Zorki 4 - a couple of questions

[joey]

I found a couple of good dealers who offer many products and warranty too.

http://www.sovietcamera.com.ua
http://www.dvdtechcameras.com/
http://www.fedka.com/

For around $80-$90 I will be getting myself Zorki - 4 with Jupiter 8 lens. I am assuming built-in viewfinder is for this lens.


One last question before I purchase my first RF : 🙂

What accessories should I buy for this camera?
Extra take-up spool, another lens with external viewfinder?

 

[Wayne R. Scott]

At last I was able to access Oleg's website connecting to it via proxy. There's not Zorki-4 or Kiev -4a for sale, unfortunately.

Has anyone bought anything from fedka.com or moscowphoto on eBay?

Joey,

I just checked Oleg's site and there is a Zorki 4 (item 207) and a 4K (item 205) listed. Also a Keiv 4m (item 300).

Wayne

 

[joey]

Joey,

I just checked Oleg's site and there is a Zorki 4 (item 207) and a 4K (item 205) listed. Also a Keiv 4m (item 300).

Wayne

Well, I don't like those listed. One is manufactured in 1968, the other one in 65, both come with I-50 lens and the earlier model - which I am interested in - is not in good cosmetic conditions.

 

[dll927]

There are quite a number of websites dealing with FSU cameras, in some cases practically model by model. Try Googling for them.

The Z-4 was the Zorki that was in longest production. On the other hand, the Z-2 is pretty hard to come by. I have one 4K that looks pretty close to new.

It seems that FSU cameras invite a lot of do-it-yourself repair enthusiasts. In fact, some of the websites go into that quite a bit. Given most prices for them, one can, I suppose, take the attitude that if you screw up you can always get another one.

I haven't dealt with Oleg, but Fedka is first class. He's in NY City. I bought one Zorki from him, and in the process he e-mailed me that the lens had "slight cleaning marks", so he was including another lens. The camera arrived with BOTH lenses at no extra cost. Go shop on his website, www.fedka.com. I also bought a Kiev 4a (meterless version) from him. The Kievs are Contax take-offs, and some people claim they are better cameras than the Zorkis - as was once true between Contax and Leica.

It's probably true that Evil-bay is more problematical. Who you buy from probably makes a good deal of difference there. But the experienced buyers seem to know ones that are more dependable than others.

 

[nikola]

ok... here is the link to one auction site in Croatia.... most probably he will not ship worldwide but, inscription on this Zorki caught my eye, kinda strange type?

LINK

 

[JonP]

Joey
If you don't fancy anything Oleg has listed, drop him a line stating what you want, that's what I did for my new Zorki 3M - I didn't fancy anything else around. Just ask him, he's very helpful and fast.
JonP

 

[joey]

I have purchased the Zorki-4 made in 1961 from Alex-Photo on eBay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...30019655523&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWN:IT&rd=1

Maybe I will purchase the Kiev and accessories for the cameras from Oleg later.

 

[joey]

BTW, I just got, 5 min ago, a reply from Alexphoto ... funny coincidence. I should erase the "angry" part of my previous post.
Marc

I bought the camera from Alex several days ago. Asked him a question if the camera has been shipped and if he will provide me with the tracking number. No answer!🙄

 

[fidget]

Joey, I believe that you have the first flushes of FSU GAS. This being almost inevitable, you will soon have a little collection. Don't be too hung up on getting a particular year and spend too much. Go for a good one of any year, even one with a less desirable lens, if the body looks worth it. You will soon have a few to play with (..and very likely a screwdriver and plier set for getting under the hood)

good luck with your purchases.

 

[reagan]

I bought the camera from Alex several days ago. Asked him a question if the camera has been shipped and if he will provide me with the tracking number. No answer!🙄

Yeah, not likely you'll get a tracking number. AFAIK, Alex is reliable and fairly prompt. It just takes a while to come a long way... argh! ... hate.the.wait! Anyway, as far as years go, IMHO, older is better in the Zorki line. Pride, craftsmanship and quality control deteriorated with rising production numbers. The '61 should do nicely - a good choice. Good luck!

 

[joey]

Joey, I believe that you have the first flushes of FSU GAS. This being almost inevitable, you will soon have a little collection. Don't be too hung up on getting a particular year and spend too much. Go for a good one of any year, even one with a less desirable lens, if the body looks worth it. You will soon have a few to play with (..and very likely a screwdriver and plier set for getting under the hood)

good luck with your purchases.

Oh, my next one will be Kiev 4a, that's been decided. And then a galore of quality lenses for them.
Why not purchasing cameras from a particular period? During my teens in Russia ; this was in the late 80s, anything that was manufactured in Stalin’s and Khrushev's era considered being of a good quality.

 

[joey]

Speaking of Kiev 4A cameras, products of which year are the most popular among the users on this forum? 🙂

 

[joey]

A long awaited parcel from Ukraine has arrived. This what I got today.

Thanks to Alex, he packed the parcel well.

 

[reagan]

A long awaited parcel from Ukraine has arrived. This what I got today.

Looks good - congrats! Makes your shutter finger itch, doesn't it? Get out there and fire away!



(Don't forget to wind first before changing shutter speeds...:bang: )

 

[netzspannung]

Tried them all. They all suck. But as long as you get some fun this way, do it 😀

 

[reagan]

Tried them all. They all suck.

Nope, aka_basil, they don't.