Help! Minoltaitis - is it fatal?

[Barrington]

I am forever getting my hands on all sorts of nice bits of old kit.A couple of months ago I chanced upon a version 5 SR1 with 55mm Rokkor in (no exaggeration)as new and unmarked condition.Thinking it was unlikely to work as it didn't look like it had had any use I thought it could be serviced and freed up should it be sticky.No need.This thing is tight,accurate,better built than a Nikkormat (and without the annoying shutter speeds around the lens mount.No need for servicing-just dropped in a roll of HP5 and away it went.I like minimalist cameras and this fits the bill.No novel features or sillyness,just a decent quality camera with a viewfinder thats more 1990's than 1960's (sharp as hell,no internal metering-hate relying on batteries) and I have had results from it that are just superb.Not long afterwards I went out and got myself a nice 24mm 2.8 Rokkor as I prefer to work with wides.How much did this lot cost me? £38 for the SR1 and 50mm and about £30 for the 24! Lovely piece of kit and goes places now where I would rather not take the M6.

Barrington

[Mat]

I would dearly love to know just how you come across quite so many bargains, no matter how I look I rarely find anything for as little as the items that you taunt us with.

My best purchase would be my Minolta XD7 c/w 50mm (1.7), vivitar 28-200mm, flash, bag and accessories for only £30 in absolute pristeen condition. The camera itself was unmarked with perfect leatherette, which I understand is unusual for the XD7 as it normally shrinks off, and I am told the last owner rarely used it except for one time on holiday (I think - been a while since I got it). Not an ebay purchase I'm afraid, an aquisition from the owners widow via a mutual aquaintance.

[Barrington]

I would dearly like one of those tasty XM's.Can I find one? No chance.Ok,so I have a Leica R3 and an R4 but the XM is so cool!

I think Minoltas went crappy the day they bought out the 7000.They dont make em like they used to.I like to take pictures with a precision mechanical instrument and not a blob of plastic full of motors,volts and covered in wobbly buttons.

You guys may suspect that I don't use digital for some reason! lol

Barrington

[Barrington]

Well David,in theory I did buy a 3.2mp digital camera for a tenner! I t was only bought because I needed to shove some pictures on ebay or some such site.Broken down,the bill came to this...

New 256Mb SD card
New card reader
New charger and batteries
Used (but you'd never know it) HP Camera.

Total cost £40..the card's worth more than the camera!

Problem is that its digital,ergo the quality is rubbish and the thing is clueless about correct exposure.Thats why digitals dont use film..You need to take 10 pictures just to find one that borders on an acceptable exposure and even then the pictures are useless lol

A few months ago I needed to get a new phone and the assistant was most keen to foist one with a camera on me.I told him I had no use for one and simply wanted a phone and no fancy crap on it.He said that the inbuilt cameras were superb (not at VGA they bloody well arent pal!)and that I would love it and use the facility all the time.Fortunately I had my camera bag with me at the time,took out an Alpa 6c,dumped it on the counter and said 'no,trust me,I wont be using that lame excuse for an imaging device in a million years.

Still,I did get a Nokia which was the simplest phone they had but I have never bothered with the optical bit.I dont do plastic meniscus lenses lol

Barrington

[RonM]

Well, I think I can now scratch the 85mm f/2 off the list, just managed to nab one on e-bay for £79, not exactly cheap but within a reasonable price band.
Now just to send off payment and await getting the new 'toy'

Paul, would it be permissable if I get the lens in time to use it on the competition camera?

[Barrington]

Ive done it again! Picked up a nice condition SRT101 body in chrome for £37.I must stop buying the things but,hey,a spare body is always handy! I think of it as an extra box to store film in!

Barrington

[Fen]

I've got one of them...

Original box, instructions, Minolta accessory guide, even the original Minolta plastic bag that the camera was in inside the box!



Nowadays it just sits there at the back of a cupboard!

[Benchista]

Shame - they're nice cameras. I'm rather fond of my 100X - the only thing that stops it being one of my most favourites is the amount of shutter and mirror noise, but there are some lovely little touches.

[huwevans]

The shutter on my SR-1s is loud enough to trigger small earthquakes - I guess maybe early Minoltas weren't too well damped.

[Footloose]

I think Minoltas went crappy the day they bought out the 7000.

You've obviously not seen/used Minolta's Dynax 9. Not exactly a big seller, but the build quality (stainless steel body) and layout of controls etc, was excellent. AF isn't exactly fast, but it's accuracy superb. The only niggles I had with mine (which I overcame with simple modifications) were the lever on/off switch which could be accidentally switched on and that the DOF button doesn't protrude enough above the body casing. Used part of a CD jewel case to protect the former and a plastic tyre dust cap to improve the latter.

It's weight inspires confidence and with an 5600HS flashgun you can get high speed sync up to the camera bodies 1/4000th sec max shutter speed.

[Barrington]

As for the Dynax 9 in four years we sold precisely-err-one.People usually went for F5's and EOS1's.Sure it was better made than the cheaper stuff but I was never overly impressed with the things.Ugly as plug to look at as well.Although an 9 wasn't to my tastes I did respect it as a good bit of kit.Just not my bag of chips,thats all
That said I reckon Minolta glass is very underrated and I prefer it to the equvalent Nikon/Canon glass.I once very nearly bought a 200mm f2.8 even though I didnt have a body at the time.I borrowed it for a weekend along with a body of some sort and was stunned by it.Always wondered if they made one in a manual fit cos if they did I'd love one!

Barrington

[Barrington]

Fenris...

Thats no way to treat a fine machine! Leaving it at the back of a cupboard.Take the beast out and give it some excercise! lol

(looks damn tasty though!)

Barrington

[Fen]

Hi Barrington,

I do occasionally go out with a film camera, but it's my Pentax ME Super that goes with me.

Just prefer it!

[Barrington]

I went into my ex employers today.That well known firm thats shutting down its secondhand operation and getting rid of all its used gear.Good job my mates still work there.They had a rummage and found me this:

I picked up a tasty condition 135mm f2.8 Rokkor,optically perfect and no oily diaphragms,mushrooms or any of that nonsense for the vast sum of...

£6.15!

[RonM]

And now I have got a XD-7 kit for £37.00 inc P&P camera, case, winder, Hoya HMC Macro 35-75 lens, Miranda 75-300 & Tokina 80-200 Zoom Lenses, Vivitar 3500 Flash. Now just to test it all out this weekend (weather permitting)
Total Minolta (Konica Minolta) cameras = 10

[Gaspipe58]

As a newbi I enjoyed reading this thread so I thought I'd add my bargin. Rather old Olympus Trip found in a skip. It was all wet and dirty. I felt sorry for it so it came home with me. Gave it a quick clean and forgot about it for 12 months. Found it again and shoved a cheap B&W film in. Then left it in the boot of the car, which leaked. Poor little camera! Managed to remove the film and splash it around in some ID11. One of my best shots was on that film.

My little orphaned Trip is now kept warm and dry. It's had a few more films through it and works as well as any of that type. How it survived the abuse it's original owner and then, shamefully, me heaped on it I don't know.

Minolta count - 3. 2 of them are digital! Really need to correct the balance there. One, 7Hi, is non functional. Any ideas on how to get it repaired? The EVF and screen just show black with the occational coloured line running horizonal. It was my first digital and I do like it. Feel sad it doesn't work.

Tim

[RonM]

And now the 70 - 210 f/4 MD Rokkor can be scratched off the list , if time and weather permit this weekend I'll stick it on one of the manual SLR's that haven't been used for a bit maybe the x-700 or the SRT and give it a whirl

Now I think the only lens I'm still after Rokkor-wise is a 24mm f/2.8 OH well I'll just keep looking.

[garlandgreen]

A XD-7 with lens just went for 150 pound

[Barrington]

I have a Rokkor 24 2.8 Ron and its a superb bit of glass.Get one and you'll love it.It's on my SR1 90% of the time as I mostly work with wides.

Barrington

[RonM]

If the 24mm Rokker is anything like the 24mm AF Dynax lens then I know it'll it be great. I got my AF lens by trading in a Sigms 24 f/2.8 against the Minolta version at Ffordes.
Here is one of the first shots taken with the Minolta 24mm AF lens on my Dynax 7 (film) at Dornoch