Reading some of the posts in this thread and the East German lens club thread, got me curious about some of these interesting lenses known for sharp centers, when wide open, and interesting bokeh. Consequently, I started watching several of these lens types on the auction site. Lots of times the prices would be reasonable, then zoom up. Or, they didn't zoom up much, but the shipping charge from Russia, or the Ukraine, or somewhere else was pretty high to begin with.... I wasn't in a hurry, though, so there was no problem.
Then, recently, I found one on 'bay, not in my usual m42 lens search, but in the film slr section, because it was a Helios 44-2 2/58mm attached to a Zenit B! And it was in Texas, just a few states south of here, so the shipping wasn't high. Lens, body, and original case were under $25. The package arrived today. The camera has hardly any signs of previous use, and seems to work fine...except that the shutter curtain is sluggish especially at B and 1/30 sec, not necessarily closing all the way each time. Since it works fine at higher shutter speeds, I'm wondering how much of the stiffness is from just being in storage for most of its life. I'm trying a roll of film in it, now, so we'll see if I get any uneven exposures, way overexposed on one side of the frame.
The B is like the Zenit E, except there is no internal meter. Mine looks just like the third example on this webpage:
Soviet and Russian Cameras - Zenit-B, -BM, -BE2
According to that page, it probably would have been made between 1968-1977. The body serial number is No69104090 -- can anybody tell any other interesting details based on that?
The Helios 44-2 2/58's serial number is N0552046. I was surprised the lens body was plastic, or bakelite, or some other non-metalic material, making it light compared to a similar sized and aged Takumar. Initially, I cleaned the lens and put it on my K110D for a few test shots. It seems to work great. And if you shoot it wide open, you don't have to remember to twist the preset actuating ring before exposure! After those shots, and about ten on film with the Zenit (so far), I'm starting to remember how to use a preset lens. A little later today, I'll post a few of the digital posts with the Helios, my official debut as a member of the club!