Rolleiflex, Rolleinars, and Whatnot

[Bokeh Guy]

Agentx,

Thanks. I'll take a look at Gordy's. I use a couple of his on my Leicas.

[dpurdy]

ONe thing to keep in mind regarding the Rollei strap is that the alligator style connector is hinged so that it is unlikely to damage the sides of the waist level finder. If you just thread another type strap connection through there, there is a good chance it will constantly rub the sides of the WLF and wear off the paint... thus reducing it's monetary value. I prefer to keep my camera in a LowePro case without the strap.

[AgentX]

Thought they looked cool myself, but the fact that they're not clip-on/clip-off detracted from the appeal for me...plus I worry about leather dye bleeding...

The leather sure looks cool on the Rolleis, though...especially with the contrasting thread bindings.

[Bokeh Guy]

Hey, what about UV filters and Rolleinars? Do the Rolleinars screw on to the UVs? (My Rolleiflex is probably on a boat somewhere).

[dpurdy]

You will have to put the UV on the Rolleinar if it is like mine. The Rolleinar has to be placed properly on the lens to work right. You are waiting for your ship to come in. I hope it is exactly what you want.
Dennis

[Bokeh Guy]

My "new" 30-year old 2.8F came in and it looks like it came right out of the factory. Wow, a whole lot lighter than the Hassey.

I also bought a "mint" tele, but when it arrived the focus mechanism didn't work and the shutter speed dial wouldn't budge a millimeter let alone an inch. First time that the camera didn't come as described in the ad.

[dpurdy]

Congratulations on the 2.8F and sorry about the Tele. When I first got my current 2.8F it was visually mint but there was a rattle in it and the focus would hang up. I had gotten a really good deal on the camera and the lens was pristine so I decided to send it in to H Fleenor and he fixed the focus easily and only charged 40 dollars. Everything about the focus mechanism is replaceable but it could end up costing you a bunch if it is serious. On that same 2.8F I took the front cover off once to get to the lenses and when I put the cover back on I misaligned the shutter speed dial and it wouldn't budge as you say. I took it back apart and got it right. The fact that you have both focus issues and shutter dial issues would cause me great alarm that someone who shouldn't have was messing around in the camera. I would have to wonder why and wonder is the camera comprised of original parts... or is it rebuilt by someone from some spares. I would look into returning it.
Dennis

[archphoto]

Congrad's with the new 2.8F.

When I got mine in it was for repairs, it took me a week to overhoal the camera.
After that the previous owner did not want the camera any longer, so I kept it.

The Tele: I would send it back.
How much did you pay for it ?

A focus mechanism on a Rolleiflex is realy hard to mess-up. Could it come from the transport ?
If you hold the camera in front of you, looking down onto it, check if the front is paralell with the back, if not it has been bumped.

As for the strap: if the 2.8F is this mint I would use the original Rollei strap on it only, it would be a pitty to loose paint anywhere !

Have fun !

Peter

[Bokeh Guy]

Thanks for the comments.

I sent the tele back pretty pronto. I had read that focusing issues could become enormous problems. This camera didn't focus at all although the focus knob motion was fluid. I called the seller and he said that he had just had the camera fixed. Frankly, that caused me to want to send the camera back even more.

The 2.8F is great and even came with the original case (have to black-shoe-leather it to make it cool). Cool camera. Really, I'm surprised more people don't have these.

[Vaughn]

Congrats on the 2.8F! I just got back from a camping cross-county trip with my family...no room for the 8x10 (and it would have been rough to use while touring NYC, DC and Boston). So I took my 2.8F -- and a Diana Camera for even more fun. I began photography 30+ years ago with a Rolleiflex 3.5 (MX-EVS) and fell in love with the square!

Vaughn