[hks_kansei]

I've got a couple of Zorkis, a 4 and a 5

the 4 is a 1958 one, and from my understanding has never been lubed or adjusted. It still works prefectly well, never had an issue with it.

The other is a Zorki-5, I think a 1959 one maybe? (can't remember off the top of my head)
It's pretty sad, I bought it dirt cheap from a kid who bought it sight unseen from Ukraine ebay, he thought it was a fancy gold with brown leather version.

It arrived, and he saw that the gold was just painted on, and the brown leather was actually the normal black leather PAINTED brown.
To rub salt into his wound, the rangefinder mechanism was way off and not working right, and the shutter speeds were stuck to 1/60 or something.

I bought it for $15, which I would have happily paid just for the Jupiter lens on it (which thankfully the Ukrainian ape decided to not paint)

It's so far been stripped down to a bare chassis, I've had the body sandblasted to remove the paint, and I've cleaned and re-calibrated the rangefinder. The shutter speeds turned out to just be a loose set screw on the selector.


To get back to the topic, they're a great camera, if you take the time to find a good one.

[Nesster]

On the other hand, for $ 400 you can only get a trashy Contax body-only in desperate need of CLA, AND repair of its several maladies.

My Contax with Sonnar 50/2 came much cheaper, but it did need a CLA. I got mine done at the now-gone Essex Camera Repair just when Sandy hit... all in the thing came to somewhere around $300. So it can be done. The CLA AFAIR included a resurrection of the meter; a new flash sync port (to replace one that was missing) and the proper adjustment to the shutter and RF mechanisms.

The Contax IIIa is a bit smoother and silkier, especially after the CLA; yet my Kiev's do just as well, and allow the J-12 which the Contax doesn't.

Oh, my brood:





One of the main reasons for going Kiev/Contax are the lenses. I don't think the Russian copies give up anything to the Zeiss versions; indeed the coatings can be better for less veiling flare. I've sorted out the 'brutal mating' issues with my first Kiev, it is a pleasant thing now.

[Rubenbitt]

You have a really nice assortment of Kievs and Contaxes. I do appreciate in both the Zeiss Ikon design and went to eBay just yesterday as well as in the past, and Keh of course, concerning the prices of a Contax body. I stand by what I wrote.
Perhaps I have misunderstood you. Are you saying that you purchased a Contax camera with a Sonnar lens in a place where everyone could pay the same price, sent afterwards the whole package to a good CLA, and the three things costed you $ 300 ?


Cheers
Ruben

[Nesster]

Perhaps I have misunderstood you. Are you saying that you purchased a Contax camera with a Sonnar lens in a place where everyone could pay the same price, sent afterwards the whole package to a good CLA, and the three things costed you $ 300 ?

This is correct but my estimate was low. $225 for the camera and lens shipped, $160 for the CLA = $385 total. This was in 2012. On Ebay, and I could have bought others at similar or slightly lower prices as well. It takes patience and more patience, eventually things come up (and should they end on a weekend night, you have a better chance at winning, that is if you don't forget to bid after a day out and dinner and such... I have a few dents in my derriere from self kicks due to this forgetfulness.)

Pre CLA it worked OK:

but the shutter didn't always have an even travel (depending on speed)


After the CLA everything has been like clockwork