Oh dear, the Barnack bug almost bit me

[Erik van Straten]

My favorite shooter.

Erik.

 

[gnuyork]

I get what you're saying, Mike! I love my very early Leica II, this is the 208th camera ever built...

😉

My favorite shooter.

Erik.

Beautiful cameras, both of them.

 

[CharlesDAMorgan]

Crikey, some gorgeous wee beasties being shown here!

I popped in for another look as I had a suspicion I'd got the price wrong, and indeed he wanted £449 for it. Shutter cloth was fine, but it had two tiny bits of what looked like metallic swarf in the curtain when cocked which put me off.

I think the best thing to do is to consider it all in more detail, this one is a pass.

 

[Dralowid]

£449 is not cheap. As you say, 'consider it in more detail' but don't allow yourself to get a fixation for a particular model, as you can see from the above we all have our favourites.

If you are going to use it regularly condition is all.

 

[splitimageview]

Hey Johann,
That covering (and camera) are really cool. Is that Stingray skin? Where did you get that?

-Dan

Hugostudio.com offers sting ray, very durable and grippy

 

[Austintatious]

This Ruski clone helped to scratch my itch !

FED II & I 22 Collapsible lens by Carlos Yashinon, on Flickr

 

[shawn]

Resist! You'll hate the loading procedure and the squinty optic! 😉

A SBOOI on top is great though.

You also can explore the world of LTM clones too.

The Leotax TV2 on the left has 50mm frame lines, lever wind and lever rewind. The Nicca/Tower on the right is lever wind, a decent finder, shutter speed that can be set before or after cocking and much easier film loading.

The IIIG is awesome too....

Shawn

 

[David Hughes]

Austintatious "This Ruski clone helped to scratch my itch !"


Yes, and once you've a Barnack you'll start wondering if those stories about the FED and Zorki cameras are true and then you'll end up with a 1936 Leica II and a 1936 FED to compare but don't forget to treat them both the same and that means spending on getting the FED/Zorki maintained like a Leica would be...

Here's one of each for comparison...


Edit:- If you do go after any FED or Zorki, it's important to get a spool with it. There are about 4 different spools available and no way you can tell most of them apart just from a photo on an auction site. Lens caps can also be dear as they are 36mm slip-ons and fit the Leica Elmar. Meaning dear...


Regards, David

 

[lxmike]

My favorite shooter.

Erik.

a thing of true beauty

 

[Austintatious]

Yes, and once you've a Barnack you'll start wondering if those stories about the FED and Zorki cameras are true and then you'll end up with a 1936 Leica II and a 1936 FED to compare but don't forget to treat them both the same and that means spending on getting the FED/Zorki maintained like a Leica would be...

David, they really do look very close in form factor. I know the quality and engineering are quite different. I did have my blue FED II CLA'd after I got it. Not a Leica, but it is very smooth and functions quite well. Also have a black J8 for it.

 

[lxmike]

My favorite shooter.

Erik.

What lens is on the camera Erik

 

[David Hughes]

David, they really do look very close in form factor. I know the quality and engineering are quite different. I did have my blue FED II CLA'd after I got it. Not a Leica, but it is very smooth and functions quite well. Also have a black J8 for it.

Hi,

Well, um, yes and no as both are over 80 years old and both are still working. So I reckon the quality is there but perhaps in another 80 years time we'll know for sure...

I think the real problem is that spending a lot on a Leica encourages people to spend a lot on overhauls and so on. The FED/Zorki cameras are a lot cheaper and the internet experts encourage people to repair them at home in the kitchen. And so the poor old USSR cameras slowly get ruined and the Leicas get looked after.

Luckily there's enough ruined Leicas about now for people to realise the DIY approach may be wrong. BTW, I used to do a lot of repairs when I was moonlighting (not cameras) and dreaded sorting out other people's repairs.

Regards, David

 

[CharlesDAMorgan]

A friend has a Fed3 and I found it to be a pleasant camera with good results (once I'd cleaned all the rangefinder windows for him so he could actually make out the patch), but really no smaller than my M3, which I'd rather use of the two.

I think a clone of the same size as a Barnack would be interesting, but what struck me so much was the lovely size of the III with Elmar - just nicely pocket sized.

 

[johannielscom]

Hey Johann,
That covering (and camera) are really cool. Is that Stingray skin? Where did you get that?

-Dan

Hey Dan,

got the Stingray covering from Hugo Studio, and really love it! Makes the little Leica II look so luxurious!

Unfortunately he's not doing PayPal anymore and I don't have a credit card so I'm left in the cold now that I wanted to order silver leather coverings for my conversion Leica III. But, that may not be of interest to you since most US folks have credit cards, not having them is a typical EU thing I suppose 😉

 

[splitimageview]

Johan if you want to order from him, I can assist. Just drop me a PM.

Robert

 

[gb hill]

a thing of true beauty

I agree. Lovely

 

[gb hill]

got the Stingray covering from Hugo Studio, and really love it! Makes the little Leica II look so luxurious.

Looks like it’s a nice grip too. Lovely camera.

 

[bayernfan]

this thread is not good for me. suddenly the idea of owning a leica standard is making more sense.

 

[Erik van Straten]

What lens is on the camera Erik

A Cosina/Voigtländer Color Skopar 50mm f/2.5, bought new in 2002 but heavily used since then. Indestructable, just like the camera (from 1936).

Erik.

 

[Erik van Straten]

This is my early Leica I (1928) and a shot with it. (Woman with a black eye.)

Erik.