My old family Contarex

Contarex

Contarex

You have a complete kit with the deluxe carrying case and every accessory that goes with it , and it appears to be in mint condition .
It is probably high end auction house sale material .
I have never gone this route however it is unlikely you will receive
A better price splitting it .
The complete kit has insane value to a true collector , haveing written that ,
The auction house is probably the only way to find that collector .
They take a hefty cut and it may not sell .
The world economy is pretty bad right now , but as always the super rich are ok .
Considering it is a family item and has to be split , well no one can afford to keep it .
Or possibly consignment at a high end venue like Leica shop or a specialty camera shop
.dealers like to pay 50% or less for items , most quotes are about 40% or less .
 
It occurs to me that if you have tested it, then you have actually shot at least one roll of film with it and made at least a few shots with every lens. As much as some might wish otherwise, my guess is that if that didn't intrigue you enough to continue, then a dozen other rolls won't either. Just out of curiosity's sake, I would love it if you posted a few of the pictures.

Of course, if you just checked to see if the shutter opened and the light meter appeared to work, well, you might want to shoot a roll just to be sure. Still this is an amazing find. Might be even more significant than finding a NOS Leica M3 with a full set of lenses... well maybe not (at least not on RFF 🙂).

Anyway, good luck. I know personally I would have a hard time selling something owned by my grandfather... but that is just me (and maybe do to having never knew either of my grandfathers.).

--
Bill
 
thank you for your answers 🙂 i have an two other Camera that i will keep is Leica zero series 90 year old 🙂 from my Grandfather i know she is a Value for big amount but will keep it for later in a Bank

Anyone here which can help advise me to some good auction houses
 
That is something else. Drool.

You will make a killing selling it. I think piece-meal is the way to go if you really want to make more money. Personally, I'd love it if you could sell it as a kit to somebody who would really cherish it as the treasure that it is. But that'd probably end up as a collection and not get used, so I dunno what the best course of action is.

In the past I purchased a Contarex Super kit which was in, generally, an acceptable~fair condition. 50mm had separation, 35mm had some light fungus, 135 had lotta scuffs, etc. Still the whole thing sold for like $2300 total. Hardcore collectors are often after that one item missing from their collection, so they'll really go out of their way to get what they want. It'd be harder to get those top prices for each item when sold as a set.

E.g., the bellows sold for $180. Two hoods (scuffed) sold for $130. Set of filters and a replacement focus screen sold for $470. You get the drift.
 
The auction house route is the way to go with selling something like this. They tend to draw the folks with disposable income, as opposed the the bottom feeders on eBay. It is a wonderful looking set, and should be kept together. One place you might want to check with is https://www.westlicht-auction.com/index.php?id=7131&_ssl=off&lang=3 They do a great job of advertising their auctions, and always have something to draw the big spenders who, having been outbid on one thing, will drop a bundle on something else.

PF

ps: I need to start typing faster
 
leicashop offer me 1800 to 2000 euro for the set and i found out they are selling similar set without two of the lenses and the macrobelly and extra viewfinder trough westlicht and ask minimium 3000 euro and sold it for 4.500 ?????

i do not like to sell them for a cheap so they can get it to auction for a much more money

American sites offer me a better price and one there want to have it sent over and says he can sell it for about 6 to 8 k us $ and take 25% from the total price for it
 
If you trust them, then go with the US site. Make sure you highly document the condition of the items, in particular all serial numbers. Take a photo of each item from the front, rear, all sides, top, and bottom. Take a shot through each lens from the front and the back with the aperture wide open, and closed. Use a macro lens to get up close and personal with your items so that any flaws will be shown. Hopefully, there won't be many of those, but you don't want your items coming back damaged if the deal falls through, and will need documentation as to the quality of the items before shipment. Insure for the amount that is 25% above what they have said is the top end of the auction. And get tracking/signed for shipping from your postal sevice.


PF
 
I would sent it to Leicashop Vienna/Westlicht,

I'm sure this set, in this condition, could got easily go close to- or over a 5 digit amount
 
This Camera has the Serial number T88097 which mean she is from the product of Cameras from Zeiss which has the Serial Numbers from T 85001 to T 95000 only 10.000 was made 1959 to 1960 and they where called Contarex A

that made this Camera 52 year old 🙂
 
well took a photos of all the system tonight for the insurance company and to show on web where i try to sell it

all looks mint and all are smooth and easy to turn focus

first some shots i do with the Contarex in a rainy day here in Iceland and then Pictures of the all system


Zeiss Planar 50mm f2.0 by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Zeiss Distagon 35mm f4.0 by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Zeiss 135mm Sonnar f4.0 by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Zeiss Planar 50mm f2.0 by Gummi Falk, on Flickr

and then the equipment


Front with 50mm by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Bottom with 50mm by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Body open back to curtain and shutter by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Filter for lenses by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Hoods for Lenses by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Macro Belly by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Microscopic adapter by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Owners Manual by Gummi Falk, on Flickr


Passport ,quick manual and buyer receipe and warranty by Gummi Falk, on Flickr
 
 
I have only the Bullseye camera with a 50/2 Planar. I like them a lot.
You may want to ask around online what your complete set is worth these days.
Maybe some Japanese or Chinese collectors may want it?
 
How come the photos of the equipment don't show anymore? Did you take them off of Flickr?

PF

ps: Just clicked on one, and you have them marked as "Private", so they're not going to show here.
 
The Zeiss system you have is really special. The quality of the images is more than impressive. Should you sell? If you have no feeling for a really wonderful set of lenses, a well made body, sell.
It is NOT a nice camera to work with. Heavy, bulky and certainly not user friendly, in my opinion. My Nikon-F good as it is, also NOT user friendly. Many decades ago, i was offered by a rep of Zeiss-Ikon, a full kit of the Contarex SE, 2 bodies, extra backs/magazines with many lenses in similar case..
The price was more than fair but i never added it. I worried about after sales service and spares, as they Z-I, were quitting the camera market.Well until they hooked up with Yashica..I have never regretted it! You probably won't either.
 
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