Which Rollei?

Andysnap

Andysnap

Suspended / Banned
Messages
16,322
Name
Andy Grant
Edit My Images
Yes
I've been having a think (this is a dangerous thing to do) and I really want to give Rollei a try. I was looking at the FFordes site and these caught my eye

1. Rolleiflex T in grey - shexy and only £249
2. Save a little more and get the 3.5E Planar for £349
3. Out of left field comes the SLX MkII for £299 which I find strangely attractive

So, any thoughts, experiences, anecdotes on these 3. The SLX has the interchangeable lens vibe goin' on but the T is a thing of beauty but the 3.5E has reputedly the best lens......:thinking:

Cheers
 
That SLX looks like it fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch :puke:
The T does look rather tasty but for my money I'd go for the 3.5F, if you went for anything else you'd always be wondering about the next one up
 
Just a word of warning, and I say this from my position as a multiple repeat buyer from Ffordes. My only unsuccessful purchase from them was a Rolleiflex, which I paid about £600 for (can't remember which model it was, a 3.5E I think). I was disappointed with its cosmetic condition (think it was listed as EXC+ but was quite ropey looking) but moreso its functional condition...the shutter was clearly a bit sticky for one thing, and the lenses weren't tip top either. And I think they said it had just been serviced....

On the plus side, I returned it and got a full refund, no quibbles, so this is only a minor complaint really, but I was a bit disappointed that it clearly hadn't been checked very thoroughly, especially given the price of it.

Now as I said, I've bought loads of other stuff from them and have otherwise been very happy with the condition of items. Just made me wonder if Rollei stuff is often oversold in this way... and I felt as though I'd had my fingers burned with getting involved in this premium branded photography lark!

In a similar way, though at the opposite end of the price scale, I bought my Rolleicord from the classifieds here, and it was also a bit ropey - one of the feet pushed in, and also with a sticky shutter, yet it was described as having no faults. I got a partial refund on that one, which helped pay for a great Brian Mickelboro service, but it also gave me the impression that it's hard to get a good Rollei!

Maybe it pays to go to a dealer who specialises in them (I'm not sure who that is though).

By the way, now that it's been serviced, I love my Rolleicord and would heartily recommend it....if you can find a good one! I still have a vague yearning for a 'Flex, but in truth it would make no sense for me to 'upgrade' at enormous expense.

I'm not sure about the T, some people swear by them, others sneer at them. I don't think it's any improvement over a 'Cord though, certainly optically, yet usually commands much higher prices.
 
Last edited:
although the planar is meant to be better than the tessar ,i dont think theres anything in it quality wise ,the tessar is very good ,,,
if you needed a service ,,B.M would charge anything from £60 to £125 tops , depending on what needs doing to it ,,,,,mine had the sticky shutter and a few minor tweeks ,and he charged me £65 ,,,trouble is it cost £12 each way for postage ,,,but its has come back working fine now , let you know for sure when i develope the fillums ,in a few days time .
if you ,or anyone else needs to call him his new phone number is 01279 506862 (old 755862 )
 
I had a Rollei T back in the 1970's and thought it the best TLR I ever had. I changed it out for a Mamyia C330 system because of the interchangeable lenses but in pure quality terms wasn't quite as good. I'm fully digital now of course, although I do have an old Yashica TLR tucked away somewhere...

Anthony.

Anthony.
 
Cheers Rob, our resident style and design guru. I know what you mean about always wanting the next one up but if that happens I shall just buy the next one up. Richie Rich, thats me.:thumbs: And The

Thanks Francesco, I have bought a good few things from Ffordes before and I've never been disappointed so far. I shall however give them a ring and check the condition of the 2 T's they have if I decide to get one. I have looked at the 'cords but I do prefer a proper winding handle to a winding knob.

Andy, I have done some research and the trend seems to be that you are right, not a lot of difference between the 2 lenses so maybe the T would give more points per pound.

Cheers

Andy
 
Anthony.Ralph said:
I had a Rollei T back in the 1970's and thought it the best TLR I ever had. I changed it out for a Mamyia C330 system because of the interchangeable lenses but in pure quality terms wasn't quite as good. I'm fully digital now of course, although I do have an old Yashica TLR tucked away somewhere...

Anthony.

Anthony.
Click to expand...

I also have the Mamiya system but I want a TLR just to pop in a bag and I think the T is fave so far.

You want to get that old Yash out Anthony and pop a roll through it, I'll bet you'd enjoy it more than you'd think.:thumbs:
 
Get the 3.5E. It's the ultimate TLR, there's no upgrade path, no hankering for the model above. It is the best TLR, made by the daddy of TLR manufacturers, at a time when they had perfected their cameras.

They also hold their value very well, and aside from commonly documented problems (light meter dying, lens coating peeling), they are very reliable.

Any questions on the Rolleiflex line, fire away.
 
Additionally, the T us commonly regarded as mechanically inferior - its regularly quoted that Harry Fleenor, the USA West Coast Rolleiflex expert, will not touch the T because it is made of inferior parts, and he can't guarantee them post-service like he can with other models.
 
Oh, ok that may have made me sway my decision a little. I have just read something to that end myself. Mmmm food for thought.
 
Yes but if he gets the T and then wants to upgrade that would give me time to save and have it off him:D

Although calling it T is making me laugh with all your comments about it:banana:
 
Oh yes, I described the T as shexy earlier....:oops:
 
:lol::lol: mechanically inferior made me chuckle too and to be sneered at:oops:
 
Andysnap said:
Oh, ok that may have made me sway my decision a little. I have just read something to that end myself. Mmmm food for thought.
Click to expand...

Incidentally, £249 is very expensive for a T. eBay/MWClassic and other dealers tend to have T's for less. The key thing to note is, keenly priced Rollei's disappear quickly - if you can think about it, it's probably overpriced.

On that note, I don't think that 3.5E will be sitting around for long at that price, provided the condition is good. Bear in mind that the later Rolleicord models have the excellent Xenar, which was a Tessar clone, and offer a lot of Rollei performance for relatively little money. A Rolleicord IV or V are the ones to buy.
 
Thanks for that FC2. At the moment I don't have enough in my little camera fund to buy the 3.5 so I may have to be patient if the one at Ffordes goes before I have the cash. I know the later cords are good but I really much prefer a winding handle to a winding knob so I think 3.5E is the way to go.
I shall probably be back with more questions later, cheers mate.

Andy
 
Andy, as a self confessed Rollei fanatic I thought I would add my 2p worth. In your situation I would save for the 3.5E. The T is a super camera but they were a budget model with a number of plastic internal components making them vulnerable in my view. My T died long ago and is now a mantelpiece paperweight. Parts are an issue for some T models. And as FC says many Rollei officianados do urge against them for anything other than display.

My 56 year old Rolleicord V is a different story, particularly after it's recent refurb, it always performed better than the T and has out lived it. Brian Mickleboros report to me was that it would now be fine for another 50 years. It will outlive me! This Summer I took it back to its place of birth in Braunschweig in Lower Saxony on a self indulgent pilgrimage to the home of the Rollei. The trip was partly inspired by a previous thread in which I shared my Rollei obsession as an affliction, Joxby suggested a pilgrimage to Lourdes to look for a cure, I went to Braunschweig instead.:lol:

PS Also buy an SLX, I am quite keen on one of these and you could be a pathfinder.:)
 
Last edited:
Thanks for your thoughts Adrian, the pondering continues.
FC2, I have decided that I will wait until I have a significantly bigger pot to play with and then I can pounce on any unsuspecting keenly priced cameras instantly. As you rightly said the good ones go very quickly so I shall wait until I have £500 before I continue searching.
A question, am I right in saying that the 3.5's use bay 1 and the 2.8 bay 2 accesories and that they are a different fit?

Cheers

Andy
 
The 3.5 Planar and Xenotars are Bay 2, the 2.8 are Bay 3. Bay 1 are the most readily available, and Bay 2 are relatively rare.

I'd only bother with a hood.
 
Cool, sounds like a plan.
 
Also, ever ready cases are junk - truly never-ready. A camera that comes in one is generally a good sign though, they tend to be in slightly better condition (but not always!). And stay a million miles away from any original leather strap, very prone to breaking - lots of stories of Rolleiflex's crashing to the ground.
 
I have a T, it's a good camera and hasn't broken yet. I also have a load of filters and bits for it, some of which are definitely worth having. If you plan to shoot b&w get at least a yellow filter. I also have a set of close up filters which again are great- great way to get closer for portraits etc. As for the prices, that T (if in good condition) is at a good price, however the E is a bargain and I would get it ASAP! ;)
 
IMO, it's very overpriced for a T. And the T has been going up in second hand value over the last 6 to 12 months... You should be paying about £150 for a T in good condition. Additionally, ffordes don't have the best reputation for Rollei stuff (see above, and I'd buy from somewhere else if I wanted to buy from a dealer).
 
freecom2 said:
IMO, it's very overpriced for a T. And the T has been going up in second hand value over the last 6 to 12 months... You should be paying about £150 for a T in good condition. Additionally, ffordes don't have the best reputation for Rollei stuff (see above, and I'd buy from somewhere else if I wanted to buy from a dealer).
Click to expand...

If you can show us some Ts at that price I will snap up a backup! I think you may be underestimating the market!
 
menthel said:
If you can show us some Ts at that price I will snap up a backup! I think you may be underestimating the market!
Click to expand...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ROLLEIFLE...ography_VintageCameras_SM&hash=item1c388d961c

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ROLLEIFLE...y_VintagePhotoAccessories&hash=item338682d027

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rolleifle...598818?pt=UK_Film_Cameras&hash=item4d137f68e2

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rolleifle...Film-Camera-/151161475379?hash=item2331ed1133

All with no major faults reported, and with eBay/PayPal protection, an inaccurate description on a listing always means return/refund is possible.

Additionally, as I mentioned in this thread, the keenly priced Rolleiflex models don't exactly sit around waiting to be considered. They are snapped up quickly, so paying £200+ is purely for those people who deliberate and don't act fast - unfortunately, Rollei's are still very much in demand, and there is increasing demand from the Far East for good Rollei models.
 
freecom2 said:
The 3.5 Planar and Xenotars are Bay 2, the 2.8 are Bay 3. Bay 1 are the most readily available, and Bay 2 are relatively rare.

I'd only bother with a hood.
Click to expand...
You don't need to worry too much about the availability of original Rollei filters as you can buy adaptors for the taking lens that take standard 43mm filters. I have one for my 2.8f. I bought it from ebay for about £12 including delivery, it came from China and is a perfect fit.
 
Likewise, I have a Bay 2 -> 39mm adapter for mine... although a lot of 39mm filters are Leica!
 
Ooooooooh I want more medium format cameras...

perhaps an MF Meet up !!!!!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jao
Well get it sorted then. If you build it they will come.:D
 
I would recommend you the second option: "2.Save a little more and get the 3.5E Planar for £349".

I had the following cameras: Rolleiflex 6008AF, Yashika Mat 124G, Rolleiflex 3,5F which I all sold two years ago.

Currently I have a Hasselblad system which allows me to shoot both Film and Digital. Few days ago I was looking my old photos taken with my Rolleiflex 3,5F and decided that there is something special about it so I bought another Rolleiflex on Ebay...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top