[Benz3ne]

O=ME53 will never leave the viewfinder on my K-3, unless I get something newer when it will installed on the new box.

It makes a huge difference to me - manual focusing is so much easier to the point I’m relying on focus confirmation perhaps half as much as I used to! I’ve heard reports of the Tenpa 1.22x being better optically but for £15 posted for a practically unused O-ME53 I couldn’t pass up the opportunity!

[Marcus Rowland]

Not too bad a day in the car boot mines:

A Lomography 4-lens action camera for £0.50
A Diana+ 120 camera with the 42x42mm frame but no other accessories for £1.50
and a nice clean Zorki 4 Leica clone with the Jupiter 8 50/2 lens and a leather case for £20

Also a copy of iWork 09 for £1.50, I've already got it but there are enough Macs in the family that I'm sure someone will want it. A nice simple office suite without the clunkiness of Microsoft.

In less good news the deal I was doing to get another Cinemascope lens has fallen through, it's in poorer condition that I was expecting and I'd rather not take a chance on it. Shame, because I did well on the last one.

[BigMackCam]

A couple of weeks ago, I posted in a non-photographic thread on "old machines" about the Realistic DX-160 shortwave receiver I owned as a kid. I mentioned how I didn't like modern receivers with their touch screen LCD displays and multitudinous knobs and buttons, and how I wish I still owned it, or could find another in "as new" condition.

Today, my Dad and I went to a local ham radio swap meet, and just as we walked through the doors I noticed a radio on one of the stalls, wrapped in a plastic bag (so not clearly visible) - but I thought I recognised it as a Realistic DX-100 or DX-100L (the most basic table-top receiver produced by Radio Shack from 1981 - 1984) - with a price sticker of GBP £20 (USD $25).

Assuming it to be a wreck at the price, I asked the stall-holder if I could take it out of the bag and have a proper look at it, and he was happy to oblige. Indeed, it turned out to be a DX-100L as I'd suspected - but in absolutely MINT condition... basically "as new", complete with original instruction manual. I asked him if it was in working order, and he confirmed it was - then played me a video on his cell phone, demonstrating it being used the night before.

I paid for it and brought it home, fully expecting it to have a few problems - but I figured I'd still have some fun with it, and wouldn't be disappointed if it turned out to be a lemon.

Well, it's *perfect*. Everything works exactly as it should... even the original orange back-lighting for the frequency display and signal strength meter! None of the knobs and switches are loose or noisy, and the audio sounds fine. And there really isn't a mark on it (see photo below - and the rest of the unit is just as pristine). Quite remarkable for its age.

For those who know a little about radio, it's a very simple design with rather limited performance accordingly. It's a single-conversion super-heterodyne receiver, capable of receiving AM, CW and SSB, with just one wide filter. The frequency oscillator has relatively poor stability, so it tends to drift, and the BFO (beat frequency oscillator) has trouble resolving stronger sideband signals. The tuning scale is fairly inaccurate, and quite coarse (even the fine tuning control isn't that fine). But, that's how it was designed, and this example I've picked up is working just as it should, warts and all

It sounds great on MW / AM - like a real analogue radio should (none of this digital signal processing nonsense!), and although I'll tune around the shortwave bands, I suspect it'll spend most of its time set to one of my local AM stations.

The DX-160 I owned as a child was a much better radio, but for what I've paid, I really couldn't be happier. It's a little slice of my childhood to play with, for £20

[Jean Poitiers]

Today was the annual photo swap meet just north of Tours and I picked up a few goodies ... for a 60€ grouped purchase from an individual seller, a very nice Minolta MD 35/1.8, a good Minolta MC 50/1.4 (but the front element is "loose" and will rattle - hopefully an easy fix), a very nice Minolta MC 100/2.5 with original hood and case and last, a Tamron AD-2 90/2.5 Macro (52BB) with a Minolta mount and a Vivitar MC 2x TC attached plus a Toshiba Sky filter ... the 52BB has some front element fungus, but I think that I can clean that up a bit.



From another individual seller, for 15€ total, a set of extension tubes for Canon FL, a EBC Fujinon SW 28/3.5 in M42 and a junk Zeiss Ikon S310 which I bought just for lens lens assembly. I have a project to convert it to a Fuji X mount via a cheap Chinese adapter and some epoxy ... the Tessar 40/2.8 should make a fun street lens. The 28/3.5 will see action on the K-1 plus the Fuji X-E2.

---

Last edited by Jean Poitiers; 11-24-2019 at 12:14 PM. Reason: typoo(s) ?

[Gareth.Ig]

I travel to Calgary regularly for work. Whenever I travel, I will always check the local Kijiji listings. I picked up a very clean, recently CLA'd Rolleiflex 2.8C. It came with the original receipt from purchase in 1956.

[Benz3ne]

SMC-A 70-210mm f/4 on its way to me for £18 posted... I'm yet to mention the 'other lens' that was in my last post on this thread, but I'll save that for when it arrives. Looks a beauty!

[timb64]

New KP on its way. See the full story here:

K5ii to Full frame - PentaxForums.com

Pics to follow.

[BigMackCam]

New KP on its way. See the full story here:

K5ii to Full frame - PentaxForums.com

Pics to follow.

Congratulations, Tim - I think you made a very wise choice (even more so if you were able to buy at a good discount)

[aslyfox]

New KP on its way. See the full story here:

K5ii to Full frame - PentaxForums.com

Pics to follow.

well, personally I think you should have held out and purchased

[ ]

whatever you decided was best for you

congrats

[timb64]

well, personally I think you should have held out and purchased

[ ]

whatever you decided was best for you

congrats

Yeah, Allen I'm sure others can give 101 reasons for choosing something else. At the end of the day you have to make a decision based on several compromises!

[aslyfox]

very true

best to make your own informed decision and

not look back

[ but once I buy something, I tend to look if I could have found it cheaper and I often do ]

[steamloco76]

SMC-A 70-210mm f/4 on its way to me for £18 posted... I'm yet to mention the 'other lens' that was in my last post on this thread, but I'll save that for when it arrives. Looks a beauty!

I have a little over $40 US in my SMC-A 70-200 f/4. It has become my go to telephoto zoom on days with poor lighting. The lens is very good at f/5.6 and excellent from f/6.7 to 11, besting the results from either the SMC DA 55-300 and HD DA 55-300WR from 150 to 200mm. I love the color pallet too.

[Benz3ne]

I have a little over $40 US in my SMC-A 70-200 f/4. It has become my go to telephoto zoom on days with poor lighting. The lens is very good at f/5.6 and excellent from f/6.7 to 11, besting the results from either the SMC DA 55-300 and HD DA 55-300WR from 150 to 200mm. I love the color pallet too.

I'm looking forward to trying this one out truth be told! It'd be nice to have the reach and constant f/4... It'll also be interesting to pip it against the 55-300mm PLM I also own!

[steamloco76]

I'm looking forward to trying this one out truth be told! It'd be nice to have the reach and constant f/4... It'll also be interesting to pip it against the 55-300mm PLM I also own!

The nicest part of the A lens, it has very little distortion so a full frame without any cropping can be used. I have a Rikenon P 70-210 f3.9 and SMC-M 80-200 f4.5 too. Both of those lenses best the 55-300 in the corners and at f5.6-8. I use tha SMC-A lens because no fiddly green button metering is required.

[redmenace]

Just added the one on the left. Was due to arrive tomorrow, but came yesterday instead!