Two early F's

[hellojamin]

I recently inherited two F cameras from my partner's family. Though they are in rough shape I thought they may be of interest because they seem to be quite early examples.
The silver F has a serial of serial 6400xxxx and the black is 6423xxx They are functioning and were stored in dry Colorado so no mildew or fungus to my eye. I have reached out to Vermont camera repair about a CLA of the black body (the silver too if I can get the paint off) and the two lenses it came with. Both lenses are early 9 blade versions, 10.5 cm f2.8 nikkor-p and 5cm f2 nikkor-s. They were both used with uv filters so the glass looks pristine! Anyways, here are some photos!

 

[p.giannakis]

That 105 looks great 👍

 

[Timmyjoe]

Those are awesome. Jealous of that 5cm f2. Congrats.

Best,
-Tim

 

[hellojamin]

Those are awesome. Jealous of that 5cm f2. Congrats.

Best,
-Tim

Thanks Tim, yes I am excited about the early 5cm. I shoot black and white and I like a lower contrast lens (my favorite is the collapsible Summicron).

 

[Godfrey]

I recently inherited two F cameras from my partner's family. Though they are in rough shape I thought they may be of interest because they seem to be quite early examples.
The silver F has a serial of serial 6400xxxx and the black is 6423xxx They are functioning and were stored in dry Colorado so no mildew or fungus to my eye. I have reached out to Vermont camera repair about a CLA of the black body (the silver too if I can get the paint off) and the two lenses it came with. Both lenses are early 9 blade versions, 10.5 cm f2.8 nikkor-p and 5cm f2 nikkor-s. They were both used with uv filters so the glass looks pristine! Anyways, here are some photos!

View attachment 4881415View attachment 4881416View attachment 4881417View attachment 4881418

I have a Nikon F plain prism with serial number 6437xxx. Lovely camera ... I rescued it from a friend (twenty years ago) who had it sitting in a box in the basement, open to the air, with no lens on it. Took a hefty cleaning and service, but it works perfectly again. My lenses for it are a Micro-Nikkor 55/3.5 and a Nikkor 28/2. Should probably look for an 85 or 105 if I start using it again.

Lovely old cameras. Memories of my first Nikon F in 1969 ... 😀

G

 

[hellojamin]

I have a Nikon F plain prism with serial number 6437xxx. Lovely camera ... I rescued it from a friend (twenty years ago) who had it sitting in a box in the basement, open to the air, with no lens on it. Took a hefty cleaning and service, but it works perfectly again. My lenses for it are a Micro-Nikkor 55/3.5 and a Nikkor 28/2. Should probably look for an 85 or 105 if I start using it again.

Lovely old cameras. Memories of my first Nikon F in 1969 ... 😀

G

Thanks for sharing! I have an early copy of the Micro-Nikkor 55/3.5 as well, great lens.

 

[laservampire]

Great find but seeing a tick mark lens with an aftermarket AI cut hurts my soul a bit.

 

[bucs]

Great find but seeing a tick mark lens with an aftermarket AI cut hurts my soul a bit.

Can they be replaced easily?

 

[JeffS7444]

I knew they existed, but I've never actually seen those early style self-timer levers with diagonal texture, and Doku-Pan is something I've never heard of before.

 

[wes loder]

Looks like a previous owner covered the chrome with tape to make it look like a black-finish camera. Is that tape residue? It should come off with cleaning solution, but chrome may be tarnished. Enjoy using both of these. Old Nikon Fs are good forever if cared for.

 

[hellojamin]

Great find but seeing a tick mark lens with an aftermarket AI cut hurts my soul a bit.

Yes I get the pain of seeing such a collectible lens altered. Though I am not a collector and I do not plan to sell them so to me it's not so bad.

 

[hellojamin]

Looks like a previous owner covered the chrome with tape to make it look like a black-finish camera. Is that tape residue? It should come off with cleaning solution, but chrome may be tarnished. Enjoy using both of these. Old Nikon Fs are good forever if cared for.

Yes it had tape on it which I had removed, I just finished taking most of the residue off, the chrome is scratched up but it looks alot better, I will share some photos soon.

 

[hellojamin]

I knew they existed, but I've never actually seen those early style self-timer levers with diagonal texture, and Doku-Pan is something I've never heard of before.

Doku-pan, never heard of it either but a great name. Apparently he did alot of international travel, maybe it was not available in the US.

 

[hellojamin]

Update:




The paint came easily off of the lens barrel of the 5cm (I removed the focus ring to get it all off) The camera on the other hand was a different story. It seemed like the camera had been painted, and then later covered in electrical tape. There was a mix of sticky residue and paint. It was not easy to get off and I scratched up the chrome pretty bad in the process but I think it looks better than it did, and feels much nice in the hand. I plan on using these cameras, not collecting or selling them so the scratches don't bother me so much. They kind of match in how beat up they are.

 

[Erik van Straten]

I like the f2 lens. Is it the same optical formula as the later more common lenses?

 

[Godfrey]

I have a Nikon F plain prism with serial number 6437xxx. Lovely camera ... I rescued it from a friend (twenty years ago) who had it sitting in a box in the basement, open to the air, with no lens on it. Took a hefty cleaning and service, but it works perfectly again. My lenses for it are a Micro-Nikkor 55/3.5 and a Nikkor 28/2. Should probably look for an 85 or 105 if I start using it again.

Lovely old cameras. Memories of my first Nikon F in 1969 ... 😀

This thread moved me to pull my F out for a beauty shot...

Nikon F #6437xxx​

They're sure pretty cameras!
G

 

[laservampire]

I like the f2 lens. Is it the same optical formula as the later more common lenses?

The earlier Nikkor-S 5cm f2 is a 7 element design as opposed to the later and more common 6 element Nikkor-H.

A little less sharp than it’s successor but nonetheless a beautiful rendering, which I find a little more pleasing in out of focus areas than the Nikkor-H.

 

[hellojamin]

This thread moved me to pull my F out for a beauty shot...

Nikon F #6437xxx​

They're sure pretty cameras!
G

nice f!

 

[hellojamin]

The earlier Nikkor-S 5cm f2 is a 7 element design as opposed to the later and more common 6 element Nikkor-H.

A little less sharp than it’s successor but nonetheless a beautiful rendering, which I find a little more pleasing in out of focus areas than the Nikkor-H.

View attachment 4881521

Very nice photo.