What did I buy? Vitessa 1000 SR any good?

[OlliL]

I just bought a Zeiss Ikon Voigtlander Vitessa 1000 SR of the evil bay and can't find anything about it, on the web.

Is anyone using this, or has done?
I know that only 18.500 were made, so it seems quite rare.

I recently sold my Rollei 35 and liked the Tessar, but just couldn't get used to the scale focussing thing, so I hope the Tessar in the Vitessa is nearly as good.


And how can you go wrong, with a camera that is made by Zeiss AND Voigtlander 😀

 

[Dave Wilkinson]

Exactly! - if you put a film in (remember those!) you'll soon find out! 😀

 

[OlliL]

That's the plan 😛

 

[btgc]

Isn't 1000SR also scale focusing?

 

[OlliL]

Well the description said rangefinder, so I hope not...

But the 500 should be scale focus AFAIK

 

[OlliL]

This is the auction btw

 

[farlymac]

It's definitely got that Voigtlander look about it. And it appears to have a rangefinder window.

PF

 

[GoneSavage]

Looks a little thin to be 35mm... ever shoot 126?

 

[retro]

Some info here:
http://voigtlander.pagesperso-orange.fr/previewpagesA/vitessa1000srA.htm

And, per Mckeown's: made in late 1960s.

Appears to be manual exposure but may have AE override. Looks like shutter speeds to 1/1000. Nifty.

 

[farlymac]

Lind's List info has it as a 35mm rangefinder manufactured in 1969. It has a 42mm Color Lanthar with max aperture of f2.8, mounted in a Prontor shutter with speeds of 1sec to 1/1000sec.

From what I have read, the Color Lanthars were okay lenses, but they were not up to the Color Skopar standards.

PF

 

[farlymac]

After looking at the picture again, you can add to the information that it's minimum focusing is at 1 meter, and it's minimum aperture is f22. I couldn't make out the shutter speeds, but it should have B also.

Since it has the Tessar instead of the Color Lanthar, this is probably a late run model with some improvements, most likely made after the merger with Zeiss. One thing I like about it is the clean lines of the body. Another thing is the design of the shutter release button. I don't think you will ever need a soft release for that camera.

PF

 

[OlliL]

First off, thanks for the input guys.

After a lot of snow last week and postage taken longer because of that, the camera finally arrived.

Thank god it is a rangefinder ;-)


What was already known:

Zeiss Tessar lens with an aperture of f2.8 and 42mm.
Closest distance one meter and min aperture of f22.
The shutter is a Prontor type which does 1/1000!!!


Zeiss Ikon Voigtlander Vitessa 1000 SR 2 von oliverleschke auf Flickr

And the shutter is really quiet.
I had to make a flashlight test, to see if the shutter does really open at 1/1000, because you can't tell from the noise.


Exposure metering is quite nice, as it has no automatic and the aperture is visible in the viewfinder. So you have complete control about that.

Unfortunately the metering only works till ASA 400


Zeiss Ikon Voigtlander Vitessa 1000 SR von oliverleschke auf Flickr


View from the back.


Zeiss Ikon Voigtlander Vitessa 1000 SR 3 von oliverleschke auf Flickr


What you can see is, that the camera ISN'T as small, as it appeared on the auction site.

It is as big, as a Canonet GIII but the lens is much shorter, which is great for putting it in a coat pocket.


Zeiss Ikon Voigtlander Vitessa 1000 SR 4 von oliverleschke auf Flickr


The rangefinder patch is good visible, even in lowlight.
What I haven't found yet, is a switch to turn off the meter.
The film advance (lever is on the bottom) is quite noisy.


I'm very interested what the lens can do, so I'll load it up with some film right away.

 

[farlymac]

Oliver,
If there is no battery, then it most likely has a selenium cell meter, in which case it never shuts off. There may have been a plastic cap that covered the top front of the camera to stop the light from getting to the meter cell, and to protect the glass.

Just to be curious, is the lens threaded for filters? And what size, if it is? If no threads, what is the barrel diameter?

PF

 

[farlymac]

Oliver,

As you look at the rear of the camera, on the lower right side, there may be a switch for the meter. All I've read about them is they have a coupled CdS, no mention of a selenium cell. But that was only on one site, and he may be mistaken, as all the ones I have seen look like selenium cell models, with the bumpy cover over the cell.

PF

 

[OlliL]

Hi,

there is a battery (PX 625) and the meter is coupled, with the inidicator in the viewfinder.
The filter mount seems to be 30,5mm but that was measured with a folding meter stick 😀

Thanks for the info with the switch, I found it.
But when I push it down nothing happens. 🙁

 

[farlymac]

Hi,

there is a battery (PX 625) and the meter is coupled, with the inidicator in the viewfinder.
The filter mount seems to be 30,5mm but that was measured with a folding meter stick 😀

Thanks for the info with the switch, I found it.
But when I push it down nothing happens. 🙁

So, it is a CdS. That's good, as they don't go bad as often. And the switch was just something I saw in another photo, and took a guess at it. Don't know if there is a manual online somewhere. Here are two places to try:

http://www.craigcamera.com/default.htm

http://www.butkus.org/chinon/

Don't use an alkaline 625. They are usually 1.5v, whereas the PX625 was a 1.3v. That is enough of a difference to throw off the meter readings by sometimes 2 stops. A Wein cell (MRB625) is the preferred replacement, and can be bought at

http://www.micro-tools.com/store/home.aspx

or from other online sources, such as eBay. Here in the US, Radio Shack sells a 675 replacement that is 1.4v, which seems to be okay with the cameras I have tried them in, but they are smaller than a 625, and I usually have to fashion an adapter to take up the extra space.

My Yashicas have a CdS cell in the lens barrel, and the only way to shut them off is to put the lens cap on. You may want to fashion one yourself out of some dark plastic to cover the camera front top.

Later,

PF

 

[OlliL]

I found out, that the me metering shuts off when not in use.
I had the camera in my messenger bag and when I took it out,
I had to put the button, that you mentioned (thanks for that) to activate.

On the battery: As I have way too many cameras from that time,
I build a stock on Wein cells over the last months / years 😀

 

[MV72]

Found this through Google. Sorry it's in French, but it says it's a very good camera, pleasant to use and that offers really good results. Only debate is on style, but it's reliable German engineering.
http://www.collection-appareils.fr/zeiss/html/zeiss_vitessa_1000_SR.php

 

[farlymac]

Oliver,

Good to hear that. Now all you need is to run a roll of film through it, and let us know the results. Hope the shutter is not sticky.

PF

 

[ZeissFan]

I think these models were built near the end of Zeiss Ikon. I think this shared some parts with the Ikomatic, a simple 126 Instamatic camera. For example, the shutter release is very similar, as is the body shape.

It's a Tessar lens, so the photos should be sharp. Off and on, I've been toying with the idea of getting one of these, and so I'm curious about the results.

If you like the Tessar lens, take a look at the Contessa S 310, a zone focus camera with symbols in the viewfinder. The S 312 is the rangefinder version of the same camera. It's a small camera that is only a bit larger (but heavier) than the Rollei 35. And like the Rollei 35, it has a 40mm Tessar -- one stop faster at f/2.8.

The Voigtlander model is the VF 101.