What's Your Best Bargain Find?

Best:
Nikon FM with E series 50mm 1.8, Soligor 135mm 2.8, and off-brand 28mm 3.5, all working great - $7.95.

Most recent:
Yashica Mat 124G, working meter, slightly slow opening/closing shutter, case, pristine cosmetic condition - $180
 
Hi,

This was in one of several old boxes on the floor that was filled with cr*p cameras, bits of cameras and dead flashes. It was in a plastic bag sealed with sticky tape and a price ticket of UKP 2-50, that's a bit under USD 4 and unde Euros 4. It even had a good battery in it and everything appeared to work.

Minox%2035ML-L.jpg


I got it last week and took it with me over the weekend. Here's a sample (from a 1 hour lab).

Minox%20Sample-L.jpg


Regards, David
 
Olympus XA4 for $17 including postage on a local auction site. It hasn't arrived yet so I don't know if I got a great deal or a cute paperweight.
 
Rollei 35 LED at a car boot sale in Surrey for £2, including B+W filter, hood and case. Have just punted the lot off on the bay after taking 1 roll of Neopan 400 which came out OK. The good days are here.
 
Yasica early Electro 35 $10
Balda Baldini nada
Argus C3 nada
Konica Auto S2 $20
Fujica Compact Deluxe $10

All very clean and working as intended.
 
Jupiter-9 mint in case for 10 euros
Jipiter-21M mint in case for 10 euros
Zorki-10 mint for 5 euros
Zenit-19 fair with Helios-44M-7 mint for 5 euros
Olympus XA2 for 5 euros
 
A 1953 J9 here on RRF Classified..
.
but, it took 2 repair guys to get it right...
1st was Youkin... he did a half-way job (I know he is respected here, that is way he got 1st shot, after he agreed to do it..
I think he prefers higher end stuff, or just Leica/Canon/Nikon RF).
He only re-lubed the front half of the focusing parts, and assembled it wrong (the 3 spacers where not seated properly)...

I then let my local guy (www.camerarepairs.com) in Avon, IN. (see image below) re do it... he did it right, and one of the spacer rings had to removed to focus to INF properly...
and he <fully dissembled> the lens (not the blocks, but all the parts around them) and re-lubed it properly.

But, this lens is a bargain, at the $120 I paid including the 2 CLA charges.

eBay prices are more, and you can guaranty it will need a proper re-lube.
Fedka is good place also...to buy Russian lenses...Though, he does send to the Ukraine now for any service.. not sure if the Russian aggressions are affecting this.

J9 sample when I picked it up from my repair guy...on a Fuji X-E2

Jupiter 9 (85mm f/2) Samples par Peter Arbib, on ipernity
 
A perfectly clean and seemingly unused Nikon F80 from the clearance bin at the local camera shop...$10. They had two of them, I should have bought them both. It does most of what my F100 does and it's much smaller and lighter. With my 50mm 1.8 it's very light and a breeze to take on a walk or a trip.
 
"Probaby" Yashica Electro CC (since sold) for $30 on eBay five (or so) years ago. Ad wording and picture clarity matters. Out of focus pic, seller sold "as is" didn't know if it worked. It was "straight out of the box" pristine, worked perfectly. Sadly, its annoying flaw was its 1/250 top shutter speed, which I found annoying. Required ND filter for bright days, over exposure warning kept going off -- but, in truth, it probably wasn't necessary. I have yet to find anything worthwhile in thrift stores or garage sales as so many other seem to...
 
Picked up this minty model recently. 🙄
The shutter, taking lens and wind mechanism work great. Surprising, considering everything else appears to have
been through several hurricanes and chewed on by a slobbering Pit Bull. 🙂

 
w-nikkor-c 25/4 ltm

w-nikkor-c 25/4 ltm

Found a Leica thread mount 25/4 w-nikkor-c on consignment at the local shop for $300. Dusty from sitting on the shelf, it cleaned up very well and is a surprisingly good little lens... not for sale😀
 
Rethinking what I've posted somewhere in this thread, due to current prices I've seen lately on the auction site, I would have to say the Mamiya m645 1000s with a perfect PD prism finder (no desilvering on mirror) and 80mm 1.9 lens for $275 + shipping...
 
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