Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/12/19

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Rangefinder Accuracy
From: Marc James Small <msmall@roanoke.infi.net>
Date: Sun, 19 Dec 1999 11:48:26 -0500

At 02:41 PM 12/19/1999 -0000, Rod Fleming wrote:
>
>As a matter of fact I find it a lot easier to use the Kiev 4 (a Contax copy)
>rangefinder than that in a Leica IIIa ( I happen to have one of each of
>these to compare- I'm sure other comparisons could be made)- even though the
>viewfinders are just about equally dim and squinty. But that's personal- and
>neither of them, needless to say, match the M3.....But it's interesting, no?

Hmm.  The Leica IIIa had an EBL of 57mm, the Kiev 4 of 69.75mm and the M3
of 63.71mm.  The Kiev 4's RF should be slightly more accurate than that of
the M3 and quite a bit more accurate than the Leica IIIa.  And there is
something seriously gone a-gley with your Kiev 4 if the VF is as dim as
that of the IIIa:  the Contax and Kiev RF's, in general, have a VF as
bright or brighter than the M3/M4.  Contax introduced the modern VF/RF
scheme in '35, though Leica couldn't respond in kind for another 19 years.

Marc

msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +540/343-7315
Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!