What's Your Best Bargain Find?

i don't think i'll ever beat this score...

Black Paint M3
35 Summaron
90 Summicron
50 Summicron Black Paint
and various boxes, cases, finders and meters for...

$2100

bob
 

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I don't think I've posted this before byut apart from my M2 which was the best £300 I think I ever spent (or perhaps on a practical note my Ford Escort, all £150 of it has given me 5 years of very reliable problem free motoring...) but recently I picked up a Canon Serenar 50mm (chrome version, before it got revamped with black bits on the barrel), paid £42 + postage and it's the best 50mm I have ever had.

Sharp and pretty flare resistant, and not too contrasty to give me some room for manouvre when printing but not too wishy washy to be too flat. It compliments my Summar for when I really want the classic look.

It's not perfect, the chrome has gone a bit iffy on some very small small patches and the focussing whilst more or less smooth can on the odd occassion be a bit resistant.

Otherwise, cracking bit of glass. I don't feel any need at all for a CV Nokton 50mm or even a Summicron from my current experiences with it.

Vicky
 
I got call from an antique dealer I know. "Want to buy a sack of old cameras for $500?" I went by his shop and quickly became the proud owner of a Leica CL with a 40mm Summicron, M2 body, M3 body, a 90/2.8 Elmarit, 135/2.8 Elmarit, 28/2.8 black paint Wetzlar Elmarit, along with cases, hoods, an assortment of filters, Rollei 35, Hasselblad meter prism, 150 Sonnar, 50mm Distagon, hoods, 12 exposure back, 6 or 7 Leica cassettes...it was a good deal! And all in great condition. An hour later my camera repair guy swapped the Hasselblad stuff for $600 cash and CLA's on the Leica bodies as needed.

I later found out that the antique dealer thought it might be worth decent money when I didn't counter offer $200 or $300 instead of just giving him the $500 he was asking. He'd bought the whole lot at an estate auction. Nobody else even bid on it. His winning bid was $25.
 
Al Kaplan said:
I got call from an antique dealer I know. "Want to buy a sack of old cameras for $500?" I went by his shop and quickly became the proud owner of a Leica CL with a 40mm Summicron, M2 body, M3 body, a 90/2.8 Elmarit, 135/2.8 Elmarit, 28/2.8 black paint Wetzlar Elmarit, along with cases, hoods, an assortment of filters, Rollei 35, Hasselblad meter prism, 150 Sonnar, 50mm Distagon, hoods, 12 exposure back, 6 or 7 Leica cassettes...it was a good deal! And all in great condition. An hour later my camera repair guy swapped the Hasselblad stuff for $600 cash and CLA's on the Leica bodies as needed.

I later found out that the antique dealer thought it might be worth decent money when I didn't counter offer $200 or $300 instead of just giving him the $500 he was asking. He'd bought the whole lot at an estate auction. Nobody else even bid on it. His winning bid was $25.
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:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:
 
Some people in the antique business will buy the entire contents of a house when somebody dies. "Everything" includes what's in the basement, attic, garage, closets, stacks of boxes in the back bedroom, lawnmower, whatever.

They'll cherry pick through it, hold an estate sale, give some to charity, but a lot of it they have no real knowledge about, like cameras. A few years ago I had a deal with one shop where I'd I.D. the photo stuff, photograph it and write the copy for an ebay listing in exchange for 10% of the selling price. She started selling things for decent money that she'd have otherwise considered worthless junk. Unfortunately she died too.

Anyway, it pays to get friendly with some antique dealers.

http://thepriceofsilver.blogspot.com
 
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Nikon S + 50/2 Nikkor for $50
Leica 50/3.5 and 50/2 hoods (just the hoods) for $5
Graflex super graphic + Bessa RF 6x9 folder for $100
Vivitar 285 flash for $5
More darkroom equipment than I should rightly have, free.
 
It must be a pair of Kievs which looked pretty rough from a UK seller - one of which was a rare first type 1957 Kiev 4 , the other an OK Kiev IIIa .
Both for £66 ... which I found to be much better than the pics and that the IIIa is '' number only '' without all the clutter of Made in USSR etc .
Finding a '57 is difficiult - finding a working one for £33 is a bargain .
Funny how something so modest can be so satisfying .
 
I was in this thread earlier, but yesterday while going over some prices on Leica M5s I realised I got real lucky last Christmas, buying mine for only EUR 300.
It came with three 39mm Leica filters, the box and the neck strap. It's as old as me, 1971 was a good year :)
I sold the filters for EUR 60 since I don't own any 39mm lenses. The M5 has the previous owners gripping worn into the black chrome, the seal is still intact. Works like a charm.
 
I just picked up a Takumar 35mm 3.5 lens (ebay) for $36.00 in truly untouched mint condition with the caps and case...it's beautiful...
Then the other day I headed out to a local Pawn Shop to check out their camera stuff...
I found a Takumar 1:3.5 28mm lens hood w/case and it's condition matches the lens...it looks like it was never mounted on a lens...$5.00 for the hood & case...
 
$15 at a yard sale for a Fuji GS645s Wide 60.
I've since dropped it and had it fixed for another $200.

Otherwise in non-rangefinder cameras:
50mm 1.8 metalmount with Canon 750 for $125, sold the camera for a $100 at the time.

16mm Arri-S for $250 with 400' mag.
16mm Eclair ACL with two mags, arri mount adaptor and battery for $1800.
Arri primes (Taylor Hobes Cooke) 75mm & 50mm plus a Ziess 35mm for $200.
12-120 Ang in arri mount for $250 at a camera show.
Several Bolex 16mm cameras and lens for next to nothing.
(note - i have since sold off all my 16mm equipment)
 
my best finds...

m4, 50mm dual range, 35mm cron, 90mm cron, copy stand $1400

black enamel m4 and 50mm 'cron $1100

contax t3 (black) $300

mint rolleiflex wide (55mm f4) $300

mamiya 7II with 50mm, 80mm and 150mm $800

mint nikon f3hp, new in box fm2 titanium, 50mm f1.4 and 105 f2.5 $300

mamiya c330 $75
 
My only find was a Rolleiflex 3.5 in great shape for $200 on craigslist.
I was also once given a Nikon F5 + 50mm AF-D + 250 rolls of slide film for free... (girlfriend's mother was a photographer).
 
perfectly working and very smooth M2 for 250€
nokton 1.2/35 like new for 550€
these were good deals.

and I once bought a 17mm lens for Minolta MD for 30€, sold it for almost 100€ more, as I then had two of them.

I was also given a yashica mat 124g for nuffing, that was probably the best one :D
 
Where do you find these deals?

emraphoto said:
my best finds...

m4, 50mm dual range, 35mm cron, 90mm cron, copy stand $1400

black enamel m4 and 50mm 'cron $1100

contax t3 (black) $300

mint rolleiflex wide (55mm f4) $300

mamiya 7II with 50mm, 80mm and 150mm $800

mint nikon f3hp, new in box fm2 titanium, 50mm f1.4 and 105 f2.5 $300

mamiya c330 $75
Click to expand...
 
você é nordestino ?

você é nordestino ?

você é nordestino?[/QUOTE]

Nao, mas estou morando no Brasil faz uns 17 anos ..

latest find two weeks ago: mamiya M645 with 80 and 45mm (!) lenses for 50 dollars ... in need of cla though ...

cheers
 
90mm Tele Elmarit

90mm Tele Elmarit

I bought on Ebay a 90mm Tele Elmarit M mint for $240 bucks!!!!!!

And a 50mm Summicon almost new (late model) for $650 bucks on ebay!!!
 
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