Kiev kost ?

[outfitter]

Thank you Michael for all the info. There seem to be two opposed schools of thought in the Contax/Kiev question. One saying throw the Kievs to the trash basket, the other saying a good Kiev can match a Contax.


Cheers,
Ruben

Well many Contax cameras have gone through my hands and I'm definitely in the "can match the Contax" camp. I think the problem is that people are not usually comparing apples with apples. Just as a Scherer rebuild cannot be compared with a less aggressive CLA, a CLA's camera cannot be compared with a camera suffering from dried grease and dirty viewfinder/RF. I am certain that a Scherer done Kiev would be impressive.

BTW Scherer claims the Kievs suffer from being build by people who didn't care (probably true) and with looser tolerances (also true). On the other hand Scherer says the Zeiss built Contax rarely met their own specs and that his rebuilds usually are better than when the camera left the factory. Now I frequently disagree with Henry's pronouncements (he is a bit eccentric) but I agree with these.

Shutter tapes (that wear out) and wheezing speeds give the impression the camera is delicate but in fact they are very robust. The design works very well even when the engineering specs are not met at the factory. My 1978 Kiev 4 that I bought new in the box a quarter century ago feels like a pepper mill and sounds worse but functions well and its J-8M lens is perfectly adjusted for the body. This camera is almost 40 years younger than my most recent Contax II and that has advantages.



Michael

 

[outfitter]

Hi Ruben


The Ru were masters of production, they made T-34 up until the last days at Stalingrad, ran them out the door of tractor factory straight into hell.

I heard of one case where an unfinished T-34 without turret was driven out of the factory and rammed into a German tank. These were not the type of people to forbear payback time or be discouraged in setting up a production line to produce the most complicated camera in the world (at that time). Indeed engineers not looters showed up at Dresden and they came with extensive dossiers and knew exactly what they wanted.

Michael

 

[ruben]

Hi Ruben

I looked at a 4 and my 4AM and only could detect that the pressure plate mountings had been moved the plate in effect had been rotated through 180 degrees. Is that what you ment?

I dont think this would create a big difference - as the plate springs are almost 'bottomed' i.e. have little free movement when there is a film in the camera the plate is flat on the rails.

...............

This is not what I see on my KIev 4. I have to post pics of each back.

Cheers,
Ruben

 

[Xmas]

Ruben

Oh

Please also post first four letters of serials e.g. 5524XXX.

Noel

 

[dee]

Absolutely Fabulous !

Just how much passion these Contaxes and Kievs generate !

I make no secret that , even unused , Kievs keep me Kompany in a konfusing world .
Autistic stuff generates so much '' noise / lostnesss / anxiety '' that i have to gather Kiev kompanions and Leica-Likes around me to ground me ... daft perhaps , but i keep them close , 'cso it's out of sight , out of mind ... if they are put away , I kinda lose them !!!

But i also like to use them , 'cos looking through a window on the world works for me So , I am contemplating an expensive strip and cla by Steve Dash . having adapted a black case , my Kiev 4m has become something of a Konstant with me - with actual film in it !!

It's a bit strange that I would spend around the same to restore a Kiev than I would a Leica II or IIIc .. but , I am beginning to prefer using the Kievs .

I am fascinated by the comparison with the real Contax , and am beginning to think that a good Kiev wil give me , if not everyone , a camera the equal in most respects as The Real Thing - something which I cannot claim for my pair of Leica engraved Fed 1 g ' s over my Leica II ' s ... though I love using them all ! But if I found a reasonaby inexpensive Contax , I may be tempted !

But the Kievs now have an edge over the Leicas ... which I can't explain .

It would have to be a Kiev 2 or 2 a , plus a Kiev 3 or 3 a to restore , maybe the two '' KNeb '' block lettered cameras , 1954/55 , though the k 2 has yet to arrive !

Curiously , I bought a reduced Kiev 3a on e-bay , failing to notice that there is no flash sync - it's another K 3 ! OOPS ! So I still have a gap for a K 3 a !

There will be no end to my Red Mist - it keeps me just one side of Krazee , and I am really gratefull for the influx of funds which have gifted me with a way of coping with the dee'sruption , dee's location , dee's orientation ... though this is rapidly drying up !

I do understand that these are old cameras - even older in design , and that there is much lees to go wrong with my Leicas - so it's a gamble .. but if I acheive a few years from them , it will be great .

it seems that the Kiev 4 and 4m are very much the less covetable members of the family , though I love my slightly altered K 4m ... but I wonder how it will be in a few years when fewer cameras are coming out from the former USSR - and many expire from poor workmanship or just wear .

At present , they seem plentifull , which may understate their true value as affordable truly Klasik cameras - therefore my conclusion is that a restored Kiev 2/3 is very much a worthwhile waste of money !

Thanks again

dee

 

[Xmas]

Dee

Ruben and I have stolen your thread sorry...

Noel