nikon slr choice

[zzzxtreme]

I'm looking for some cheap nikon slr to use with my AI lens. so I'll need aperture priority mode

Some candidates around $30-40

EM - Apparently not quite reliable ?
F810 - heavy, but large viewfinder
F501 - smaller viewfinder, lighter than F801
F301 - basically F501 without AF ?

My heart is telling me to get F301, cheapest, pretty light & small. But I worry about the viewfinder size. Should I ?

Any other models I'm missing?

[Pete]

Not sure how the US names match the EU names but I like the FM2n. It is aperture priority and only needs the battery for the meter. The mechanical shutter will work perfectly without the battery. It works great with AI / AIs lenses and is the one film camera I kept when I went digital. I also had an 8008s and F100. The F100 was the ultimate AF film camera but the FM2n is a really nice walk around body.
Pete

[LucisPictor]

I would invest some more money and go for an F3.
Money well spent, will last forever.

[chhayanat]

[cooltouch]

The FM2n does not have an aperture priority mode. It is manual exposure only.

For $30-40 you're not gonna find much -- eBay prices, anyway.

I don't care for Aperture Priority only cameras. I prefer those that have a manual mode also. Given that, and given your price restrictions and my own preferences, I think the closest you're gonna come is the Nikon FG. It's battery dependent, but the batteries last just about forever and they can be found most anywhere. Anyway, the FG is a very capable camera and is often overlooked because it's perceived as being too "amateurish". That's a mistake. The FG has a super accurate shutter, a decent meter, and actually a nice manual mode.

If you can manage to free up a few additional bucks, I'd go for the FE rather than the F3. The FE has a better meter readout than the F3. Like the FG, it's battery dependent, takes the same batteries. All of these cameras accept motor drives also, the MD4 for the F3, the MD12 for the FE and the somewhat uncommon MD14 for the FG. I think I read somewhere that the FG can use the MD12, but I can't vouch for that.

[Excalibur]

Well if it's any help and for ideas...... for me I chose the Nikon FM mechanical camera only because it can take pre AI lenses and the F90x handy for AF also MF lenses (not pre AI lenses), but would like the F100 or F4 (also takes pre AI lenses) but are too expensive now.
With the FM it does annoy at times when shooting in the vertical position as the wind on lever has to be slightly open and sometimes ends up my nose and no I don't have a big nose

[spleenone]

Nikon FA has Aperture priority, besides M, P, S modes and also have matrix metering. It is quite reliable, light and great machine to own. Although is not so cheap I can recommend this SLR.

[kansalliskalaCafe]

[NikonAIS]

[philslizzy]

The f501, f801 and f301 are prone to an intermittent shutter problem, mirror goes up and down, nice click, but the shutter doesnt open. My f301 in the late 90s did it, my current f501 does it and my friends f801 does it.

[stevemark]

[philslizzy]

Last couple of films it was okay for about six shots, then nothing, nothing, nothing, shot, nothing , nothing, shot, shot, nothing, shot, nothing, nothing , nothing, shot, shot, nothing, shot etc... totally unreliable

[stevemark]

[cooltouch]

Just a guess here, but I'm assuming those Nikons have vertically traveling shutters? A common problem with Canon EOS cameras as they get older is a rubber sort of seal around the shutter that begins to break down and turns to goo. When this happens, capping results as well as a sticky shutter. It settles down into a bottom channel that runs the length of the frame opening. A proper cure of this problem is to de-goo the shutter with a workable solvent -- I use denatured alcohol -- along with scooping the goo out of that bottom track. One camera tech I know uses a regular old business card. He sticks a corner in the slot and then pushes the goo out. This is a necessary part of the process. Before learning about this step, I would clean the EOS shutters only, which did a good job. But if the camera were ever stored for a long period where the goo could flow up onto the shutter again, the problem could rea-appear.

[arri]

I have three Nikon F801s in use, always loaded with different kind of films and I don´t want to miss the cameras.
The light metering is very accurate, the camera is not so lound like other AF camera and it is very cheap, I don´t pay more than 25 Euros for each body.

[Doc Sharptail]

I would pass on the composite frame cameras mentioned above.

For economics and reasonably accurate metering, the Nikkormat FTN is hard to beat.

The path down the Nikon F-2 road is non-returnable.
The 100% viewfinders and stepless mechanical shutter speeds from 1/90 to 1/2000 are hard to turn your back on.

It doesn't even have to be an "A" finder or "A-S" series body.
The Photomic with the swinging needle meter is more than accurate, and will accept far more older lenses.

I should mention the F-3 here as well. Great camera that does it all with the 100% viewfinder, full manual control and an 'A' setting.
I find I don't use it as much as the F-2's I have. Completely different feel for me. I tend to get bollixed up on the stop down metering for pre-AI lenses. The swinging tab on the aperture linkage is just another thing for me to forget and get in trouble over.

If worst comes to worst and you want other choices, the Nikon FE is a fine camera to get to know. The electronics in this series are getting a little long in the tooth though. Careful, informed inspection is the buy-word on this series before you put your money down.

-D.S.

[kansalliskala]

I bought a F90X a year ago for about 20 euros and like it very much. AA-batteries.