Contax iia: Need help

All- brand new here and looking for info so I can sell this camera. I'm far from a professional photog, so please excuse my lack of

knowledge. My dad passed away a few years ago and I'm finally getting through all his old stuff. Included is a Contax iia in very good

condition. Accessories include;

Zeiss 1:2 f5 lens,

Zeiss range finder 1:4 135mm lens,

Leica 13.5cm bright line finder ,

Zeiss Ikon S40.5 lens hood (with original box),

Zeiss Ikon skylight filter 40.5mm (with original box),

Leather cases for both lenses and original case for zoom,

Original owners manuals for zoom and camera, as well as accessory price list #62,

112 page "working with contax cameras" guide

 

All seem to work very well and are in beautiful condition. Asked a local camera store owner about selling this set. He said "there's

probably not much interest. Try Craig's list or eBay "

 

Hoping that somebody can help me with pricing and finding a reputable place to sell this. Happy to post pics if need be.

 

Thanks, in advance!

 

Jim

<p>I'd head over to the Rangefinder forum and ask in the Zeiss area. That's where you will find the Zeiss guys.<br>

I think you mean Zeiss 5cm (50mm) f/2 lens<br>

There are two versions of the IIa: black dial & color dial. Color dial is worth more.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

<p>I personally would try Ebay selling at auction for your best return, but if you're not comfortable or knowledgible with that you might contact the buyers at KEH.com. When selling to a dealer, expect them to discount the market price by around 50% as they have to make a profit and may have overhead and marketing costs until the items sell.</p>

<p>A few pictures would help--especially one of the back of the camera which would tell us definitively if it is a "black dial" (older, doesn't sync with flash without special Zeiss sync cords) or a "color dial" (newer, regular PC sync terminal) and whether or not it has "Zeiss bumps" in the leather. I would second KEH as a place to sell it if you don't want to go on eBay. Be aware that this shutter can have capping issues at high speeds, where the camera sounds fine but doesn't actually open the shutter and take a picture. You can see this if you take the back off, wind the camera and point it at light wall and click the shutter. No light = shutter capping, an expensive repair.</p>

<p>I can't help with your question, but would suggest you could buy a film and shoot some pics in memory of your father.</p>

<p>In 1952 I bought a Contax IIa / Zeiss Opton 50mm f1.5 and still own that camera. I still own this camera (in near perfect condition) because the price it can bring on the used market is so pitifully low that it does not exceed its sentimental value. Curious when you think that this camera and a Leica of the very same vintage were, at the time, considered equally desirable by most photographers. However the Leica can now command an order of magnitude more in the market.<br>

My guess is that the 135mm lens may bring more than the rest of the outfit combined.</p>

<p>The Zeiss lenses were better than the Leitz (for Leica camera) lenses of the era. But Zeiss was severely restricted in the design of their Contax camera, as Leitz had very strong patents on focal plane shutters, and a strong patent on the simple rangefinder lens coupling used on Leica cameras.<br>

Thus the Contax used a very complicated shutter design, and a very complicated lens mount design, in order to avoid Leitz's patents. (Even so, Leitz eventually won some patent infringement battles with Zeiss over focal plane shutters.)<br>

To further this, where the Leica cameras were deliberately simple and elegant, Zeiss took the more "classic" German "over-engineering" approach. There's vastly more parts in a Contax IIa than in a Leica IIIc, for instance.<br>

In theory, the Contax cameras were more precise than the Leica, with higher and more accurate shutter speeds, and a more accurate rangefinder. In practice, they were hard to manufacture consistently, and are vastly more difficult to repair than the competing Leica cameras. Both brands do need regular clean/lube/adjust cycles.<br>

There are only a few folks out there who can repair a Contax well, and many who can butcher them.<br>

All of these issues depress the price of Contax cameras compared to Leica cameras.<br>

There are mount adapters to use Zeiss Contax lenses on Leica M-series cameras. </p>

<p>High chance your camera needs a visit to the repairman due to age. Nothing exceptional after 60 years (who can live 60 years without going to the doctor?).<br>

CLA is not free nor cheap as these cameras are pretty complex and need some knowledge from the repairman and this is a fact buyers take into account when getting such cameras.<br>

To answer your question, I guess it could worth $200-500 depending on the camera real condition (not only cosmetic) and assuming that lenses are fine (no fungus, no separation or other optical flaw).</p>

 

<p>Jim,<br>

I would do some research on eBay, specifically under "sold listings". This will give you the best indication for the fair market value for your camera, lenses and finders plus examples of good listings.<br>

If you then eventually list your items, I would list the body with the 50mm lens and list all other items separately. Inspect your lenses carefully for separation, scratches (euphemistically often referred to as "cleaning marks") and fungus. On the camera check film advance and the shutter at all speeds. Do list all defects! Classic camera collectors tend to be a picky bunch and will return "not as described" items for a refund (I have been on both sides of this issue!). I believe that most of the interested people looking for classic camera's do so on eBay.</p>

<p>Chris</p>

<p>Lots of good advice here. The last poster Chris O gave a well rounded advice. Most posters warn that the Leicas bring more The Contax is ...well complicated etc , but I think Stefan T. gave the best advice. Load some film, get to know the camera and then decide how best to sell it . You will know it's strengths and weaknesses. I belong in the Zeiss camp and while idiosyncratic, they are quite capable and desirable.</p>

 

<p>Another possibility is the classified ad section of various photo forums (like this one) and especially the Rangefinder Forum. Readers of these will know what you are selling and will ask intelligent questions. </p>

<p>If you decide to try an sell your outfit on ebay (which I agree is what you ought to do), please ensure that your offer page is viewable internationally. The IIa was manufactured during the first post-war years, and due to the prevailing economic conditions back then many, not to say most were sold in the US. Now however they consistently fetch higher collector prices in Germany and Japan.</p>

 

<p>Thanks to all of you for all of the worthwhile information you've shared with me. Apologies for the delayed response, but I just haven't had the time to sit down and go through everything, recently. No idea how to upload pics... only option for images (at least that I see) is for a URL. </p>

<p>Figured out images. Let's try this again. </p><div></div>

<p>Zeiss bumps</p><div></div>

<p>Contax iia black dial (?)</p><div></div>

<p>It is IIa black dial.</p>