You can usually get hold of these for less than $50. So a Pentax ME Super is a great choice, I know at least 5 people who own them, and all of them are totally satisfied.
Also, there is a good amount you can do to repair them yourself if anything goes wrong.
Whichever camera you decide upon look up the specifications for the battery replacement availability. Older cameras use 1.35volt Mercury batteries. Allegedly these batteries are still available in Europe; definitely not in the USA.
I'm looking for a cheap small manual focus SLR, preferably with a built-in light meter. I propose shooting mainly with a 35mm prime on it.
I'm currently thinking about a Minolta x-nnn or Olympus OM-xx.
Anyone have any recommendations?
Thanks,
Brian
Minolta x700 is a great choice -- very small and light, simple to operate, but it doesn't do spot metering. A Nikon FM2N would be a good all-manual camera.
You might also consider a Nikon N90s. It has all the bells and whistles of a modern camera, and you can choose to autofocus or use older manual focus lenses. The N90 is a pretty hefty camera, and you will be constantly recharging batteries. Check KEH, they are a more reliable source than eBay and they have a good selection.
I satrted photography with the Olympus OM system. I had the OM1 and the OM2 bodys and several Zuiko lenses. Th OM's are light, reliable, quiet and have a bright viewfinder. I don't have tue system any more because it has been stoled.
It's sad that Olympus dropped down the Om system.
Juan Carlos
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Many of these camera are now 35 years old, some used odd batteries, others are not very reliable. For 42mm mount I would look for a working Spotmatic or Spotmaitc II. I have 3 bodies one with a working meter, it was my second 35mm bought it in 1967, one with a dead meter and one with a meter that is off by a couple of stops, but with a hand held meter all are good to go. You should be able to find a good working Spot locally from a reputable dealer. On the other hand either Minolta or Olympus are also good bets.
Olympus OM 2 or 2n would be a good choice. Zuiko lens are wonderful and you can build a decent kit around your camera should you decide to expand. Not as pricey at Nikon or Canon. These can be had for a song if you are patient. You should plan on having a CLA done at some point when buying a camera this old. Figure $100 to $125from a good repair person. One can be found a zuiko.com. Bill Barber
A used Pentax K-1000. A classic, and wonderful camera.
I'll second that. A K-1000 was the first real camera I used when taking photo classes in college and I still have it.
It uses the K mount which is supposed to have about a million different lenses, plus the camera uses LR44 batteries which you can get anywhere in the world.
Pentax LX was the top-of-the-line pro camera and will be more expensive. The MX was one down and is much less expensive. Both are quite mechanically reliable and you get what you pay for. The ME and ME Super make good manual cameras but they can be a bit of a bugger to trick into running 100% manual. I'd avoid most K1000s as they tend to be pretty shagged out but YMMV. In the USA, consider getting the camera and prime lens from KEH.com. They are reputable and knowlegable in their ratings.
Same goes for the Nikon line. A good FM2 (F2M? I can never remember) is an investment, not a throw-away camera. Well kept and well cared for it will last a very long time.
Same goes for the lenses.
And as for battery types, there are replacemtns available for the mecury (1.32V cells) that are non-toxic (as batteries go). However they are probably zinc-air and will have a shorter shelf life. Those cameras that run off the 1.5V alkalines are a better choice.
Back to the Pentax line, Ricoh and one other company (name escapes me now) also had K-mount lenses. Some sold with a Ricoh badge, others with a Sears (as in Sears & Roebuck) badge. The Ricoh models will go for less and in many cases are just as good as the Pentax branded cameras. There are some downgrades in material (more plastic, less metal, especially around the lens mount and tripod mount). There are also some late model Vivitar manual cameras with a K-mount.
I don't have the link handy, but Google around for "pentax manual" or "ricoh manual" and you may find the site where a guy has collected lots and lots of camera manuals. Most available for viewing. Send him a dontation if you end up using one of his manual copies.
A Pentax ME Super 
Linear Mode
