Well, this has gone to 6 Digest subscribers who didn't want to wait for the
digest
plus has gone to the OM-Trader list. Now that THE list is up again, it goes
here. I'll post the whole thing, but here's what's spoken for at this point:
75-150 Zuiko
OM-2
Vivitar Series 1 28-90
OM-4
--------------------
I've broken this up into three groups: free, relatively inexpensive, and more
costly. Slightly different "rules" may apply to each group (in terms of how
I'll ship, insurance requirement, etc.). Contact me directly about any items
you want.
======= FREE STUFF =======
Here are the rules. Limit of one item per household. Item goes to the first
person requesting it. You pay the postage. It MUST be sent via the US Postal
Service. I can make it to the Post Office during my lunch break. I can't make
it to UPS or Fed Ex. If you live outside of the US, be sure you really want
an item since shipping costs may not be cheap. If you can live with those
conditions,
let me know what you want. As you might surmise, each of these items has one
or more problems.
1. Zuiko 75-150mm f4 zoom - silver nose - sn 164xxx. The lens does not focus
at infinity. Externally, it looks very nice. The lettering and numbers are
still crisp. The focusing and zoom rings turn smoothly. Very slight haze on
the rear element. I think this is from inadequate removal of lens cleaning
fluid. I have not attempted to clean the rear element. There are 5 or 6 small
spots of what appear to be moisture beneath the first element around the outside
edge. I did clean the front glass surface as I thought the spots might be on
that surface. They are beneath. Picture a drop of water placed between two
pieces of glass. I roughly measure the largest smear to be 11 or 12 mm long
(around the rim of the lens) and about 3mm wide (toward the center of the lens).
A rear lens cap will be included but no front cap. I'll put a worthless filter
on it to protect the glass a bit. The Olympus lens case this arrived in will
be included. The leather is missing in a spot or two on the top and also all
around the edge of the bottom, but it looks good on the sides. The foam ring
inside the bottom of the case has disintegrated, so there is a residue of foam
left sticking to the bottom of the case. This lens was part of a package I
got on eBay last year. I knew it had focusing problems. The other parts of
the package were of more importance to me.
2. Hoya 49mm +1 +2 +4 filters. I took these on an eBay auction earlier this
year as an inexpensive way to get my feet wet with macro photography. Well,
I never used them. The seller kindly :-( wrapped each filter in plastic food
wrap (Saran wrap or some such). I should have taken that off immediately, but
I didn't. Months later I found it sticking to the glass. It came off but left
a residue. Using my favorite filter cleaner (denatured alcohol), I got the
filters pretty clean. However, I can still see a slight haze. I'm tired of
cleaning. I've got a couple of real macro lenses now, so I'll never use these.
3. Hoya 49mm polarizer. This was my first attempt to get a polarizer. It was
advertised (on eBay) as a circular polarizer, but the outside of the filter
shows "HOYA 49mm PL JAPAN." My other MC Hoya polarizer, acquired later, shows
"PL-CIR," so I don't think this is a circular polarizer. It could use cleaning
but overall looks okay. No problems rotating it. It does have front filter
threads.
4. Vivitar Series 1 28-90mm f2.8-3.5 macro focusing varifocal (varifocus?) zoom.
(How's that for a mouthful.) This is one of those old heavy GREAT zooms
(recently
mentioned as a low cost alternative to the Zuiko 35-80). I really enjoyed using
this lens for a number of years. You can read about this model on the Cult
Classic site. http://www.smu.edu/~rmonagha/third/cult.html I've had this lens
since the mid-80s. I purchased it used from Woodmere Camera, I think. It takes
a 67mm filter. There is no zoom creep. This is the old-fashioned metal lens.
It shows some wear but still looks pretty good. It has 2 problems. Like many
old Vivitar lens, the diaphragm is sticky. Real sticky. Shoot a picture and
it may be many seconds before it opens up again. (Pushing the depth of field
button several times helps.) This happened 7 or 8 years ago. I have heard two
schools of thought about this problem. One says that it isn't economically
feasible to fix. The other says that it can be done for $50 or so. When KEH
started doing repairs, I e-mailed them for an estimate. I don't recall the
exact figure they gave me, but it was just under $100, I believe. I think this
includes a general CLA too. I would suspect that this can be done for less
money elsewhere, but I don't know. I got another one of these lenses as part
of a kit purchase last year. It's still working fine, so this one can go.
Otherwise,
I would get this one fixed, even for $100, as it really was a fine performer.
I thought about getting this one fixed up and selling it, but I'm not. The
other problem is the front element could use a good cleaning. I kept a filter
on it for years but took it off when I stopped using it. (That same filter
happens to fit a medium format lens I have.) I don't have a filter to put back
on this nor do I have a lens cap.
5. OM-2. This was part of the same kit that contained the 75-150 zoom above.
It's worth nothing to me, but perhaps you can use it. It was originally used
by a smoker. Judging by the smell when I opened the box, this guy was a heavy
smoker. Well, the smell is gone now, but that was the least of the problems.
He had stored the equipment for years. The camera along the top is still
pretty
dusty. The rewind crank is gone (but you can still turn the knob by hand).
I've never owned another OM-2, but the film advance may not be right. It takes
one full stroke plus about half a stroke to get it ready to fire. The original
owner's name, phone, and SSN are carved on the bottom. Looking from the back,
there is a slight dent just behind the rewind knob. There is also a small dent
at the bottom left corner (still looking from behind). There is a good bit
of brassing on the back (but none on the front). No motor drive cap. Body
cap included. No hot shoe. Difficult to open the back to add or remove film.
(Took me 30 seconds of fooling with it just now to get it open.) Slot in
battery
cap worn. Opened fine with a coin, slightly harder to close. Whatever should
display in the viewfinder (f-stop? shutter speed?) doesn't. (I guess I could
look at the e-sif and find out, but I haven't.) Battery check light works.
If used on manual, match stick moves, but there is nothing in the display to
center it between. I shot a roll of film on auto back in April. As an
automatic
camera (with you selecting the f-stop of course) it worked fine. If you have
some use for this camera, you're welcome to it.
======= RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE THINGS =======
New rules. Item goes to the first person requesting it (and willing to pay,
of course). You pay the postage. If you want insurance, I'll get that too
(at your cost). It MUST be sent via the US Postal Service. I can make it to
the Post Office during my lunch break. I can't make it to UPS or Fed Ex. (When
I get to the 3rd list, I'll be willing to make the trip if you don't want USPS.)
All prices are in US dollars. Personal checks okay. If you're out of the
country, be sure you can get the money to me in US funds some way or other.
Except as noted, I'm extending a 10-day inspection period with money back
guarantee
(less shipping) on these items.
6. 28mm f2.8 lens - J C Penney - 52mm filter size - Front and rear lens caps
included. Multi-coated. Square rubber wide angle lens hood included. No
filter
included. Diaphragm snappy. This lens does not have a depth of field preview
button. Minimum f-stop is f16. I never used it. I would see this as a lens
for someone who doesn't have a wide angle and wants to see what it's like.
It seems like everyone on the list loves 24mm and wider lenses. I've got a
24 listed later. It's not for me. I REALLY like 28mm (and bought a Zuiko).
I think the price is so right on this one that if you decide that you don't
like 28mm or if you like it & want to buy a Zuiko, you could sell it and recover
most or all of your investment. $20 plus shipping.
7. 135mm f2.8 lens - Telesar brand - 55mm filter size - Rear lens cap included.
No front lens cap. No filter. Focus ring shows closest focus to be 1.8 meters
(just under 6 feet). Here's your chance to see if you care for the 135mm focal
length. I used this lens for some indoor shots of my younger daughter's
graduation
back in May. These were 4x6 prints and looked fine. Without a doubt this won't
be as sharp as a name-brand lens. If you want to use it for portraits, that
may be fine. If you want the utmost resolution, I feel sure this isn't it.
The price may be right for you though. $20 plus shipping.
8. 50mm f1.4 - G. Zuiko - sn 718xxx (I believe I have many of these xxx lenses.)
This is the single coated lens. Smooth focusing. Snappy diaphragm. Lettering
not as crisp. 49mm filter size. Front and rear generic lens caps. Glass looks
good. I can see some small dark (dust?) particles inside (3 I think). Filter
ring dented. Someone (not me) must have tried to straighten it with pliers
as there is paint missing at that point and along the outside of the lens barrel
there (Three scratches on the outside, 2 about 5mm, the other about 20mm long.)
The repair was partially successful as you can turn a filter enough (about
half a turn) that it stays on. Includes inexpensive filter of some sort. $25
for this one. If you want a new Olympus lens hood (the one for 50mm f1.8 &
f1.4, 35mm f2.8), add $5 for a total of $30 plus shipping.
9. New Bogen 3030 pan-tilt tripod head. Note that this is just the head, does
not include any tripod legs. Does have one quick release plate. This head
is also known as the Manfrotto 141RC. The head and three handgrips are still
sealed in two plastic bags. This head came with a Bogen "wilderness" tripod
I recently bought. I already had a 3047 head to use, so this one is excess.
Instruction booklet included (in 6 languages). Head supports up to 13.2 lbs
(6 kg). I weighed the parts at the office. Total weight is about 2.5 pounds,
so I'm guessing shipping weight will be 3 or slightly more pounds. Retail is
$78, I believe. You can get this at B&H for $55 (or pay more elsewhere). I
want $45 plus shipping for this one. No money back guarantee since this is
new merchandise.
10. Vivitar 28-105mm f3.5-4.5 macro focusing (1:5) zoom. Multi-coated. This
one is NOT a Series 1. I got it in the early 90's (definitely from Woodmere,
new I believe) when my 28-90 Series 1 developed the sticky diaphragm. I find
the focal range to be a little more useful than the 28-90. This is another
metal (as opposed to mainly plastic) zoom. It takes a 72mm filter and comes
with a rear lens cap, Vivitar front cap, Hoya UV(0) filter, and a "cap leash."
I always kept the filter on this one. Aperture is snappy. Very minimal wear
marks (just a few very small highlights. Still a very glossy black body. Glass
is fine. I see three or 4 small scuff marks (about 1mm each) on the filter.
Macro available at 105mm only. Like many older zooms, this one suffers from
zoom creep. As long as you keep the lens horizontal, you're fine. For years
I used this as my vacation lens and took hundreds (thousands?) of photos with
it. $50 plus shipping.
======= SLIGHTLY MORE COSTLY =======
Here are the rules for this category. Item goes to the first person requesting
it (and willing to pay, of course). You pay the postage and insurance.
(Insurance
is mandatory.) I would prefer to send via the US Postal Service but will use
Fed Ex or UPS if you prefer. All prices are in US dollars. Personal checks
okay. If you're out of the country, be sure you can get the money to me in
US funds some way or other. I'm extending a 10 day inspection period with money
back guarantee (less shipping) on these items.
11. 24mm f2.8 H. Zuiko lens - 49mm filter size - Serial number 159xxx. Front
and rear lens caps, a filter of some sort, and the metal Olympus lens hood
included.
Olympus case in very condition (except all leather missing from the bottom!)
also included. Single coated. Diaphragm snappy. Minimal use by me. 24mm
turns out to not be my cup of tea. I decided there was no point in keeping
it if I would never use it (duh). If you're a long time list member or will
check the archives, you will find that a number of members have mentioned
preferring
the SC version over the MC (and especially preferring the f2.8 over the f2).
This was the centerpiece of a kit I purchased last year. The seller was the
smoke fiend mentioned previously. Even though I had no problems with this lens,
I had a CLA done last month (so you don't need to worry about smoke covered
elements). The finish on this is good. The black isn't shiny like new nor are
the numbers bright. There is a small (2mm) nick just above the green 24mm on
the side. No glass imperfections noted. $150 plus shipping and insurance.
12. OM-2S Program body with body cap - Serial number 1081xxx. This was part
of a small kit purchased last year. One of my daughters ran 10+ rolls of film
through it on vacation in the summer of 2000. No problems. Seller told me
camera
was serviced in Philadelphia several years ago - reason unknown to me. Looking
from the front some brassing noted on both upper corners and along edges of
pentaprism. Dried glue (I guess) where the oval "Passed JCII" inspection
sticker
was. (I never attempted to clean it.) Removing the lens cap, I see a couple
of wear marks in the semi-circular area below the rectangular opening. Looking
from the top, no unusual wear noted. No dings or dents seen anywhere. Looking
at the back, the usual brassing of metal noted. Eyepiece looks a little dusty
externally. A little brassing noted on back upper corners. Looking at bottom,
several light short scratches noted. (None are other than superficial.) Silver
battery cap. No motor drive cap. Brassing & scuffs around tripod socket.
Bottom plate has almost complete brassing around the edges. Comes with 1-13
focusing screen. I've probably made this sound like a user camera, but it
isn't.
I believe this camera falls in the 80-890f original finish category which
would make it KEH Excellent. No known problems. My first OM series camera
was an OM-2S (which didn't survive a dunking in a river). I've still got the
instruction booklet and will send it with this camera. This is all yours for
$200 plus shipping and insurance.
13. OM-4 body with body cap - Serial number 1047xxx. I bought this on eBay
in June of 2000. Seller was a fellow list member. The idea was to take two
OM-4s on vacation keeping different speed film loaded in each body. That fell
apart when I lost my new 2-13 screen and didn't have a spare. I ran one roll
of film through this one before the trip and only one or two afterwards. This
body had a CLA 02/23/00 done by Precision Camera & Video in Austin, TX. Yes,
this body does fail the 30 second battery check test, so it does have the
original
OM-4 circuitry. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, here are the details
about the camera. Compared to the 2S above, it has noticeably less brassing.
I think it falls in the upper end of the 80-890riginal finish category.
The previous owner (who was not the original owner) called the body "in good
shape" in his eBay writeup and mentioned to me in correspondence that he had
used this body for hundreds of pictures. Looking at the body from the front,
there is a little brassing evident in the upper corners. The edges of the
pentaprism
are also brassed. The leather/leatherette covering is slightly loose to the
left of the lens mount (so perhaps you could get a nice snake skin job done
if this bothers you). Removing the lens cap, I see no problems. The little
rubber gizmo at 9:00 (the one sheared off by some non-Zuiko lenses) is intact.
Looking from the top, I note no problems. Looking from the back, I see a
little
brassing on the upper corners and the usual (or less) paint loss and brassing
elsewhere. There are light scratches on the bottom but nothing deep. There
is no motor drive cap. The battery cap is black but has caused no problems.
No known problems. This one goes for $300 plus shipping and insurance.
14. 50mm f1.2 Zuiko - Serial number 104xxx. Bokeh, bokeh, bokeh. Comes with
front and rear lens caps, a 49mm filter of some sort (not sure which one, but
probably nothing great), and a leather (might be fake) carrying pouch. Also
comes with a new 1.8/1.4 shade. This shade works fine but can't be reverse
mounted on the lens. Here's another money loser for me as I'm asking less money
than I have in it (which is my problem, not yours). I got this lens from KEH
last May or June. It was KEH Excellent or Excellent Plus (don't recall which).
For those that don't know, KEH is (or at least) was very conservative in their
ratings. I see a few small bright spots here and there on the barrel. The
numbers don't glow like on a new lens. The front of the lens has some wear
(silver showing) at the top of the filter threads as if someone (not me)
tightened
a filter down too tightly. I used this lens extensively on vacation last
summer.
It was a lifesaver shooting indoors where no flash was allowed. I noted that
the lens had a slightly sluggish diaphragm, but this caused me no problems.
This lens is just back from a CLA, so that problem is in the past. The
diaphragm
was the only reason I wanted a CLA. The upsetting part of the CLA is that I
now note a small nick or scratch (not over 1mm long) on the front glass about
2/3 of the way out from the center. I dealt with a reputable repair person
(but not John H or Clint), so I'm assuming this was there all along and I didn't
notice it. No problems noted within the glass or elsewhere on the glass.
Selling
price for this freshly CLAed lens is $300 plus shipping and insurance.
15. 50mm f1.2 Zuiko - Serial number 108xxx. Once again, bokeh, bokeh, bokeh.
Comes with front and rear lens caps, a 49mm filter of some sort (not sure which
one, but I'll pick a nice looking one), and a leather (might be fake) carrying
pouch. Also comes with the 50mm f1.2 lens shade. It's a tad bigger than the
1.8/1.4 shade so that you can reverse mount it on the lens when not in use.
I was worried about the diaphragm on my other f1.2 when I got this one.
Diaphragm
is snappy. Externally, this one looks better than the other. The finish is
easily in the 90, really in the upper 90s. I see one small speck (black)
somewhere within the lens. The top and bottom glass surfaces appear perfect.
I feel like I should ask more, but I'm pricing this one at $325 plus shipping
and insurance.
Okay, that's it for now. I decided to have a problem with my 35-70mm f3.6 Zuiko
fixed. I'm also holding on to my 35-105mm Zuiko, at least for now. E-mail
me directly if you want one (or more) of these items. I'll probably wait a
week before moving anything remaining to eBay. Thanks for your consideration.
Mike W.
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