Canon FD Body Recommendations

LeeRatters

LeeRatters

Suspended / Banned
Messages
7,354
Name
Lee
Edit My Images
Yes
Hi all,

I have an old Yashica FX-3 SLR which I bought back in the early 90's or so with a ML28 & ML50 plus a Tokina 28-70mm zoom. It is fully manual only, winder & everything with just a button battery for the exposure meter.

That's the only film experience I have so I'm calling on you guys/girls with more knowledge to help as I'm after something cheap[ish] & equivalent in Canon FD mount please? This is simply because I now mainly use Canon FD mount lenses on the A7 - I have a 24/2.8, 50/1.4 & 85/1.8 :)
 
Hi Lee do you want a mechanical camera or battery operated one. BTW you have some excellent lenses and the plus for film cameras is that that all take the same shots unlike digi cameras that can vary
 
LeeRatters said:
Hi all,.............. I'm after something cheap[ish] & equivalent in Canon FD mount please? This is simply because I now mainly use Canon FD mount lenses on the A7 - I have a 24/2.8, 50/1.4 & 85/1.8 :)
Click to expand...

NICE selection.......I now have 6 Canon 'A' series bodies with FD mount and a collection of FDn lenses

AV-1
AT-1
AE-1
AE-1 Program
A-1
AL-1 QF
http://www.mir.SPAM/rb/photography/companies/canon/fdresources/SLRs/a1/index.htm

I HAD several older FD breechlock lens --- 3 developed fungus (just due to age methinks) and were binned...:( so perhaps steer clear)

I think a nice focal length is my compact FDn 135/2.8 - note the 2.8 version
my 70-150mm is too long (length} - never used

the cult status is the 35-105mm /3.5 .(y)....... again the 3.5 version only
but it's big with 72mm filters - but fabulous.....:)

OK bodies - wots yer budget.?
the 3 in red above would be my choice.
eBay will always be a gamble - so why not ask 'Wanted' here

or Ffordes who allow a return policy
Ffordes Photographic

or The Camera House
http://www.the-camera-house.co.uk/2.stm
I just bought a Nikon 50/2 there and it was a fair price and spotless

HTH

PS .....random thoughts
should you buy a body which needs seals - send away to Miles Whitehead for a complete CLA
MWCameraRepairs
he 'usually' fixes any small probs too FOC - top chap

he will fix the dreaded Canon cough in the CLA I think...Google that
 
Last edited:
As above, I had an AE1 program for a short while in the 80s it was lovely, but I'd take either the A1 or AE1
 
excalibur2 said:
Hi Lee do you want a mechanical camera or battery operated one. BTW you have some excellent lenses and the plus for film cameras is that that all take the same shots unlike digi cameras that can vary
Click to expand...

true - my reply above was somewhat blinkered by my own kit....:)
 
The Canon AT-1 is the closest of the FD range to fit your criteria, with purely manual exposure (the rest of the FD series was very forward thinking, often including shutter and aperture priority exposure before other manufacturers). However, the AT-1 was for the Japanese market only, and the shutter is still electronic and requires the battery to operate it.

Don't worry too much about the battery dependence thing - you must be used to it with the A7, and the film camera batteries are often much smaller, and cheap to buy spares. My recommendations would echo @Yardbent but I would add this - the AE-1 and AE-1P are very similar, and are good cameras with a wide number of copies on the used market, but manual mode is not the smoothest on them. With that in mind, and bearing in mind the 3 lenses you have, I'd probably look for an A-1.

Look out for the Canon shutter squeal/squeak which plagues that generation. Not difficult to fix, but it does require fixing sooner rather than later - and reject any copy which has it, and doesn't mention it in the description.
 
H'mm from the posts and my 2p worth:-
Well all the A models are quaint with their cloth shutters, loads of light seals , squeaky mirror damping mechanism, 6v battery… but a special mention for the A! for sophistication…Canon did away with all that with the T models but even then, out of that range the only ones worth getting are the T70 and T90 (has to be bought from a reliable source but is the ultimate camera for what it can do).

So out of all the Canon SLRs that are cheap to buy and IMO the only ones worth getting are:- FTb, A1, T70 and T90…which I have\had.
 
Everyone, thanks for the replies & suggestions. Certainly gives me somewhere to start looking rather than aimlessly flitting around the internet in circles....!!

Budget isn't too important - I mean I don't want the cheapest thing available but on the other hand I don't want to spend a fortune on something that will not see constant use - I'm happy to go down the middle to get something that will do the job well.
 
LeeRatters said:
.....Budget isn't too important -
Click to expand...

I have been very lucky with my eBay purchases - and I mean lucky - by biding my time
and a superb AE-1P from here

so; in your position/budget I would contact Ffordes for a 'mint A-1 (or AE-1) body only' a little higher than eBay but guaranteed and returns are honoured
 
LeeRatters said:
Everyone, thanks for the replies & suggestions. Certainly gives me somewhere to start looking rather than aimlessly flitting around the internet in circles....!!

Budget isn't too important - I mean I don't want the cheapest thing available but on the other hand I don't want to spend a fortune on something that will not see constant use - I'm happy to go down the middle to get something that will do the job well.
Click to expand...
I'd go for an A-1 with that criteria.
 
freecom2 said:
I'd go for an A-1 with that criteria.
Click to expand...

Well I like the A1 too, but comparing it to a T90 and the A1 is well and truly outclassed, but with a built in motor drive that can work at 5 frames /sec it does make the body large and heavy. An expensive camera once going cheap because quite a few have the sticky shutter problem.
 
I still have a selection of my old Canon FD kit, an AT-1, 2 x FTbn and a T90. The T90 was a wonderful camera, but if I was shooting manual, usually tripod mounted, I preferred the FTbn's. Their mercury batteries are long gone, but I still have a few hand held meters, including the excellent Minolta Spotmeter F. Have Canon FDn 17mm F4 (my favourite lens), 24mm F2.8, 28mm F2.8, 35mm F2.8, 50mm F1.4 and 80-200mm F4 FD.

From personal use I'd recommend either a FTb or FTbn for a basic camera, or the advanced T90.
 
excalibur2 said:
Well I like the A1 too, but comparing it to a T90 and the A1 is well and truly outclassed, but with a built in motor drive that can work at 5 frames /sec it does make the body large and heavy. An expensive camera once going cheap because quite a few have the sticky shutter problem.
Click to expand...

The original post seems to indicate a preference for something that is without a motor drive, and a camera with minimal battery dependence.

A-1 - simple, small 6V battery, manual film advance (with the occasional need to drop some machine oil to resolve a squeaky shutter)
T90 - LCD screen, 4x AA batteries (with the occasional need to hit it on a hard floor to resolve the sticky shutter)

Many cameras we shoot with (and enjoy!) would be easily outclassed based on certain criteria!
 
freecom2 said:
The original post seems to indicate a preference for something that is without a motor drive, and a camera with minimal battery dependence.

A-1 - simple, small 6V battery, manual film advance (with the occasional need to drop some machine oil to resolve a squeaky shutter)
T90 - LCD screen, 4x AA batteries (with the occasional need to hit it on a hard floor to resolve the sticky shutter)

Many cameras we shoot with (and enjoy!) would be easily outclassed based on certain criteria!
Click to expand...

Well if I still had my FTB I would say it out classed the flimsy A models for toughness and longevity :D you forgot to mention broken battery doors.and ignore that squeak and eventually the mirror starts to return slowly. o_O
 
excalibur2 said:
you forgot to mention broken battery doors.and ignore that squeak and eventually the mirror starts to return slowly. o_O
Click to expand...

Indeed, the plastic on those battery doors seems particularly prone to breaking. I completely forgot the FTb series, although they do require a mercury battery replacement.
 
freecom2 said:
Indeed, the plastic on those battery doors seems particularly prone to breaking. I completely forgot the FTb series, although they do require a mercury battery replacement.
Click to expand...

People forget that you can get 1.4v hearing aid batteries..appx dia is 1cm X 0.5cm deep...they wouldn't last a long as the original mercury battery but a pack should be cheap to buy (or free from the NHS if you have a hearing problem) and so what if you use say two a year for the meter.
Most modern hearing aids take the much smaller one, but one year I said to the girl "instead of giving me a packet of the smaller ones could I have a packet of the larger ones"..no problem (y)

These are the ones but they do different sizes:-
http://www.hearingaidbatteryshop.com/HABS/technical/duracell-675-data.pdf
 
Last edited:
freecom2 said:
You never know, there may be one languishing at a boot sale table waiting to be bought?
Click to expand...

Well hopefully some old lady is selling her deceased husband's pro gear without knowing the value ;)..and then with the popular bootsales have to get up first thing in the morning to beat the dealers like Rocky o_O:(
 
I had bought one for 25 at wolverhampton camera fair! needed bit of cleaning and it works well :)
 
I will get some uploaded when i have access to the body.
 
I would recommend the A1 myself. It offers every option from being lazy (!) and using the Program mode, to full manual. I have only very recently got hold of one having used an AE-1 back in the day. The A1 had been on my wish list since then!
 
Well, thanks again for all the input all. The other week I put a sneaky bid in on a cheap but genuine sounding Av-1 that I was watching & picked it up for a good price really [with a FD50/1.8 that I can sell on too]

Took it on holiday & it appeared to function okay physically. Few more shots to finish the film off & it can go in the be developed :)
 
well done...................:thumbs:

took my (new to me) AE-1P out yesterday -- why do I keep forgetting to wind-on.......:(
 
Well, it appears I have an occasionally sticking shutter - 2 shots out of the roll half black......!!

Aside from that though, it seems to be working & more importantly metering well :)
 
Yardbent said:
nice

should you require a CLA then I suggest

Miles H. Whitehead Photographic Engineer

Phone: 01732-848358
Email: MWcamerarepairs@gmail.com
www.MWcamerarepairs.co.uk
Click to expand...

........., but it's not worth it for the AV1 as it was bottom of the range like Nikon EM, I would suggest to Lee that he sends it back (unless he got it for peanuts with lens) as you can't use a camera that you can't trust.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top