Trimming negatives for FED2

captainslack

Five Goats Hunter
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I'm waiting on a FED2, my first FSU camera, to arrive from alex-photo. In the meantime, I downloaded an English manual from someplace and read thru it. The diagrams it has on loading film use the old "Leica style" film leader. I know for the bottom loading type FED & Zorki 1 series models, as well as the old screwmount Leica series, you have to trim to the leader of modern films in order to make it work, but will I have to do that for my FED2 as well? I wouldn't think so since the back is removable, but I figured I'd check with more knowledgable folks before I screwed something up! :D
 
Once upon a time all 35mm factory loads came with the long "Leica leader" Any old instruction manual will show this type leader, because it was all we knew. I think the manufacturers starting with Kodak started using the shorter leader sometime in the early 1980's.

-Paul
 
I think it is the basic nature of Soviet cameras that the film frame is a little bit tilted. Most of my Soviet cameras do this.

People used to file notches inside of their cameras to help them identify negatives and match them to a camera later. Other cameras like Agfas had deckel edges and Exaktas are all upside down (based on frame number placement) I can identify the negatives shot with most of my Soviet cameras by their tilt.

-Paul
 
I have a Zarya and a series of Fed 2s. No trimming needed on any of them and I never had the tilting problem. I just load like I would any fully manual camera which is not a bottom loader.
 
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