Trading a Bronica RF 645 for a Plaubel Makina 67?

wilkens

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Im considering selling my Bronica RF 645 set and getting a Plaubel Makina 67 or 670 insted. I really like the Bronica but the Makina is my dream camera with that 2.8 lens and the 6x7 format in small package.

How much can you get for a Bronica RF 645 with the 65 and 45mm and the flash do you think? Enough to cover the cost of the Makina?
 
keh.com is selling the Bronica /w 65mm lens for approx. $900 to give you an idea about selling it privately. FYI, Ken Rockwell, though some people really dislike his site, has a good review of the Plaubel Makina camera. He makes a comment that repairs would be expensive. Good luck.
 
I read an article in the BJP about Plaubel Makinas not being very reliable. The photographer who used them had three because at least one was being repaired at any one time. Worth researching before you take the leap.

Sorry I don't have the details of the article!
 
keh.com is selling the Bronica /w 65mm lens for approx. $900 to give you an idea about selling it privately. FYI, Ken Rockwell, though some people really dislike his site, has a good review of the Plaubel Makina camera. He makes a comment that repairs would be expensive. Good luck.

Thats not to bad. If i sell the 45 and the flash separately I guess i can get a few more bucks for them compared to selling it all as a set. It still might not be enough to cover the cost for the Makina but almost.

Thanks!

:)
 
I read an article in the BJP about Plaubel Makinas not being very reliable. The photographer who used them had three because at least one was being repaired at any one time. Worth researching before you take the leap.

Sorry I don't have the details of the article!

The Makina has some issues. The lightmeter seems to be the weakest spot. But there are so many strong points that im afraid I have to have one despite that. ;)
 
Find the medium format lens tests on the internet. Look at the Makina results. Look at the Mamiya results. There are too many things to go wrong with the Makina that affect the performance of the lens.

Keep the Bronica.
Sell the Bronica & buy either the Mamiya 6 or Mamiya 7.
 
Thanks a lot for the info! That would at be quite close to what a Makina would sell for if im correct?

For 800€? That would get you only wasted or broken ones. The current going rate, in good shape, is around 1000€. If they were recently factory serviced or the buyers otherwise believe them to be in a perfect working condition, they fetch even more.
 
For 800€? That would get you only wasted or broken ones. The current going rate, in good shape, is around 1000€. If they were recently factory serviced or the buyers otherwise believe them to be in a perfect working condition, they fetch even more.

Okay, maybe not that close then... ;)
But still the gap wasn´t as big as I had feared.
 
...or the Voigtlander Bessa III. The lens on the Bessa III is a match for the lens on the Mamiya 7II.


Sort of blows the budget though ... you'd need to have three or four RF645's to sell to fund a Bessa III. :p

Sad situation actually because it really would be the ideal camera in this situation! :(
 
Find the medium format lens tests on the internet. Look at the Makina results. Look at the Mamiya results. There are too many things to go wrong with the Makina that affect the performance of the lens.

Keep the Bronica.
Sell the Bronica & buy either the Mamiya 6 or Mamiya 7.

Im not that in to lens tests. If the pictures look and feel good to me then im happy. But I will have a look. Thanks for the heads up.

The thing I like about the Makina is this:
- small size pocketable
- fast lens 2.8
- 6x7 (I dont like squares like Mamiya 6 and 6 x 4.5 is just a bit to small for me. 6x9 would have been even better).

I have not found another camera that got those features. But Im open to suggestions!
 
Sort of blows the budget though ... you'd need to have three or four RF645's to sell to fund a Bessa III. :p

Sad situation actually because it really would be the ideal camera in this situation! :(

Yes it looks like a nice camera. But too pricy...
 
Yes it looks like a nice camera. But too pricy...

I have a Bessa III and it's great. Sure, it's not the cheapest camera around but IMO it's worth it.
The Makina looks nice but given the notorious unreliability of it I think you'll end up paying much more in the long run. It won't be easy to find someone to repair it if something goes wrong and whoever will be up to the task will probably charge quite a bit.

I say if you want great quality for a great price, go for the Mamiya 7. Or maybe one of the Fuji rangefinders?
 
I love the Fuji BL690 with its 6x9 format and the super sharp 100mm 3.5 AE lens. You even get aperture priority and exchangeable lenses.
 
I have a Bessa III and it's great. Sure, it's not the cheapest camera around but IMO it's worth it.
The Makina looks nice but given the notorious unreliability of it I think you'll end up paying much more in the long run. It won't be easy to find someone to repair it if something goes wrong and whoever will be up to the task will probably charge quite a bit.

I say if you want great quality for a great price, go for the Mamiya 7. Or maybe one of the Fuji rangefinders?

I will look into those. Thanks!
 
The Fujinon lenses may be unsurpassed for performance.The built and the heft of the Fuji GL/BL 690 cameras is awesome. The nickname is "Texas Leica" for this camera and for the Pentax 6x7.

The wide angle lenses are hard to come by,and they are costly [and superb]. I find the 100mm lens more than sufficient. The 6x9 format and the extremely high resolution allow a great deal of cropping.

The "modern" version of this camera costs far more. Other Fuji RF models do not allow interchanging lenses.

This is the only camera/lens that beats a Rolleiflex TLR in perceived sharpness.

A good asking price range for GL/BL + 100mm lens [not all 100mm lenses are AE] is $450-$550.
 
The real problem with the Makina is the camera collectors... As with all cameras that happen to become collectors items.
 
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