Visoflex ~ Is It Time For A New One?

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Al Kaplan

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A few years ago I got rid of all my SLR equipment but I kept my Visoflex II-S and the focusing mount for my 65/3.5 Elmar and the head of my 90/2.8 Elmarit. I was thinking that with all the new rangefinder folks around, many getting their start with the inexpensive Bessa cameras, there might be a market for Cosina Voigtlander to introduce a Visoflex type reflex housing. Make it compatible with a variety of bodies. Make an updated 65mm f/3.5 for close-up photography.

What I'd really like would be a 180mm f/2.8 with a preset diaphragm. I blew my chance at getting the Elmarit version back in the early seventies. The 180/2.8 is the one lens I miss since selling off my Leicaflex/Leica R kit.


http://thepriceofsilver.blogspot.com
 
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cant comment on Bessas and reflex housing for RF-cameras, but I love Viso adapters because they provide cheap alternative to experiment with certain vintage Leitz lenses on SLR-bodies. think an old pre-war Elmar 90 on Nikon D700 for instance 🙂

from marketing point of view, hard to imagine reborn Visoflex would work today, but thats just me.
 
Visoflex would allow optical/slr viewing on new generation of micro4/3 (Oly, Pana) and expected microAPS-C (Samsung), and just possibly (if slim enough and custom adapted) same with some longer back focus slr lenses.

Danny
 
The main objection is metering. If you can live without that (and most of us can if we have to) then Visos are fine. Even on the Bessa-T.

Flange-to-film/sensor is (from memory) 63,5mm -- about 17mm more than a Nikon F.

Cheers,

R.
 
I cheat with my M8 and Visoflex II box with III head. As nothing aligns on the shutter release arm quite right, I simply use the re-set lever and meter with the mirror locked up. I frame and focus. Then pop the mirror out of the way to meter. Cumbersome yes, but since work speed isn't an issue when I'm using the Viso, it's viable. Very much a jerry-rigged, rube goldberg deal, but it works for me. I haven't yet bothered with the grease-pencil-on-the-glass markup of accurate cropped framelinesl; I simply guesstimate (which I can afford since this is for fun, not profit).

Al, I second the motion to have Kobayashi San make some viso-like gear and glass.
Roger Hicks said:
The main objection is metering. If you can live without that (and most of us can if we have to) then Visos are fine. Even on the Bessa-T.

Flange-to-film/sensor is (from memory) 63,5mm -- about 17mm more than a Nikon F.

Cheers,

R.
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robklurfield said:
I cheat with my M8 and Visoflex II box with III head. As nothing aligns on the shutter release arm quite right, I simply use the re-set lever and meter with the mirror locked up. I frame and focus. Then pop the mirror out of the way to meter. Cumbersome yes, but since work speed isn't an issue when I'm using the Viso, it's viable. Very much a jerry-rigged, rube goldberg deal, but it works for me. I haven't yet bothered with the grease-pencil-on-the-glass markup of accurate cropped framelinesl; I simply guesstimate (which I can afford since this is for fun, not profit).

Al, I second the motion to have Kobayashi San make some viso-like gear and glass.
Click to expand...

So do I, with both the M8 and M8.2 + Viso III, which is why I discussed this very subject with Leica. The objection to metering is the Party Line, but they said it was not something they'd ruled out.

My Viso lines up OK. I can't help feeling, though, that the market for Viso fit lenses is so incredibly tiny that there's little incentive to go for it. Prices would be hair-raising.

Cheers,

R.
 
Roger Hicks said:
The main objection is metering.
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It is possible to implement a metering prism that couples to shutter speed dial, Leicameter style. But that of course would not work with models from M6TTL and up, nor with the Bessas.
 
varjag said:
It is possible to implement a metering prism that couples to shutter speed dial, Leicameter style. But that of course would not work with models from M6TTL and up, nor with the Bessas.
Click to expand...

Dear Eugene,

Leica has already looked at Viso metering solutions, but I received the clear impression that they reckoned it would be too expensive or too complicated or both. But, as I say, they have not ruled the idea out.

Cheers,

R.
 
Visoflex ~ is it time for a new one?

....should I have the synchro-mesh gearbox in my car replaced by a 'crash' box - necessitating 'double de-clutching' (remember them? )....should I have a 'rigid' frame, and 'girder' forks made for my motorcycle (remember them? ). Sorry but things like ths come to mind - when asking about the resurrection of obsolete equipment. I would think most new RF users have or could easily obtain a reflex camera - these days.
Dave.
 
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Well I think the Visoflex system is great, and I'm glad it's available right now, for so little.
Since I can buy a Viso II w/prism II from KEH for $75, I probably wouldn't be interested in buying anything from Cosina.

BTW VisoIII works just great with my M5 for TTL metering. DAG provided the special metering arm for ten bucks. Leitz got it just right at the time.
 
I found that the Viso III worked fine on my Lumix G1. Great "live view" on the screen too.
Just like the IXMOO cassette and other Leica odd things - it is a matter of production costs. A Viso is not cheap to make today - and there are enough used ones out there. As for metering - you can do it with the mirror flipped up - but, yes it is clumsy. However, you can do it with existing cameras and not have to spend multi 000's of $.
I asked a friend who is a tool and die maker what the cost would be to make a "new" IXMOO. He calculated that the first 1000 would end up costing $ 250/each to pay for the dies and set up. The subsequent 1000 would be closer to $100/each.
These products were also very much "hand made" i.e labor intensive and today that is very pricey to do.
I did pick up a Kilfitt mirror housing a couple of weeks ago, complete with a 200f4.5 Telyt (with original hood/ caps!) for a $90. Still works, a bit dim viewing - so no TTL metering in the housing - but flipping the mirror out of the way and taking a reading works too - hmm, should try it on a Bessa L with a jury rigged release.
 
People tend to forget how much things used to cost. The Tewe Polyfocus 35-200mm finder, when introduced in 1952/3, was £15 + £6:10:0d purchase tax. The Resale Price Index for the UK indicates about a 21x increase in prices since then, so that's over £300 without tax or nearly £450 with tax. The exchange rate at the time was (I think) about $2.80 to the pound so that's around $850 without tax or maybe $1250 tax paid. For a VIEWFINDER!

Cheers,

R.
 
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