Mother Russia on Ebay

parks5920

parks5920

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I see alot of russian fed and zorki RF's on ebay and was wondering what people's thoughts on them were? There also seem to be alot of different versions of each camera as well and was wondering what version to look for or stay away from?
Thanks,
JP
 
JP,

You may get a lot of replies to your post.

I currently own a FED-2 and I have a Zorki-4 on the way from the Ukraine. I enjoy using the FED-2 very much. It is small, light and feels good in the hand. The FED requires you to think a little harder about each shot, which is good. I can't comment on the Zorki at the moment but Zorki users are known to rave about their cameras, too. 😀

I might avoid any FSU camera that has a built-in light meter. Usually, that's the first part to fail. Also, I hear the Zorki viewfinders are brighter than the FED VFs. Oh, and cameras with slow shutter speed mechanisms may require a little more care than those without.

One more thing - once you buy one FSU camera, you will buy more. No doubt about it. But they are affordable, so it's easy to buy a small fleet!
 
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The Zorki and FED 1 cameras are more likely to have cracked shutter curtains that require replacement.

On any of these cameras you have to take the description offered by the seller with a grain of salt. An "Excellent" camera can have many minor problems. If you aren't comfortable doing basic mechanical adjustment with small tools the FSU cameras may not be the ones for you.
alex-photo on ebay is one of the most reliable "as advertised" dealers or buy directly from someone like Oleg at http://www.okvintagecamera.com/ who offers cameras that have been cla'd. Also Fedka here in the states offers good equipment.
 
I can contributre to the above appraisal of alex-photo. Although i have not bought a camera from him, only smaller items (hood, Kiev shutter strap, etc), it seems that he is fast and reliable - and helpful. E.g. i was fool enough to click on 'buy it now' for a SQUARE jupiter-8 lens hood and payed for it before realizing that the J-8 fromt rotates thus the square hood is useless. I asked him if he has a ROUND hood he could send me instead, and he did without questions or hesitation. Instead of 5$ shipping&hanbdling finally he quoted me only 4$, weird.
Kudos to a great seller.
 
Thanks for the info. I will look up alex-photo and I have checked out oleg's web site, but I have one more question, I noticed that the fed 2 has multiple versions like a b c d etc. same with the other RF's I was looking at, any personal favorites?
 
I like the early FED 2s with the Leica-style wind knob rather than the "mushroom." know. But that's a matter of personal preference. A lot of accessories won't fit on the early FED 2 accessory shoe because it is sunken. The later models were more elevated, I think.

Don't overlook the Zorki 6. It even has a hinged back. It's the only Soviet LTM rangefinder with that feature. Also has lever wind. I keep telling people the FED 5 is one of the cheapest FSU cameras but it's a nice shooter. They made a model with a built-in (but not coupled) meter and a model w/o a meter.
 
On the Fzorki site, there is a Fed-2(g) which is really more like a Fed3(b) than anything else. All ofthe other Fed-2's are pretty much the same inside.

I prefer the neckstrap lug versions, but if you can find one with strap laugs and the ugly vinyl skin, you can re-cover the body in much finer leather. Like most Soviet era cameras, condition is more important than age.

-Paul
 
I found a Zorki-2c and fed 4, only the Zorki has the neckstrap lugs, but I did find a fed 2 with the lugs, I think I like that better too. What would be a general $$ for the Zorki 2c or a good fed 2 or fed 4?
 
I paid $23 + shipping for my FED 2 with lens. The camera is pretty nice but the I-26 lens had a rather ugly scratch. It is a bit of a gamble to buy FSU gear but considering the price I can stand that.
 
AndersG said:
I paid $23 + shipping for my FED 2 with lens. The camera is pretty nice but the I-26 lens had a rather ugly scratch. It is a bit of a gamble to buy FSU gear but considering the price I can stand that.
Click to expand...

Did you buy from the bay? It seems that alex-photo's prices are a bit higher than other sellers, but I would rather pay abit more and get something worth the $$. Are the lens on the fed 2 fixed?
 
parks5920 said:
Did you buy from the bay? It seems that alex-photo's prices are a bit higher than other sellers, but I would rather pay abit more and get something worth the $$. Are the lens on the fed 2 fixed?
Click to expand...

Yes, I bought from ebay and it was the second camera I bought from that seller (kassiapeya), the first time both camera and lens were fine. There might be a reason for his prices being lower than Alex's, though. The FEDs and Zorkis use interchangable M39 thread mount lenses.
 
Although I haven't checked that market for awhile I suspect the Zorki 2cs should go for under $30 (plus shipping) if you shot around a little -- Alex might be a little more. The 2Cs aren't as popular even if the sellers say they are R@RE!!. They have been described as a Zorki 1 that has been "beaten with an ugly stick." Mine takes nice pictures, however, and it does have flash sync. The rigid I-50 also looks like it was designed to match the 2c -- ugly.
A lot of 2Cs were built and every so often you can find one that was was engraved to somebody in the military or industry for outstanding service of some sort. Guess it was a cheap way for the party to give an atta boy or girl.

All of the FSU camera prices have gone up since I got my first one several years ago -- not a lot -- but noticably. The Kievs have increased the most -- you could hardly give them away a few years ago. There isn't as wide a selection of any of the brands now. The pickings are getting slimmer.
 
Thanks for the info regarding the Zorki 2cs. I am really interested in trying one of these out, now I just need to figure out which one. I got a recommendation to find a FSU camera with a Industar 61 lens for their sharpness, does any of your Zorki or FED's have that lens?
 
I-61L/Ds are usually found on FED 5 models, never on Zorkis - yep, the I-61L/D is a very good lens, very sharp and contrasty - but be sure to also check out the Jupiter-8 - also very good, but completely different - low contrast, GREAT bokeh, very nice for portraits.

Roman

PS: As for bodies, I'd recommend - in this order - Zorki 6, FED 2, Zorki 3m, Zorki 4; of course, Kievs are nice, too, but rather different...
 
Roman said:
I-61L/Ds are usually found on FED 5 models, never on Zorkis - yep, the I-61L/D is a very good lens, very sharp and contrasty - but be sure to also check out the Jupiter-8 - also very good, but completely different - low contrast, GREAT bokeh, very nice for portraits.

Roman

PS: As for bodies, I'd recommend - in this order - Zorki 6, FED 2, Zorki 3m, Zorki 4; of course, Kievs are nice, too, but rather different...
Click to expand...

Thank you for the info. Roman, much appreciated.
Jason
 
I remember Woody Allen in "Love & Death" when he said: "She's not *my* mother!"

...you do know that Fed and Kiev are actually Ukrainian, not Russian, right? The difference is kind of the difference between Norway and Sweden.

Anyway, I once played around with a Jupiter (forgot the exact model name right now), but it was a 55mm, the one with the radioactive rare element (La). Amazing glass. I had been keeping my eye open for a nice copy on ePrey, but as you may have noticed, I forgot the exact model name.
 
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