JimG
dogzen
Re. early Konica RF. Does anyone know if these cameras were screw mount and what size screw mount? I did a search for information but very little is available. Any information would be appreciated.
Konica One Question
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Alec
Amateur
Hello Jim.
I understand there was no interchangeable-lens Konica rangefinder before 1999, but I am no authority on this question.
http://www.konica-collector.com/rangefinder/rangefinder_old.htm
I understand there was no interchangeable-lens Konica rangefinder before 1999, but I am no authority on this question.
http://www.konica-collector.com/rangefinder/rangefinder_old.htm
jlw
Rangefinder camera pedant
No, the lens on the Konica I (of which I used to own one) was not interchangeable. It was a collapsible lens that looked somewhat like those seen on old Leicas, with a pull-and-twist chrome tube, but it did not unscrew from the body.
The camera used a manually-cocked leaf shutter built into the lens, rather than a focal-plane shutter built into the camera body, so there wouldn't have been any way to incorporate a standard LTM lens mount.
The Konica I is a neat old camera, in an elegantly spartan sort of way, and if I recall correctly, the quality of its lens was very good -- but that's the only lens you get to use with it.
The camera used a manually-cocked leaf shutter built into the lens, rather than a focal-plane shutter built into the camera body, so there wouldn't have been any way to incorporate a standard LTM lens mount.
The Konica I is a neat old camera, in an elegantly spartan sort of way, and if I recall correctly, the quality of its lens was very good -- but that's the only lens you get to use with it.
JimG
dogzen
Alec- That's to bad I found one in good cond. but lens is scratced. I see that Ritz sells lenses for 'early' Konica, It seems like even if the body is not set up for interchangeable lenses somehow the lens could be removed and replaced?
JimG
dogzen
Does that mean that the lens can in no way be replaced?
KoNickon
Nick Merritt
How badly scratched? It may not be noticeable at all unless you point it toward a bright light source.
There are a fair number of these that were sold; it's possible that a lens could be swapped in from a parts camera. The guy to talk to is Greg Weber in Fremont, Nebraska; he is the most knowledgeable Konica guy out there. I think his website is webercamera.com.
There are a fair number of these that were sold; it's possible that a lens could be swapped in from a parts camera. The guy to talk to is Greg Weber in Fremont, Nebraska; he is the most knowledgeable Konica guy out there. I think his website is webercamera.com.
jlw
Rangefinder camera pedant
JimG said:
I'm sure that what the Ritz ad means is "early" Konica SLRs, such as the Autoreflex T. None of Konica's older 35mm and medium-format RF cameras had interchangeable lenses (although they were extremely cool and very advanced otherwise -- models such as the 35mm Konica IIIa and 120-rollfilm Pearl IV are fabulously sophisticated.)
That's not to say that you couldn't fix yours. You'd just need to find another Konica I with a good lens and a rough body. Since the Konica I has a manually cocked shutter (via a lever on the lens) and the shutter release is on the lens rather than the body, there are no complicated mechanical interconnections between the body and the lens to make disassembly difficult. Basically all you'd need to do is remove the bad lens/shutter assembly and replace it with the good one. The only tricky thing is finding a suitable parts camera for the transplant.
JimG
dogzen
Thanks' Nick, actually the lens is described as, cleaning marks fair to poor. I wondered how badly that would effect the photos. I think I'll take a chance and hope for the best.
raid
Dad Photographer
I have the similar Konica II c amera with a fixed 50mm lens. It is a very nice looking and functional camera. It seems to be well built and the lens has a good reputation for being sharp.
