Looking for a sturdy manual M42 body - Fujica?

Coyote23 · Joined: 24 Feb 2023 Posts: 21

Hi there!
Looking for my first (and only) film camera, that will serve in family holidays for when I want to get some film developed, to use with my M42 lenses like Fuji EBC stuff, Takumars, Rikenons and Helioses.

It has to be reliable, meaning no electronics to mess up as I am not in a country with readily available SLR labs....
Metal parts, metal shutter and solid mechanics.

Don't mind if it's fully manual if it's reliable and proven and easy to service when needed with ebay parts.

I have up to 150$ but of course if there is a 50$ one that would be great Smile

I am kind of a Fuji fanboy and have Fujifilm APS-c bodies that will look good on the shelf next to a Fujica, maybe Fujica made an m42 camera that fits the above?
Or... how about an old Zenit-E ussr body?

Thanks !

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4748 Location: Cheshire, England

in between the Fujica and the Zenit theres a lot of cameras. I imagine any Pentax Spotmatic would be most people's choice. The Fujis use a proprietary aperture coupling system which would make then low on my list of useful bodies

kansalliskala · Expire: 2016-12-30

Zenits are not very reliable. Actually if a Zenit body looks unused, it probably does not work.

Chinon, Cosina and many camera shop brands like Porst etc are ones I would look.

Minolfan · Joined: 30 Dec 2008 Posts: 3437 Location: Netherlands

Fujica made really good M42 camera's. The later camera's have a special bayonet.
My M420oldies are all still good working. Fujica 705 or 801 are good choices IMHO.
Nothing wrong with the 55mm 1.8 they are often equipped with either.
The cheap 55mm 2.2 is somewhat odd, with chances for soap bokeh.

titrisol70 · Joined: 14 Dec 2021 Posts: 149 Location: State of Denial

Pentax Spotmatic is probably the most common and easier to find in working condition
If you don't want electronics, the SL (no lightmeter) is for you. That is all the electronics those cameras have

Chinons are also built like tanks, and very capable.

Fujicas, Mamiyas, and Yashicas are good cameras as well.

Alun Thomas · Joined: 20 Aug 2018 Posts: 628 Location: New Zealand

I think the best choice would be the Cosina EC or one of its many rebadgings, such as the Chinon memotron cameras. They have aperture priority auto exposure with any M42 lens. If it's not an auto aperture lens you just set the aperture to your desired value, and then press the shutter. The metal bladed shutter on these models should also give great longevity and accuracy. Models of the same camera were also sold by Argus and Revuenon among others.

Another excellent choice would be the Mamiya DTL 1000 or 2000 cameras. Of all the models with a stop down metering feature, the one used by Mamiya is possibly the most elegant, no reaching around the front of the camera to fumble around and press some button, it's on the shutter advance control.

RAS61 · Joined: 29 Jul 2012 Posts: 3

The Spotmatic is nice, but I think the Fujica ST801 is nicer - better features and build quality, and much more likely to find a working and accurate meter (a real Achilles heel for older Pentaxes, haven't seen one yet that wasn't dead. Personally I'd look for a nice SV w/o a meter over a Spotty). And many folks consider the ST801 the high water mark for a body with M42 lenses; do some research and decide for yourself

stevemark · Joined: 29 Apr 2011 Posts: 3754 Location: Switzerland

kypfer · Joined: 27 Sep 2017 Posts: 514 Location: Jersey C.I.

I used Fujica SLRs for many years from the '70's 'till the early 2k's and the ST801 certainly was a pinnacle of M42 design … the 1/2000 sec. shutter came in useful on occasion as well Wink

Yes, most Fujica M42 bodies had the capability of using the unique Fujica open-aperture coupling with suitably equipped lenses, but that didn't stop them being used with stop-down metering with "normal" M42 lenses as well.
Currently I'm using an early Pentax Spotmatic SP with no problem. The metering is perfectly accurate with an appropriate zinc-air hearing aid battery fitted, though the stop-down metering did take a bit of "re-familiarisation" after so many years of open-aperture metering.
Prior to "investing" in a pack of hearing aid batteries and "adaptor" (which is just a suitably-sized rubber ring) I used my old Weston Master V meter with the SpotMatic … no batteries at all with a selenium meter Wink

I did own a Zenit E for a couple of years in the early '70's, as an "upgrade" from a Zenit 3m … it shook itself apart in the pannier of my Harley! Whether that was the vibration of the 'bike or the poor assembly of the camera I never did decide, probably a combination of both Wink

alex_d · Joined: 19 Jan 2019 Posts: 322

it looks like you have m42 fuji (ebc) lenses and not x-fujinon bayonet?
most common in m42 is 55/1.8 and 135/3.5.
other are quite rare or cause you are fuji fanboy - you have collected some of those rare ones too?

options are 701 or 801. have them both but i would not put them high on the list.
901 is quite rare and with problems.

several people already mentioned: pentax sp (m42)

cosina's and other re-branded versions are maybe the best option (imo) but they are not in m42.

personaly im fan of cosina ct-1 and it's siblings (yashica, nikon, petri, vivitar, chinon?, revuenon, ...).

my sibling version is petri gx super 2000, light, quiet, basic manual operations, metal shutter

good basic meter and extra - a pentax bayonet to m42 conversion ring to use m42 lenses.

to repeat: it's a lightweight body. it's important.