Ordering from Russia

R

r-brian

Guest
I've gotten this urge recently for a new camera. (Ok, I always have this urge but my wife said ok.) Not one of those miniature 35mm toys, but a real camera, a 6x9 folder. Zeiss Ikonta C is out of my price range (unless I get lucky) so I'm looking at the Moskva 5. Also looking at a Isolette 3, not instead of but in addition to the Moskva. I like large negatives. Plus, I can throw one of these folders in my bag when I'm out with my 4x5 Pressman (say 'very large rangefinder') and it won't take up any more space than 1 or 2 film holders.

What should I know about ordering from Russia, Slovakia or Holland? Basically, what import duties or other hidden costs do I need to be aware of?

Brian
 
I ordered my Moskva-5 from Oleg, and experienced a very simple PayPal transaction.

No duties. Nothing. The camera cost $100, and that was that.

There was a two week wait for the camera- that's pretty typical.

Also the normal quantity of Yak Hair Twine, but if you order cameras from that part of the world (at least Russia and the Ukraine) you'll learn about that too.
 
Thanks JD.

What name does Oleg sell under (I'm assuming on Ebay)? Who else would people recommend?

Brian
 
In perverse sort of way, hunting out Russian camera bargains at auction can be sporting. However, it may be more productive to go to a good source like Oleg and just specify what you want. He can look for it and send it to you. It's like the difference between going on a fishing trip and going to a seafood reataurant.

However, if you want to buy from Russia or the Ukraine, I strongly urge you to look for the Westernbid logo. You send your money to Minneapolis and the camera comes from the Mother Country in 2 weeks or less. Basically you pay what you bid plus S&H. The Seller takes of whatever it takes to get it to your door (I live in the US, experiences in from other countries could be different) Sometimes the Seller is from a less than cosmopolitan place like Central Siberia, and he/she has to pay a gratuity/mordita/incentive payment to get the package on its way. That's their business, I've never even had a Seller tell me that it was necessary.

I've only been burned once on an auction from Ukraine/Russia and that was probably due to e-Bay's ham-handedness. They kicked a Seller off e-Bay after I paid him but before I received my lens. He no longer had any incentive to perform and didn't. I've never had problems with a Seller that used Westernbid to process their payments.

-Paul
 
Yuri doing business as Fedka is also a good Seller. He is in New York. He is a good guy and has good merchandise, but some say his prices are on the high end.

His selling website is:

http://www.fedka.com/catalog/

Right now he has a Moskva-5 for $89.00, which if you consider my earlier comments about fishing or eating fish, is a fair price.

-Paul
 
Over at the BestStuff Russiancamera Forum they compiled a list of trustworthy sellers:

http://www.beststuff.com/forum/download.php?f=27&id=25&fileid=13&file=Sellers.txt


Due to health reasons, Oleg has given up repairing cameras, but is still selling - and with his expertise, his checked cameras should be very good; when he was still in the repair business, I had him CLA a FED 2 and a Zorki 6 for me, and esp. the latter feels as smooth and silky as a friend's Leica M4. Address see in JDs post.

Fedka also has a great reputation for good quality, but is a bit pricey.

I can also recommend this place:
http://www.dvdtechcameras.com/

Ebay sellers I had good experiences with:
cupog (not the cheapest...)
alex-photo - aka asr-photo
zenitar
ustas
kubanoid

Two sellers I've been warned about at the BestStuff forum: netsend_uk and lemiu


Roman
 
PS: Oh, and by the way, I don't know how set on the 6x9 format you are, but owning both those cameras, I would recommend the Iskra (6x6) formát over the Moskva 5 - the Iskra has a MUCH better lens (actually, one of the best MF normal lenses I know - definitely on par with my Carl Zeiss Jena Biometar 80mm, and my Mamiya 645 70mm lens...); also, the Iskra focuses by moving the whole lens back and forth, while the Moskva 5 has front-cell focussing (which inherently does not produce as good results).
I would only choose the Moskva if the rectangular format is a must, otherwise the Iskra is better in all aspects (the bright coupled rangefinder is to die for...)

Roman
 
Thanks all.

I just order a Moskva 5 and while I was at it a Fed 3 from alex-photo. Roman, thanks for the vote of confidence for Alex: 700 sales, 99.9% positive feedbacks.

I did look at the Iskra's. They have to be good based on the price thay're bringing, especially for a Russian camera. But I really want that big 6x9 negative or positive as the case may be. Besides, I already own a Bronica SQa.
 
I have had very good experiences with alex-photo (aka asr-photo) and and also confdntart. I have received cameras from Alex in as little as 8 days, always in condition better than described.
 
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