Selenium meters

dee · Joined: 09 Nov 2009 Posts: 55 Location: london south

As a follow on from the Kiev III / IV selenium meter discussion - I love the magic of a meter which reacts to light rather than to a battery ! Having any camera - Olympus Trip ? with such a meter is great for me .

It's interesting that CDS cells were initially seen as inaccurate due to a predominant sensitivy to red , but

But , even a Weston V , or my latest find - near mint Euromaster - covers a wide angle of view - up and down too ! Again , one of these can be serviced - if the mechanism is sound .

I have a Jessops CDS meter , typically 1970s Japan in style , but bought recently , now discontinued , which is excellent as a check for others .

I found that with TTL manual metering , that there was a tendency to be slave to the needle - peering through the finder all the time . With a hand held meter , I take a reading then just take photos unless the light changes drastically , or I need compensation . I now do the same on manual with my M8 . This avoids photos of varying density which can happen with auto metering .

When I first had my CLC Minolta SRT , I was constantly overcompensating by pointing the meter away from the sky , then I learned that the system really works ... but some thought is needed . Having a digital SLR , now means a re-learning curve - checking the readings against my Weston / Leningrad 4 - to ascertain typical compensation .

Unlike the post war Contax , the Kiev III and IV meters share the same mech , but different thickness cells , so I am told , but they work in a similar manner .

The Contax III meter was the 1st ever built in meter on a 35mm camera - the 1st meter ever inbuilt ? I don't know .
One Kiev 4a was being sold on ebay with a Leningrad 4 permanently screwed to the top of the case - clever , but I did not buy it !

Unfortunately , whilst it's assumed that the cells die - the mech can also be faulty - especially the ' graphite track which works as the variable resistance ' which necessitated a second Contax III body to fix one .

At present , it's not viable to try and fix a Lenngrad 4 , but there are still many around working well as most have been kept in the dark for decades . I happen to prefer the export UK versions 'cos I know that they worked properly from new , and a good idea of how they were used in this country [ as with Kiev 4 / 4a cameras ]

Of course , sensible individual buy a modern meter - but what's the fun in that LOL

Seele · Joined: 17 Apr 2009 Posts: 742 Location: Sydney Australia

Dee,

If you have a later model Weston, Mark IV or later with original Invercone, in good working order, you have a very fine piece of equipment that you should never part with; you can still get brand new ones, last time I checked but they are quite costly.

The first camera with built-in meter was a 35mm camera but not the Contax III, but the twin-lens Contaflex.

I suspect there are sources for new cell plates, and technicians willing to rebuild selenium meters. Not going to be dirt cheap of course, but should be possible to get a meter working like new again.

cooltouch · Joined: 15 Jan 2009 Posts: 9096 Location: Houston, Texas

I was at a local camera shop today, rummaging through their junk boxes, and came across a Gossen Sixtino:

I'd never seen one before, and this one wasn't in operable condition (for one thing, the needle was not visible and didn't respond to light), but hey it was in one of the junk boxes, so what did I expect?

Anyway, it seems to me that one of these cute little Gossens, which uses a selenium cell and meters reflective as well as incident light, would be an ideal meter for the batteryphobe. I did a bit of googling on the Sixtino and found a number of favorable reviews. As a personal note, I've owned several Gossen meters over the years, and have come to rely on their exceptional accuracy.

ludoo · Expire: 2011-12-05

I've owned a Sixtino, they are quite cheap on European ebay. It's a nice and very small meter, but it shares a problem common to all selenium based meters: it's unreliable in low light situations.

Apart from that it works great. You could try opening up yours and checking the contacts on the selenium cell, often they come alive after some cleaning/resoldering. Mike Elek has a nice page on reviving selenium meters.

Edit: if the cell is really dead and you are comfortable tinkering with stuff, you could try replacing the selenium cell with a solar cell from a cheap calculator. You'll then have to adjust resistor values, or better put variable resistors in place of the fixed ones, and adjust the meter sensitivity. It' won't probably be ok for slides, but it might make a nice pocketable meter for daylight shooting.

One thing: if you revive it keep it in the dark when not in use, as it preserves the cell.

bob955i · Joined: 15 Apr 2007 Posts: 2495

scsambrook · Expire: 2011-11-18

I've got a Leningrad 4 somwhere and the last time I tried it it worked just fine ... I also have a late 1950s Zeiss Ikophot which still works accurately but seems to have a reading area like a fish-eye lens. The Westons actually read over a moderately narrow angle - around 30 degrees - with the baffle closed. Hard to beat a Weston for outdoor work in daylight, I think. I have two of the Master V and a Euro Master as well, all read the same. Had an accident with my Master IV - they really don't like falling onto a hard pavement but I now have the ultimate insurance against that - it's called the "neck strap" Smile

Megtron's charges are probably fair regarding labour rates and cost of parts, but you can still get a good V or Euro for a fraction of what they're asking. Although now they've been mentioned here I've no doubt eBay prices will zoooooooom skywards (like the Domiplan lens did Very Happy

)

bob955i · Joined: 15 Apr 2007 Posts: 2495

My Master V reads the same as my black Lunasix 3 under most normal conditions other than low light naturally but the IVs are both out by about two stops and don't appear to be linear in their response, and the Euromaster's cell is moribund.

I'd sooner pay Megatron's prices for repair etc. than Gossen's though - I enquired out of curiosity about having a calibration check done on the Lunasix and was quoted EUR100 + any parts required. And I'd have to send it to the factory in Germany, AND they no longer service the early grey models - just the later black ones...

Don't get me wrong, the Lunasix is a superb meter but don't ever drop it... Laughing

Seele · Joined: 17 Apr 2009 Posts: 742 Location: Sydney Australia

Michael,

I have a Sixtino as well, in working order and in its hard plastic clamshell case; it is indeed a nice standby. Otherwise my Multisix is my workhorse, pity Gossen still used the 9V battery for it and battery does not last as long as should be, and costlier to replace.

Sevo · Expire: 2012-12-03

Over the course of time, I have accumulated two Westons (V and Euro-Master), a Norwood B, Sekonic Studio Deluxe and Auto Leader. All of them still accurate to within one third stop compared to my modern meters, with the slight exception of the Norwood, which I had to adjust to compensate for a yellowed dome, so that it now is about a stop fast with the reflective grid.

martinsmith99 · Expire: 2013-11-18

I have a Leningrad 4, a Sekonic L-358 and a Sekonic L-208. I don't trust the Sekonics any more than I would the Leningrad.

But this may be down to my skill with a handheld meter. Embarassed

Seele · Joined: 17 Apr 2009 Posts: 742 Location: Sydney Australia

FYI:

http://www.westonmaster.com/

luisalegria · Expire: 2018-01-18

I have a boxful (10-12) of non-functional vintage Westons (mostly, other makes too). These are often found in lots, and I have only one still working (a Japanese meter made for Argus).

My main meter is a cheap plastic 1970's Sekonic selenium cell I've had since I was a teenager. Lives in my jacket pocket. Still works fine.

Nesster · Expire: 2014-02-20

In selenium, I have a cute little Gossen Pilot, which works fine where there's enough light. It has its limitations though.
I received this GE PR-1 meter with the Retina IIc:

One of these is a really nice, solid, well made vintage meter. You 'trap' the meter needle and then adjust the dial to match. It has a very cool way to adjust for low/high sensitivity. And it's accurate, provided the owner stays away from the adjustment screw Embarassed

which this owner of course had to monkey with. Once adjusted to standard, the meter works well.

Katastrofo · Expire: 2013-11-19

Selenium is probably best used as a dandruff shampoo...I'm looking at
a Sekonic 208 right now. EDIT: but bought a Gossen Digisix, brand new
for $99, instead. Hopefully this will help dumkin Bill do night shots, well,
I can hope, anyway. Laughing

Blue · Joined: 26 Jul 2008 Posts: 304

I have accumulated about 6 selenium meters from the 30s, 40s and 50s and they all work! It was by chance that I got them and even bigger chance that they actually work. I woke up one morning and had a de facto meter collection. Now if I could only do that with some 50s Zeiss glass. Laughing