Rauti
Member
Hi community,
After aquiring a Fuji GW690III I went to a Pentax 6x7. Two of theses bulky guys are too much.
I want to replace my GW690III with a GS645.
I'm in Germany until beginning of August, after then I'm back in Los Angeles.
Any tipps, recommendations apart from KEH, ebay?
Thank you very much!
Best,
moritz
After aquiring a Fuji GW690III I went to a Pentax 6x7. Two of theses bulky guys are too much.
I want to replace my GW690III with a GS645.
I'm in Germany until beginning of August, after then I'm back in Los Angeles.
Any tipps, recommendations apart from KEH, ebay?
Thank you very much!
Best,
moritz
retinax
Well-known
Not very common in Europe. As you probably know, if you end up buying one of the many from Japan, better wait until you're back in the US - no import duties and taxes.
Godfrey
somewhat colored
I bought the GS645S Wide 60 I have now from a seller in Japan via Ebay, recently. It arrived in less than a week after the sale closed and was in the condition as described. The rangefinder was a bit sticky, so I sent it to Frank Marshman: he did a complete overhaul for a very reasonable price. The camera works beautifully and makes extremely nice photographs ... This is my second GS645S, and I'm glad I went for it again: a very nice camera and not too bulky like the larger format cameras.
The original GS645 folder is a bit problematic to me. I had two of them in ages past and both developed problems with the bellows and shutter release multiple times requiring repair.
For a compact medium format folder, I now have a Voigtländer Perkeo II that is a delight: light weight, folded, it fits in a jacket pocket, excellent Color Skopar lens. It doesn't have the rangefinder or meter of the GS645, but I've found it to be much more reliable and just as good with respect to the quality of the negatives it makes, and I like the square format too.
I suspect something like that might prove easier to find in Germany at a reasonable price, in good condition. Mine was in okay condition as purchased (I believe the seller was in Austria), but the automatic film transport was a bit funky so I had it overhauled. It works perfectly now. I just acquired one of the Voigtländer Kontur 6x6 viewfinders for it; makes framing much more accurate and is easier to use with glasses than the small optical peephole finder in the camera.
G
The original GS645 folder is a bit problematic to me. I had two of them in ages past and both developed problems with the bellows and shutter release multiple times requiring repair.
For a compact medium format folder, I now have a Voigtländer Perkeo II that is a delight: light weight, folded, it fits in a jacket pocket, excellent Color Skopar lens. It doesn't have the rangefinder or meter of the GS645, but I've found it to be much more reliable and just as good with respect to the quality of the negatives it makes, and I like the square format too.
I suspect something like that might prove easier to find in Germany at a reasonable price, in good condition. Mine was in okay condition as purchased (I believe the seller was in Austria), but the automatic film transport was a bit funky so I had it overhauled. It works perfectly now. I just acquired one of the Voigtländer Kontur 6x6 viewfinders for it; makes framing much more accurate and is easier to use with glasses than the small optical peephole finder in the camera.
G
aizan
Veteran
Keep an eye on jauce.com (Yahoo! Japan auctions proxy service) and Carousell (sg.carousell.com). There might be something on Etsy, too. I've gotten several things on Jauce, and they've all been good deals and problem-free.
Rauti
Member
Thank you for your help, guys.
I didn't know there aren't any import taxes from Japan in the us.
That's great news.
I was hoping that I find one in Germany, because I have a german mechanic who could service the camera.
But maybe I have to go the American way with Frank Marshman.
Thanks,
moritz
PS: The Voigtländer seems interesting, but I like the combined rangefinder of my Fuji GW690.
I didn't know there aren't any import taxes from Japan in the us.
That's great news.
I was hoping that I find one in Germany, because I have a german mechanic who could service the camera.
But maybe I have to go the American way with Frank Marshman.
Thanks,
moritz
PS: The Voigtländer seems interesting, but I like the combined rangefinder of my Fuji GW690.
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