RB67 lens CLA?

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Carl Hall

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Hi all,

I'm trying to find an RB67 Pro S, and I think I've found one online at a good price being a bit over £200. The seller has said that the lens has some light signs of dust and fungus inside the lens which does not affect optical quality, but I might wish to get it CLA'd in the future.

As I've been a digital user for many years, it's been drummed into me that dust and fungus are the big evils of photography and lenses need to be spotless. One thing I've learned since starting to shoot film is that that's a load of rubbish and small amounts of dust don't make any difference whatsoever unless you're shooting directly into sunlight. So I'm not even sure if the lens would really need cleaning unless it's really bad, which they've told me it's not.

The lens is the 127mm f/3.5. Does anyone have any clue what sort of price I would expect to pay if I was to have the lens professionally cleaned? Basically I'm trying to figure out if it makes financial sense to buy the camera with the possibility that I'll need to spend a bit in the future getting it cleaned, or just pay more and find one that is clean from the start.
 
Remember the p+p on the cla, by the time you post it out and back you're probably down another £15. RB67 gear is pretty plentiful, I'd be inclined to be patient and get one in good condition. The 127mm is the normal lens and very common, you can pick up a K/L for <£100 if your smart. I've got a few RB lenses and never had any problems with the shutters (touch wood) and I don't think they're particularly prone to failure so its not like a minty lens would need serviced right away.
 
RB67 bodies and lenses aren't in short supply, I'm not sure I'd deliberately pick a lens with known fungus issues.
 
Thanks for the advice all. I've since got an email back saying that the dust and fungus are visible if you look through the lens with a strong light, which sounds to me like there's not much at all. I've also been offered a six month warranty from the shop on the body, wlf and film back as well.

If the lens is usable then it's a great deal, and if the lens needs a clean then its another £60-70 on top. RB67s on eBay seem to go for £200-300 so at the moment it seems to be quite a good deal.

I'm going to have to give it some thought I think. It's mainly the good condition body etc along with the warrranty that's pushing me towards getting it at the moment! Unfortunately I can't seem to find many shops that are selling them, and most are on eBay.
 
£200 for an RB-67 Pro S with lens, back and body from a dealer offering a warranty sounds suspiciously cheap - I'd be worried there was more wrong with it than just some fungus in the lens. I certainly wouldn't buy from someone with a rocky reputation (although I can't see a kit matching this description on his website at the moment).

I've got a full RB67 Pro S set-up collecting dust under the bed (this is only part of it here). I wouldn't want to give it away too cheaply, buy I might be persuaded to list it in the sales section or if you're only wanting to dip your toe come to a hire arrangement.
 
Well Carl a thought:- if you find the RB is not for you, then you will have more problems selling it if you mention dust and fungus.
 
Alastair said:
£200 for an RB-67 Pro S with lens, back and body from a dealer offering a warranty sounds suspiciously cheap - I'd be worried there was more wrong with it than just some fungus in the lens. I certainly wouldn't buy from someone with a rocky reputation (although I can't see a kit matching this description on his website at the moment).

I've got a full RB67 Pro S set-up collecting dust under the bed (this is only part of it here). I wouldn't want to give it away too cheaply, buy I might be persuaded to list it in the sales section or if you're only wanting to dip your toe come to a hire arrangement.
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Ha no it wasn't from that site, I've heard enough about him to not buy anything lol. It was actually from Ffordes who I've heard a lot of good things about. I ended up buying it as they offer a ten day refund period if you're not totally happy. If the lens is a load of rubbish then I can buy one off ebay and it wont have cost me any more than buying one from there to start with.

Thanks for your kind offer though :) If I'm not happy with the Ffordes camera then I might ave to get in touch about buying yours.

excalibur2 said:
Well Carl a thought:- if you find the RB is not for you, then you will have more problems selling it if you mention dust and fungus.
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This is a good point that I hadn't really thought of, but I don't think it'll prove too much of an issue. They still go for reasonable prices on ebay even with fungussed up (that's a word, right?) lenses. Actually, of all the cameras I've ever bought I've never managed to part with one so I don't think I'll ever be able to sell it :D

It should be arriving tomorrow (I'm so excited :D), I will post again to say what happens!
 
Congratulations, You've taken your first step into a larger world :)
 
Nothing, absolutely nothing in the whole, wide world is as hip as square.:D
 
Carl Hall said:
Thanks Steve! I've actually been using a C220 for the last six months or so and have loved it. Shooting 6x7 will be new though, I've only just got used to shooting square! Is 6x7 as hip as square??
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Ah the RB makes the c220 look like a toy? ;)

Only kidding @Andysnap :)
 
I love my RB67 but hold out for a mint one, loads about,
Also bear in mind they have a lot of foam light seals and even mint ones will need attention for those.
Worth knowing the 120 Pro film backs have less seals so better :-)
 
Well I left the sq about 30 years ago and never missed em..mind you if I saw a Rollei at the bootie for a fiver I could be tempted ;)

My sq days:-

View attachment 24927
 
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steveo_mcg said:
The RB is an elegant camera from a more civilised age.
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The RB and the RZ are brute force cameras, sledgehammers in a world of glass. You want an elegant, refined and civilised MF camera? 'blad, all the way. :)
 
Strappy said:
The RB and the RZ are brute force cameras, sledgehammers in a world of glass. You want an elegant, refined and civilised MF camera? 'blad, all the way. :)
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Yeah, they are. But my theme wouldn't have worked, never let the truth get in the way of a sound bite, or a running joke. Though I suspect the 'blad might be a bit delicate for my ham fisted operations, they are very much more refined.
 
skysh4rk said:
You had an SL66? Square format aside, what did you think of the camera?
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The RB67 was crude in comparison, but IMO the SL66 is over engineered and more things to go wrong which did happen as the shutter speeds stopped working and had to have it repaired (when I bought it S\H it was only about 10-15 years old and not abused). Other than that it was handy to have a top speed of 1/1000 sec and the tilt mechanism for more depth of field, but what made it useless for me was the flash sync of 1/30 sec (not so good for studio work) and would have had to buy a lens with inbuilt shutter control in the lens and they weren't cheap.
More info on:-

http://www.sl66.com/
 
steveo_mcg said:
Though I suspect the 'blad might be a bit delicate for my ham fisted operations ...
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I haven't managed to break mine yet. I find that if you never take the opportunity to use it beyond the occasional dry-fire to satisfy yourself that it's still working then it'll last right up to the next time it needs a service.

In other news, I really need to get out with my 'blad. This weekend, I shall, promise.
 
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