Kiev 4a or 4am?

[Pherdinand]

hmmm
getting curious...maybe i should have bought the helios from sockeyed too... 12$ extra is not that much...
you guys drive me crazy🙂

 

[ray_g]

Ted,

The Kiev 4-am has the black dials, non-removable spool, among others. You can read more about the different models at http://www.keithberry.telinco.co.uk/Kiev-4.htm

As regards the J8, some people recommend placing a small rubber band around the aperture ring. Try it.

ray

 

[tedwhite]

Ray:

Thanks. I just took a read. I'll try the rubber band trick. Zorkis, I notice, are getting out of hand. One is going right now on ebay for something like $108. Maybe Kievs are next?

Ted

 

[tedwhite]

That's a Zorki 3M, that's now over $100.

Ted

 

[wlewisiii]

Kiev II's have been insane for awhile now. Saw a BIN of $400 on a '52 IIRC the couple of weeks ago.

William

 

[reagan]

I'm digesting all the info/links recieved on this thread. The input has been great and (oh, miserable temptations! 🙄 ) I've even browsed a few Kievs on e-bay myself. But I gotta tell ya, I've picked up a couple of things thru e-bay in the past, but I always get a feeling in the pit of my stomach like I'm shopping in a mine field when I go there. (And absolutely no offense intended for you e-bay sellers out there.)

So, having just arrived to this planet, here's another question (pertaining not only to Kievs, but other FSU cameras/lenses/etc.) :: Is E-bay a source to determine the "fair" market value of FSU cameras?

 

[Pherdinand]

:: Is E-bay a source to determine the "fair" market value of FSU cameras?

Nope! It's a source to determine what's hype and what is there to buy right now. See the post of wlewisiii above.
Of course this needs more than one visit to e-bay since you have to probe the time derivative of the camera prices to obtain the hye factor. You DO visit e-bay often don't you?😀

 

[reagan]

You DO visit e-bay often don't you?😀

Frankly - na. And I know they've got their good reputation sellers, power sellers, etc. etc. yadda, yadda. But typing my credit card number into something called "Pay Pal" makes little alarms go off in my head. I just picture some sweaty hacker-type sitting in a dungy basement smirking, "Yep. You're getting ready to Pay..... PAL!!"

Thanks for the input. It seemed to me that prices looked pretty inflated. I tracked some Olympus (reconditioned) digitals for a couple of weeks going just like clock work for avg. $230 a pop + ship. The same unit NEW was selling at Office Max for $198 during the same time period.

Think I'll stick with trusting my local camera shop guru and his big thick book for coming up with an idea of fair prices.

 

[Pherdinand]

I do use paypal but not for paying for serious stuff. And i don't need a credit card for it, i simply transfer the needed amount from my banc account to the paypal funds and then pay with it.

Within the EU it's much more simple now, a bank wire transfer is fast and free and secure (unless you get screwed by the seller).

 

[tedwhite]

Many times I've seen ebay buyers pay more for a camera or lens than B&H was selling it for.

Down here on the Mexican border you can find most anything at yard sales except cameras. I suppose because, for poor folks, a camera is a luxury. When my two Russian cameras come I will quite possibly be the owner of the only ones in Cochise County (pop. 170,000).

Ted