Canon LTM New into the RF with QL17 GIII

Canon M39 M39 screw mount bodies/lenses
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sadowski25pl

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Hello,
Yesterday I buy my Canonet QL17 G-III in Mint state...
With...
Photos is from the seller on allegro.pl ( this is like ebay but Poland)





I Pay 193$ for this camera.

Week ago G-III has been in conservation and the lightseals are new, optic is clean, RF is callibrated and Shutter also is callibrated.

Just small Miracle 😀

I will got it in 2-3 days (Camera will be in shipping by Polish Post in Monday)

I read, this camera is full manual and can be used without battery. What lightmeter will be good? ( only what I can buy in Europe, I'm from Poland )

Cheers,
Konrad Sadowski ( or Conrad Sadowsky in English)
 
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Hi Sir,

I am in the same situation : the Canon QL17 GIII is my first rangefinder camera. I have had it since early may. So far, I love the camera. It is compact, feels solid, the lens is superb.

Just be careful to put a lens cap on the lens if you stay in EA mode when you do not use the camera, otherwise the battery will be drained.

Enjoy 🙂
 
Greetings Konrad.

The QL17 was my first small-format RF as well. It's a great gateway drug that will have you wanting a Leica or interchangeable-lens Canon soon.

If you intend to work in manual mode, which indeed is not metered with this camera, you could try switching into metered auto mode (aperture ring setting "A") to get a reading, then switching back to manual. While this sounds cumbersome, it may not be worse than attaching an external meter and pressing its button for a reading. And it will save you the cost of a meter. After doing that for awhile, you may find you learn to guess exposure and you won't need any meter.

If you do want an external meter eventually, consider the Sekonic L-208. It's a good, simple meter. I got one new for USD 100; you can probably find cheaper by seeking a secondhand one. Classic meters (old Westons, &c.) are beautiful, but there is risk of getting dead selenium cells or the like, so I decided not to do that.

--Dave
 
Hey,
in local store I find a Duracell 675 Zinc-Air 1,35V 600mAh medical battery.
Maybe tomorrow I do small adapter from LR9 (PX625-A) to use this 675
Six this batteries cost 12-20PLN ( 3,83-6,38$ when 1$=3,13PLN )
 
Yeeehaaaaa 😀
Camera has arrived 😀

Now I go build adapter for 675 Zinc-Air

Ok,
that how I use Duracell 675 Zinc-Air hearing aid 600mAh battery (DA675N6).
This Battery have 1,4V nominal voltage, this is better that 1,5V PX625-Alkaline.
And photos:

1.
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2.
dsc00053h.jpg


3.
dsc00050ny.jpg
 
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It's a great camera. I have a Vivitar 35ES and FED2 also but this is my most recent and current favourite.

Put new seals in to avoid frustration.
 
martinsmith99 said:
It's a great camera. I have a Vivitar 35ES and FED2 also but this is my most recent and current favourite.
Click to expand...

I now have two of them and regularly use both. I re-calibrated one to be able to use 1600 speed film.

Put new seals in to avoid frustration.
Click to expand...

I had to do this on one of mine. It is a messy and frustrating job! 🙁 You can get the pre-cut light seal kit on Ebay from user "Interslice", which is easy to install once you actually get the old yucky seals out and cleaned up.
 
From this what I see in the camera , light seals are need to be put new...

Hmm... 12$ this will be something about 37PLN + shipping

dsc00059q.jpg


dsc00057m.jpg


dsc00058kx.jpg
 
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Those are not the original light seals. They may be recent, but they appear badly applied, with large, messy globs of glue visible in your third picture. (Indeed, "WTF"!!) If you don't want to fix the seals (to save USD 12), you could try a test roll to see if there are any light leaks. Maybe the seals work even though they are ugly. Then if no leaks, you could keep using the camera as-is until the seals fail. But they will fail sometime; in your second picture, it appears they are already loosening. Why not fix them now proactively? If you wait for them to fail, they could do so at an inopportune moment and destroy a whole roll of irreplaceable shots, as well as still have to spend the USD 12. 🙂

I second the recommendation of interslice seals. They have worked very well for me and are a great bargain, considering the amount of foam you get in the pack.

--Dave
 
I used to have the the pages on foam seal replacement in the Kyphoto website bookmarked on my computer, but I've lost them now. Maybe someone else here can give you the link to them, but do find and follow John's (he's the fine Interslice guy) instructions carefully and you'll have little trouble. To do a proper and complete job on the GIII, you gotta remove the back door (easy) for one large seal, as I recall, at the door hinge.
 
Bill58 said:
To do a proper and complete job on the GIII, you gotta remove the back door (easy) for one large seal, as I recall, at the door hinge.
Click to expand...

Hmmmm ... It's been a few years but I don't remember having to remove the back at all. Once I got all of the old grungy seals out and cleaned it up, the new seal parts fit in place quite easily.
 
Gratuluję, sam mam czarną 😉

I'm using sunny 16 /AE in difficult light with Canonet loaded with slide, and it works fine. Svierdlovsk 4 is the best cheap lightmeter I know. Get the seals done by repairman, you wont pay much.
 
I'm sorry, for crazy $193 it should have arrived with seals replaced, made to work properly with current 1.5V SR44 cell and battery fitted.
 
I'm folding my Minolta 7sII with black electrical tape on the back where it pops-up, and I have no problem with light seals. This is a very practical choice for me because where I live there is no camera repairman.
 
The light seals on mine went as well. My solution: stick the case on the body (mine came with one). As long as I wind the film on and off with the case on, I don't get any light leaks. The body is protected too, which I always prefer with these older cameras.

(I did buy the foam kit though for when I feel like replacing the seals.)
 
dmr said:
Hmmmm ... It's been a few years but I don't remember having to remove the back at all. Once I got all of the old grungy seals out and cleaned it up, the new seal parts fit in place quite easily.
Click to expand...

The way the hinge is made, you gotta notch one full length seal twice (if I recall right) and the best way to install the new seal is a quick door removal. Check Jon Goodman's directions on kyphoto.
 
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