konica 111A how good?

[d_ross]

Hi, I'm thinking about buying one of these, it has the Hexanon 50 1.8 lens. I'd appreciate hearing how good the lens is (I assume it would be great) and if the camera is easy to use. I would also assume it's heavy but that doesn't bother me, I'm more interested in the lens performance and the ergonomics of an older RF like this.

Cheers in advance

 

[btgc]

IIIA has 1:1 VF which speaks for itself. Build quality should be great judging by model III. Can't say anything about lens, though. My guess it should as good as 2/48 lens.

 

[awilder]

I've heard the 50/1.8 Hexanon rivals the 50 Summicron of that day.

 

[ruby.monkey]

Shutter speed and aperture selection is a bit fiddly (they're coupled unless you hold back the left side of the exposure number ring; the shutter speed ring is easy to turn, but the aperture ring is a pain with one tiny patch of grooving on an otherwise smooth piece of metal). Wind-on is quick and easy once you get used to the double stroke. Loading is a doddle. The finder is brilliant, with well-designed parallax-corrected framelines. Focussing is fast as long as you're happy using a tab. Handling is fine, although the shutter release button is a little too close to the rangefinder hump on the top cover for my liking. The lens... you won't have any cause for complaint - the 50mm f/1.8 Hexanon is a beaut.

Overall a lovely camera with a couple of ergonomic flaws. Well worth the money if you find a tidy example.

 

[raid]

The lens is very sharp, and the camera is very well built. The VF is top class.

 

[d_ross]

Thanks guys, the camera arrived, it is in exceptional cosmetic condition, and looks and feels great, and first time I put the VF to my eye I understood what everyone says about it! sadly the shutter rarely works, and one aperture blade is loose, and RF is out. Hopefully it is repairable as the camera looks and feels great to me, it's away now so I should hear soon, I'm looking forward to using it if it is.

 

[Todd Frederick]

Sample IIIA Photo

Sample IIIA Photo

The IIIA is an outstanding camera. The only problem is that the shutter stuck on the first shot only after it had been not used for some time. I hope you get your's repaired Ok.

Here is a sample photo I took of a statue.

 

[d_ross]

thanks Todd.

 

[btgc]

I imagine people finding old cameras in atticks, before putting them on ebay try to move controls to include line "all controls move". It's no wonder frozen apertures get torn out of tracks, blades bent and lenses scratched after trying to clean them with paper tissues.

But it's worth to get it repaired/CLAed. My III is only camera I've paid for repair, but don't regret a single dollar spent.

 

[RObert Budding]

Excellent Camera

Excellent Camera

I bought a IIIA from Greg Weber. The finder is just amazing, and the lens is excellent. And the CLA was done right - it works like it's new.

 

[d_ross]

It just arrived back from servicing, with the EV scale ring disconnected, which was needed for the repair and suits me fine.
I put a roll of film in it and shot a few frames then changed to a faster shutter speed, and suddenly thought the shutter didn't fire properly, but then realized it's just that smooth and quiet!

Looking forward to seeing results, and I just cant get over how good the VF on it is! here's a pic of the camera.

 

[Platon]

According to Simon Nathan in the 1958 "35mm Handbook".

"We know that the Konica performs well and that the lens cuts the shrpest negatives and color transparencies of any camera, including Leica and uno".

Period.