Yashica Electro 35 WOW!!!

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BigKid01

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Just ran a test roll through an Electro 35 GT I picked up an ebay recently and all I can say is - WOW! After I got the prints back I was standing in the store with my mouth agape looking through the prints. I am a bit new the the rangefinder scene so I don't have a great deal of comparisons I can draw on but I have run some film through a Konica Auto S2, Trip 35 (not a rangefinder I know) and an old Minister and I can safely say the Electro 35 is the pick of the bunch for me. The Auto S2 is a close second but it's metering is a little off so not a fair comparison I guess.

Here's my findings on the Electro 35 GT so far:

Pros

IMAGE QUALITY!!!
Metering - very good in even trickiest lighting conditions
Focussing - easiest rangefinder to focus so far
Viewfinder - nice and bright

Cons

No control of aperture setting
Metering arrows a bit tricking to see sometimes
Shutter release feedback - hard to know when it will fire
Frame counter difficult to read

Unfortunately I don't have a suitable scanner as yet but I will remedy this soon and post some images. I may even start a little blog to record my experiences I think.

Zorki 6 arrives this week!
 
Yep - that's why they're so popular. Great camera - and cheap. The shutter is quieter than a Leica and is will set looooooong exposures automatically. Aperture priority is more useful under most circumstances than shutter.
 
One strange thing about the camera is the 'clunk' noise when winding the film on. But that just gives it character:D

I got the Electro 35 GT (working perfectly) with the kit box including the 2 accessory lenses, filters, camera case and manuals for £40! The only thing missing from the kit was the Yashica tripod which I found for £6.

I couldn't be happier with the purchase at this point.

And you're right about the lens, it's amazing!
 
I have 8 of them.. really love them.. but there's something wrong with almost all of them, have to learn to fix that damn POD :D.
 
The clunk is very important. No clunk and you can expect "pad of death" problems emerge.
 
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There is one for sale here. I'm wondering if it is a good idea to get this as a second body. I would prefer something with a M mount.
Would also like to get some info about the POD.
 
Cc

Cc

Check Ebay. Member here in Japan lists them along with GX and CCN models (also some Canon QL17 models).

Sometimes they get high prices and sometimes low.

2 ending at the same time and placed an esnipe bid on the lower priced one at the time and lost out at the end. One I didn't bid on sold for half the price of the other.

I have a GX model now and just a shade larger than the CC and CCN by a few mm, so check that camera out also if you want one of the smaller RF models

DON
 
re:CC

re:CC

That would be sangetsu on ebay, who IIRC also cleans and reseals the cameras he sells. I think he spends all his free time hunting them down in the markets, since he always has two or three up for sale. I missed a GX one night that I just knew was going to go over what I could afford, and no one bid on it! $19.99 plus shipping of $25.00! Oh well, ce la vie.
 
farlymac said:
That would be sangetsu on ebay, who IIRC also cleans and reseals the cameras he sells. I think he spends all his free time hunting them down in the markets, since he always has two or three up for sale. I missed a GX one night that I just knew was going to go over what I could afford, and no one bid on it! $19.99 plus shipping of $25.00! Oh well, ce la vie.
Click to expand...

He listed a CC and a CCN and both ending close to the same time. Didn't want to chance winning both and CCN was the lower price at the time.

CCN went over my final bid and CC sold for $60

Are you sure the GX sold? I emailed him about one that ended early and there were no bids at the time (I like to put esnipe bids in about 8 minutes before the end) and auction was shut down as there were no bids on the camera and guess he didn't want to chance losing it at $19.00 which sellers are allowed to do.

DON
 
The more exotic Yashica rangefinder models (CC/CCN/GX...) were never sold in Europe in large amounts. I've been told the best place to find them is Japan. So if you have a friend living in Tokyo you now have a good excuse to contact him/her :rolleyes:
 
Have to agree about the Yashica Electro 35. I've got the black GT model, and I have to say, it is pretty darn awesome. Mine has a lightleak problem due to old light-seal, but It can be fixed :) One of the straplugs is broken to, so yeah, mine is beaten up, but really wonderful to use.
 
Mablo said:
The more exotic Yashica rangefinder models (CC/CCN/GX...) were never sold in Europe in large amounts. I've been told the best place to find them is Japan. So if you have a friend living in Tokyo you now have a good excuse to contact him/her :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Searched whole Japan for a CC/CCN, but didn't find any. Yashica's are hard to find there. Bought a lot in the junk store (Tokyo). Most of the time Japanese laugh at you when you ask about Yashica's, because those camera are old and they like modern stuff..
 
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