet WWWII so called officers- "spend live stock asap and lets get new ones".

As for watches my quartz Cardinal from eighties is accurate without any service.
And person who worked in Switzerland as soviet sales rep told me about freight trains full of watches mechanism going to Switzerland from USSR.
I'm not surprised most of Swiss watches I have purchased where in nineties crapped out in no time. I guess Swiss was on MIC by then.

 

[Doug]

Kiev 4a, 2.0/50mm Jupiter 8M

Back of garage

House recently moved several miles out of town

She brought her pet bird to a picnic on the lake...