Serious Kontax Dee'lema

[dee]

I was fortunate that my Contax III could be rescued at the Arsenal factory by ex-Kiev techs with it's authenticity intact .

But this would just not be possible with my bitsa Contax II - even the back is from another camera .

Is it really ethical to fix it with a Kiev shutter and other parts , simply because the finish seems so much better than my 1951 Kiev II ?

I would have the body painted silver with new tan leather , and it would be scratched inside to indicate it's dubious past , so dee'cidedly non - original .

I am having a Champagne painted no-name Kiev ii made at the same time , which I have no problems about modee'fying ... bit this is different .
Should I wait for a scrap Contax with intact shutter - more expense - or give this one a new lease of komprmised life ?

I know I have kinda raised this before I knew that the Contax III could be
salvaged intact , but it's brought up some concern which was not there before .
Thanks dee

 

[xayraa33]

I think you should stop obsessing about the Kiev/Kontax cameras for a short while and start taking some pho-dee-graphs.

 

[dexdog]

I do not see any ethical dilemmas concerning how you choose get your Contax II fixed- it's your camera, do what you want. As long as you don't misrepresent the camera for what it is should you decide to sell it at some point, I don;t see a problem

 

[dee]

hmm OUCH ! ASdee DOES obsess - a lot ! I am taking photos ... but have yet to get over the novelty of my Leica M 8 and using an ex-135 mm Rokkor - now 280 - on my Panasonic L1 .

But i will desperately attempt to calm my constant concern about DOING THE RIGHT THING and not breaking all those nightmare NT ' neurotypical ' rules !

I am going for it !

Thanks dee

 

[MickH]

Is it really ethical to fix it with a Kiev shutter and other parts , simply because the finish seems so much better than my 1951 Kiev II ?... Should I wait for a scrap Contax with intact shutter - more expense - or give this one a new lease of komprmised life ?

Mate, I really think it depends what you want the camera for. If it's for taking pix and the Kiev fix is adequate then that's the way to go. If, on the other hand, you want to bring the camera back to life in original condition, there's your answer.

Don't get too dee-stracted, the dee-cision is yours.

Apologies for using your trademark. 😀

 

[Al Kaplan]

Just think of it as repairing an old camera with "aftermarket" parts because original manufacturer parts aren't available. Automobile repair places do it all the time.

 

[dee]

It is to be a camera to be used and my dee'slexia can't cope with cyrillic script .
The chrome on the Contax bitsa is so much better than my Kievs . It would be a shame to
let the Contax idle when it can be reklaimed with a little help from Arsenal -
I am going for it , thanks .

 

[Fabrice2]

I've bought a contax III $99 from US, everything was stuck, and i sent it to Oleg, i got it back 4month later (and $110), now it works, but i'm doubtfull about its genuinity, so i understand how you feel.
Maybe it's now kievtax, and compared to my IIa and IIIa it is harder to wind the shutter.
But it works, and i can use my J12 on it.And it is freshly cla'ed so all that matters is that it can takes pictures now.
And Oleg also removed the zeiss bumps!