Time to Brag about your best bargin(s)

A couple of months ago I bought a bunch of Olympus gear off of a single Ebay auction including an OM2, various lenses, a couple of Oly rangefinders including a black body SP all for $335.00 including shipping. I kept the SP and resold the rest for $550. I had always wanted an Oly SP but didn't care for the camera after shooting a few rolls of film. Sold it on eBay for $195.00 which I used to buy a Kiev 4AM, 35mm lens and finder, 135mm lense, and a nice Lowepro backpack to carry it all in.
 
Sorry, these are SLR stories... I figured this was a pretty outstanding deal via eBay... A Pentax LX with FA-1W prism (the W finder has more diopter adjustment), side grip, and uncommon SMC Pentax f/1.2 50mm lens, all immaculate condition for $462.

Another Pentax deal recently was the latest 645NII body with normal 75mm lens, 220 film insert, manual, nice Lowe-Pro bag with eBay BIN price $1400. Seller had low feedback, supplied one murky photo and minimal description, so the $800 starting price was off-putting... I was the only bidder and got it at that. Seller said the kit had been used only 5 times, and it sure looked (and worked) as new when it arrived.

Not all spectacular deals end up so great... For $56 I got a nice looking Pentax MX with f/1.7 50mm lens, where the seller said the meter didn’t seem to work. One can hope it’s just the batteries, but in this instance the shutter was hanging open at slow speeds and the circuit board in the baseplate was all corroded from salt water. Baseplate was shot, and the lens mount too. Turned out the front lens group in the 50mm was loose. The deal had started out well but then repairs and CLA came to $161. So, $217 in exc condition is ok but maybe not to boast about like $56 would have been. :)

Well, to get back rangefinder-related bargains, I could add that I bought a brand-new 35mm Summicron eight-element for $164.50. Since that was 40 years ago, it might be disqualified from the current discussion, but I do still use it...
 
1) Last December I was in a local thrift store pawing over cameras before going to work. I was just about to leave when I asked the nice lady what was in the little white box in the corner of the case. "I don't know, but it's pretty heavy" she said. Opened it up: 1937 IIIa with Summar 50mm, 35mm Summaron, 135mm Hektor and 73mm Hektor with VIOOH variable veiwfinder and a couple of filters as well. $39.95 for the whole set!! I think my Karma is all used up!

2) perfectly working clean Rolleicord IV w/ leather case, $35.00 thrift store.

3) Contax T2 w/ case 20.00.

4) rollei 35S 10.00.

.....I'll stop now.
 
A couple of year's back I picked up an old Nikon M rangefinder with a 50/2 Nikkor, original case and the original signed factory inspection sheet for $250.00.

Jim B.
 
furcafe said:
The only bargain I've ever got in Leica was back in 2001 when I snagged a new 35/1.4 Summilux-M ASPH, w/full U.S. Passport warranty, on eBay for < $1500. The seller was a camera store in Gary, Indiana (IIRC) that had never sold anything on eBay before & therefore had no feedback.

I was the only bidder.

I've managed to get a few good deals since then, but no real steals, except a possibly factory-painted (i.e., not after-market) black Contarex Bullseye w/50/2 Planar for $200.
Click to expand...

And was that store Jack's Camera?

Some time ago, when I was selling a kit-lens from Nikon, they offered the very best price for it. My problem was that instead of sending me an e-mail like I did, they called me... to my office. Their voice mail message didn't reach me until after the Christmas break, and by then I already had sent the lens to a store in FL.
 
My luck has turned, finally.

I sold my house, bought a new one, and managed to get more profit from it then I thought.

I promptly bid on an olympus PEN FT, and won it for 80 EUR. It looks almost new considering its age, works flawlessly (meter too, although using modern battery I'm not sure how corerct it is), comes with original case that looks real good too, and the manual.

To complete it I won a box of 50 12-exposure rolls of agfa Portrait 160 (expired since 2006, 24 exposures on the Pen) for the ludicrous amount of 10 EUR SHIPPING INCLUDED.

Exposed at EI 40 it looks as good as I need it :

791176523_55edd0c932.jpg
 
can't really say that i have ever got a great deal on anything.
lots of good deals, discounts and below market prices for sure but never a 10 buck leica - did get a 10 buck oly 35rc once.

probably my best deal was when i was working in a camera store and nikon offered a deal (to the sale guys) on the f2 for 10% less that the store got them for.
somewhere out there is a f2 with my name engraved on the inside of the back cover.
of course i did get a free zi with zm 35/2 lens along with a luigi half case.
i guess that probably counts eh:)?
joe
 
And Nikon S2 for less than 300 bucks and and Bess2 (last week) for less than 100 € in the box... may not be great bargains.. but they look like good deals!
 
Ansco Speedex Special R for $15
Yashica TL-X for $1.50
Ansco Super Memar for $9.95 (finally got it working this morning)
Zeiss Super Ikonta C for $10.01
Moskva 2 for $9.51
Kodak Retina II for $15.51


All found on ebay over the years
 
nrb said:
Today I bought a Olympus XA and A-11 flash in mint condition plus its leather bag for €30 at an open air fair in Lisbon.
Click to expand...
And we (the Lisbon RFF meeting) saw I good it was!
Great Buy NRB!
 
Well, since everyone is doing it.....I'll share mine too. I too typically don't get many great deals, just good deals. Like:

M-Rokkor 40/2 for $65.

Or a Hasselblad 500CM with 4 lenses, 2 backs, WLF, Prism finder, shades and a large metal case to hold it all - for $275. But this was from a freind Pro who went all digital.
 
:(

I got a battered Durst 138 5x7 elnarger for 50 quid. works fine! I did need to drive 300 miles in a truck to collect it, but luckily I 'borrowed' that from the vehicle pool. Borrowed the fuel too.....and then borrowed it to move house. I felt so guilty afterwards and with the back strain moving the damn thing (and incredible gales that hit the UK then and literally nearly blew me into several smashes), I was just glad to get home.

I have had some good deals, but nothing as outrageous as some of you!
 
About 20 years ago I almost got a Leica CL with 40/2 for about $65 instead of $650 from a trainee in a small town photo store. The supervisor returned from lunch just in time to stop my catch.
A few days ago I made the deal I've looked for since then:
A nice 60'ies silver Summicron 50 for $500. Including a original shade in front and a BLACK PAINT M4 attached. Slow speeds are sticky though...
I told the seller he could get a lot more if he turned to an auction site or dealer, but he didn't wan't the hassle!!!
As I wrote in another thread, I now expect to find a black paint Summilux for the same price.
 
Not spectacular, but nice:
A very late (platinum RF) Contax IIIa with 35/2.8 and 21/4.5 Biogons and matching 440 finder for a little under $200.
A Contarex SE with 55/1.4 Planar for $160.
A new-old stock Rollei 35S for $100.
 
I got a Canonet QL-17 GIII with a buy it now price of $20 + 5 for shipping. All it needed was new light seals, which cost me another $10. Not only was it a great bargain, it also got me interested in rangefinders. You can't beat $35 for an epiphany.

Paul
 
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