Praktica PL Noval dating anyone ?

[BADGER.BRAD]

Hello all,

I have brought a Praktica PL Novel today for £8 with the intention of making a pinhole lens for it and also using it with some existing m42 lenses I have. I had a choice of a Zenit E for £18 with a 135 lens (I already have one) or a Praktica TL for £10, As I thought the PL looked older I went for that but it now seems possible the TL was older ! Anyway I have an age range for but would anyone be able to narrow it down a little more ? Here some pics.

Cheers

 

[Nikon photographer]

Built from 1967 until '72, it would be pretty hard to find an exact date for it unless there's someone out there with a database of all the serial numbers, they were produced in the old East Germany, and as praktica were state owned, I'm betting all the records have now been lost or destroyed, however looking on the 'net, production numbers were quite low at only 136,400 units in 6 years of production

 

[BADGER.BRAD]

Cheers Geoff thats the build period I got , next question is ,is the view through the view finder has various dust spots I have cleaned the lens tried another known good lens and cleaned the mirror but they are still there, my next question is ,is the view finder easy to get out ? It looks like it is possibly a screw fit ? Does anyone know ?

 

[Mr Bump]

Sometimes with those old view finders its better to leave well alone, I suspect any foam inside that is guarding against light leaks and general sealing is well past its date and taking it apart liberate quite a lot of this stuff. sometimes it is hard to know where the spots are on the top of bottom of the mirror or prism or the focus screen etc.

 

[BADGER.BRAD]

Cheers Mr Bump I'll leave it alone. I'm going to run a role of black and white (only film I have at the moment) through just to make sure it all works then sort out the pinhole adaption (extension tube and body cap)

Cheers.

 

[ChrisR]

For pinhole, of course TTL viewfinder is pretty irrelevant!

Are there many exchangeable lens viewfinder cameras? Apart from expensive rangefinders, of course...

 

[john.margetts]

Does the camera have a maker's name (apart from Praktica)? Until 1968 they were made by VEB Pentacon Dresden Kamera- und Kinowerke and since January 1968 Kombinat VEB Pentacon Dresden.

If the attached lens is the lens supplied when the camera was new, the serial number (4208546) is from between 1965 (3786130) and 1970 (6064888) which is 455,751 each year. Assuming steady production, that suggests a date of early 1967 or, in other words, an early one.