Re: Oddmund out

[dlevy@worldy.com]

A friend of mine wanted me to get him a Fed 5C at the local camera show.
There were several 'new' ones there. NOT ONE was acceptable as a camera I'd
give my kid. There were obvious problems with each and every one of them.
From meters which didn't work to folal plane cloth that was so thin in spots
that you could see light though it to bent cloth holders, etc. I use 'new'
because though they were touted as being new and I have no reason to doubt
it, possibly they were rejects being palmed off. Can't recommend them from
what I saw.

The Minolta F is a good alternative and though not plentiful seem to be
around and not highly prized as a Leica knockoff. It is heavy, but appears
to be both rugged and reliable from the reports I've seen. I have one with a
bad shutter curtain which one day I'll have repaired. 

If you don't need flash synch, then several if the prewar Leicas could also
fit your need. I have seen good condition bodies for less than $200 from
time to time.

At 05:12 AM 11/26/96 -0500, you wrote:
>Gee, here I was not agreeing with what Oddmund said while still
>defending his right to say it, taking him for an idealist with high
>moral standards and something to say about street photography, and
>then with his last couple of messages he shows himself to be an
>egomaniac and poseur more interested in name-calling than discussing
>ideas.  I've been had.  Maybe I was taken in by all those charming
>misspellings and protestations of poverty -- they lent him such an
>earnest air of authenticity and asceticism.
>
>
>Oh well, back to Leicas.  Isn't anyone going to answer my earlier
>query by suggesting a cheap Leica-thread-mount body for those
>theft-ridden environments?  It's fine by me if it's from one of the
>Soviet successor states, so long as it's reliable.
>
>
Brian Levy, J.D.
Agincourt Ont.
dlevy@worldy.com