Konica C35V

[fidget]

I'm sorting out some of my not-so-good buys of the past and have come across a very nice C35V, that's the one with scale focussing.

I remember that I chased and won a couple of the RF versions, but both were of little use, broken or very soon to break. I bought this V, thinking it was the RF version and just put it in the "forget" box.

Recently, after playing with scale focus folders and particularly my XA2, I have realised that scale focus cams need not be avoided, in fact they can turn out good results.

But before I put too much effort into it, is there any wisdom regarding the battery replacement with a more modern cell (weren't these using mercury cells?) and..........are they a good performer?


Dave....

 

[fidget]

I understand that it has the same lens.
Some searches show that the lens (C35) is very well thought of.
Matt Denton likes his.

I've just popped an alkaline cell in it. The meter works and the shutter speed and apertures seem to change as the meter reading suggests.
I have an old (BB 2006) hearing aid battery 1.4v, this gives a slightly lower reading (although I don't know what condition it is in).

Looks like a batch of hearing aid batteries will be needed then???

AND, it looks like it could work!!!

 

[Eugen Mezei]

I have the C35V myself. Used it for only one roll of film to see that I am totaly wrong when guessfocusing. The lens is very capable though, so one day I will put in it another film and use it with a rangefinder in the accesory shoe.
I use mercuries in it as I have fresh ones. If you wish, drop me an email as I am also selling these mercuries at a very reasonable price. (Well... it won't be the thing that will make me rich.)

Eugen

 

[fidget]

They are Varta V675 AT. 1.4volts. The C35 worked well with them.

That's good to know, OK with hearing aid batteries. Guess they need fairly frequent replacement.

Thanks for the offer Eugen, if it works well (or as well as I am building myself up to expect), I could be contacting you.

Dave...

 

[ZeissFan]

The Konica C35 V is a nice little camera.

As I recall, it's identical in size and weight to the rangefinder version. I say, "As I recall," because I've misplaced my rangefinder C35, so I cannot do a side-by-side comparison.

The Hexanon appears to be the same f/2.8 38mm lens and probably is. Keep in mind that at a certain point, most Japanese lens makers just slapped a single name on all of the lenses, and they no longer reflected a particular lens design. Apparently, most consumers didn't care.

The cool thing about the C35 V is that you can see the pictograms, which are engraved on the lens ring, from within the viewfinder. There is a small optic (presumably, an inexpensive optic) that peers down onto the focusing ring. And if you move the aperture dial from automatic, you can see the aperture that you'll use with the flash.

The camera uses the tried-and-true trap needle system for exposure. The camera calls for the PX-675 1.3-volt cell, but you can use a zinc-air battery in its place. You'll get roughly six months from the battery and possibly more.

Like most other Japanese cameras, you'll need to replace the foam seals. Sadly, Konica packed this camera and its rangefinder sibling with a lot of foam. Figure on spending at least 30 minutes to remove the old junk and another 30 minutes to install new foam. These two little Konicas were among the most difficult to clean and re-foam.

Other than that, I think this is the perfect pocket camera.

I just located the manual. Konica had a single manual for both cameras. The manual says that when the ring is moved from A, "the electric eye metering system is disconnected," which I think means is turned off.

The camera uses 46mm filters.

 

[btgc]

I'd say it is definitely worth trouble. I've C35 EF3 - also scale focus, and lens is slightly different 5 element Hexanon 2.8/35.

Only problem with C35 is that aperture is also selected automatically - so you can't directly employ DOF.
Another advantage - it's fully AE so you just turn focus and have crispy, Konica-looking pictures 🙂

I find scale focusers faster to use on street than tiny RF's without DOF scale - no temptation to set exact focus.

 

[fidget]

Thanks for your input.

It looks very nice. As said it is neat that I can see the pictograms in the VF. I can also estimate distances between the stops as it moves so far.

I've re-foamed it and am ready to try a film in it over the coming weekend.

I (vaguely) recall some posts in the past which suggested that the battery cover is drilled with a couple of small holes to allow the cell to breathe, which apparently it needs to. So, it's now got 2 x 1mm holes in it.

((((The last time I went to this much trouble was with the C35, which broke (meter died) after only a few shots. When I opened it up, it was full of corrosion, so that too is in the junk box.))))

 

[fidget]

Test film developed. Neopan 400 in Rodinal 1:50.
No light leaks and all frames nicely exposed. Very pleasing....
New hearing-aid battery put in mid roll, although no difference could be seen between this and the old one (best before Jan 06).

Bridport street market.

 

[retnull]

These little early '70s Japanese cameras are sometimes waaaay better than you might expect. I have a Maymiya 135EE, a rare thing that looks very much like your Konica and the Canonet QL and a few others. It produces results that are as crisp as the fine image you posted.

 

[fidget]

Just another question....
I notice that the meter is always active, even if the exposure dial is changed off A for auto. Does this suggest that the battery will run down quickly if the lens is left uncovered, or does it make no difference?

Dave....

 

[Peter_Jones]

Same as the Konica S2 I have, it needs a lens cap on to de-activate the meter.

 

[sevo]

Yep, switched by lens cap. And does not seem to rely on mercury cells - at least my C35 gives the same meter readout with alkalines.

Sevo