Well, Collin, I had the 60 for what, a month? Maybe I've been only unlucky, but the occasional frame overlapping, most common problem with those cameras, was followed by an uneven amount of frames lost due to advance problems. The meter was reliable, but not very sensitive in low light, and the 80/2.8 was very good (although I'm not reliable in recalling, I don't even remember what shots I took with it and where to find them - I can check, though). There are good optics in its line-up, but there is some really bad (the magazine I worked for had a test of all the 60 lenses made by Kiev, I still have the issue somewhere). Overall, the Kiev 60 is not a reliable camera, even for its low cost. Eight or seven years ago another magazine suggested to find a more reliable Exacta 66 (better the Model II) instead of the Kiev, and use the Kiev 60 (or the Pentacon 6) lenses. They all share the same mount. The new lenses made for the Exacta are from Schneider-Kreuznach, very expensive even used. I don't know if the Exacta is still manufactured. Russian lenses usually share the same coating, which gives a peculiar "low contrast" look, although the resolution is quite high. I've no experience with the Pentacon lenses. I saw once a early model of Pentacon 6, which had the film advanced by a knob under the bottom, while the lever only cocked the shutter (it could impress 4,5x6 frames with a mask, too), but I haven't seen another one till then.
Hope this helps. Gianfranco --- Collin Brendemuehl <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > It looked like it might be an inexpensive step (back) into > medium format for me. Prices are really, really cheap for > these babies. A complete starter outfit for about $150! > > But -- are they reliable, decent optically, etc. > > I'm obviously not going to worry about resale value! > > Collin > > -- > . > ----------------------- > "Cats are evil incarnate. They are only your friend > until someone makes a better offer. They are the whores of the > animal kingdom." > > William Robb > -- ===== Send FREE video emails in Yahoo! Mail! http://promo.yahoo.com/videomail/ - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
