helimat wrote:
It... was... Kinda a joke. Maybe I should have used the Sean Connery voice!
more of a public awareness message to others. I'm going to go down to Dean's Camera Repair in Torrance to have him laugh in my face for a while. Then I'll switch to my aahh-may-zing Rollei QZ35W. That camera rocks (16sec -1/8000 on a P&S!) but it's downfall-ish is you need to go menu diving to set exp compensation.
more of a public awareness message to others. I'm going to go down to Dean's Camera Repair in Torrance to have him laugh in my face for a while. Then I'll switch to my aahh-may-zing Rollei QZ35W. That camera rocks (16sec -1/8000 on a P&S!) but it's downfall-ish is you need to go menu diving to set exp compensation.
I've been eyeing the QZ35W for some time.... A local store has a nice copy but it is kinda overpriced.
Does the exposure comp reset after shot? Or after a power cycle? I could see diving in being a bit of a pain
Every freakin Minox 35 I've looked at has been broken. They do this cute thing when you push the shutter button the camera goes 'click' so you think it took a pic. But when u develop the film it is blank.
I see there is a Nikon LiteTouch AF box. If there is a camera in there... and it is not beat up that is the prize in that collection. I have one and the lens is excellent. Great little camera. Take one CR2 battery w you to see if it works.
So I took my Klasse to Dean's Camera Repair in Torrance. And like I guessed, he laughed in my face when I asked him if he could fix it. I could still hear him laughing as I drove away.
In the brief moments that he stopped for air, he told me that the ribbon cable had failed on it. Just like they do on the high end Contaxes, Nikons, Minolta and Leicas. He actually showed me a broken (of course) Minilux and T2 that he had in there. There are a couple of sources for cables for those cameras that may fix them if that is all they need, but still hard to get hold of and still no idea how long the fix will last.
Dean has been in the business a long time and knows his stuff, and his parting shot was not to waste my money on any expensive P&S. And then got back to laughing at me.
I did not mention my Rollei QZ because, well, he had enough ammunition already. And I didn't want to jinx it.
Do you know if the ribbon cables are the same across manufacturers? I think Nippon Photo in NYC still works on Contaxes. Perhaps they’d sell you one if so.
d.s. wrote:
Do you know if the ribbon cables are the same across manufacturers? I think Nippon Photo in NYC still works on Contaxes. Perhaps they’d sell you one if so.
They are not. And Nippon does not repair that issue. Dean actually showed me a bunch of NOS ribbon cables that he had for some Pentaxes. He says he tapes the back of them - thickening them - and it extends their lifespan.
helimat wrote:
I've been eyeing the QZ35W for some time.... A local store has a nice copy but it is kinda overpriced.
Does the exposure comp reset after shot? Or after a power cycle? I could see diving in being a bit of a pain
Ok, I just tested mine. It's akshully nowhere near as bad as I thought. When the camera is on, one push of the drive button gets you in the exp comp mode. Then when you set it, it remains so whether you take pics, or turn the camera on or off again.
It also clearly shows either a + or a - in the VF, but not the amount set. You see the amount set on the top panel.
I guess I never used it because it was so easy just to switch to manual exp mode.
The Fuji Klasse S & W has a simple awesome dial on the front. But screw you Fuji, you are dead to me. No, literally that camera is dead.
The Rollei QZ has teeny tiny symbols on the top panel, so better get acquainted with what they are before you head out for that once in a life time shot. An upside is the VF info is legible in all light, while on the Fuji it is invisible in daylight.
The Rollei is a big a$$ camera tho - same size as a Leica M. And the flash is a weird Metz style hammerhead thing that is seperate. The QZ does feel way better built than the Fuji - whatever that means.
Do I recommend the QZ? Well, it has an insane feature spec. EV -2 to +20 or possibly even wider. And it is different - in a good way - to anything else out there. But because it is the size of an M, would I normally take this over an M? No.
Final thing - the meter locks w a half shutter press - cool. But it seems to be almost spot meter-ish as you can see the values change a lot as you move it across a scene.
I think I may have talked myself into shooting another roll in it! The 28-60 lens is killer. Try and get a 28-60 lens on an M...
p.s. ISO 6-6400 to go with 16 sec - 1/8000 available in manual, P, S and A modes!
Wonder if it might be possible to cannibalize the lens and re-mount it as an M. Skylanney is offering this with the Omnar mount conversion system and they have a link to inquire: https://skyllaney.com/2022/04/01/conversions-powered-by-omnar/
Have seen their handiwork and its superb.
