Zorki 4K & Industar 26M

<p>I had bought this camera some time ago. Did not get to use it after cleaning and lubricating. It needed very little adjustment except for a little curtain tension tuning. The 4K is almost the same as the 4 except that it has a lever wind. <br /><br />The lens was one of the “bad” ones I got from Ukraine for less than $2 a piece. It was full of dirt fungus and dried up grease. It was not focusing to infinity either. I dismantled the lens and cleaned it with Petrol [Gas] first and then the glass with Ammonia and Peroxide mixture with a final clean in filtered water. Wore clinical inspection gloves to keep the glass elements clean. Lubricated the threads with new grease and mounted by trial and error to the correct groove. It has six entry points, only one of which would focus to infinity. Tested the focus on distant and nearby objects with translucent plastic film on the film plane with the shutter open at B. Adjusted the scales for the aperture and the distance marks and tightened the set-screws. This also takes some trial and error and patience.<br /><br />Today was a very cloudy day; the light was dark. I took most of the pictures between F/4 and f/5.6 with the shutter at 1/125 sec. Film used was ORWO UN54 ASA100 processed in homemade brew. Here are some samples.<br /><br /></p><div></div>

<p>This came with an original blue covering; looks good unlike some other gaudy colors they put out. The lettering and the shutter speed numbers on the dial are screen printed. They have a tendency to fade and vanish. The engraved Cyrillic is more elegant and suits the design.</p><div></div>

<p>It was quite dark this morning. The diffused light made it interesting.</p><div></div>

<p>There is a Tree Preservation Act in force. The Forest Department of the State enforces the Act. There is an ongoing tussle between the Highways engineers working on road expansion and the Forest Department on this issue.</p><div></div>

<p>Bikes are getting more common these days. There is a migration from the scooters, especially among men.</p><div></div>

<p>Drug store chains are getting more common now. They wean away customers from the independent drug stores by offering discounts and incentive bonus items. They also sell more cosmetics, beverage items and toiletry than medicine.</p><div></div>

<p>Most independent bakers in this state belong to a community of vegetarians. They learned to bake bread from the French Army during the days of Tipu Sultan and have continued that tradition in the family way. Tipu Sultan and the French were defeated by the Duke of Cornwallis [after he returned from America]; thus Mysore became a British protectorate.</p><div></div>

<p>As you may know, Bangalore is the HQ of King Fisher and allied breweries and distilleries. That is all for the day. The lens was good after restoration; surprised me with the sharpness and the tones it raised. Thanks for viewing and your comments. Regards, sp.</p>

<p>That Zorki looks great in blue, <strong>SP</strong>, though I know what you mean about the engraved v. screened lettering. To me, the engraved lettering is a pleasant and distinctive feature of Russian cameras. I'm not overly familiar with the Industar 26M; it's a Tessar 4/3 pattern as I recall, and it certainly seems sharp enough. Great to see some pics of the home of one of my favourite beverages! "Bakery Row" is a nice moody image. Another great restoration, and another interesting post.</p>

As always I enjoy getting a glimpse of your country through your pictures. Amazing restoration and great photos. Thanks

for posting.

<p>Subbarayan,</p>

<p>Have you ever thought of writing a book on camera restoration?</p>

<p>I love the 4k. Lucky that you found a blue one. Mine is basic black, but my FED 2 is the same blue. Great shots. </p>

<p><strong>SP</strong>, I agree with Alan. A book on restoration as well as your thoughts and recommendations on a number of cameras would be fascinating to me. I am always impressed by your ability to restore beaten up cameras and make them look good and work well. Great pictures as always; that lens is a sharp one for sure. I hope to finish the roll in my Zorki before too long and have some pictures to share. Thanks for a great post!</p>

<p>Thanks <strong>Rick</strong>! I think they did a very good job on the Industars 22, 26s and 61s, just as they did with the Helios. Not so well with their N50mm 3.5s. Thanks <strong>Mike</strong>; these repair jobs keep me feeling young and enthused. Thanks <strong>Ed</strong>, I really enjoy the Feds and Zorkis. Most reliable in my experience. <strong>Alan, Andy</strong>, thanks for the kind words. But my knowledge on cameras is very, very limited to a few models. FSU and DDR. There are Books written on these and their restoration by experts who have had factory experience when they were in production. I won't venture any where near them. I have some notes and documentation with pictures on what small repairs I have done. I could share them if someone needs/wants them. Possibly, I would post them in my album soon. Thanks again. sp.</p>

 

<p>Great. It does look nice in blue, doesn't it. Nice work with it.</p>

<p>And what's wrong with knowing Soviet and DDR cameras? ;)</p>

<p>These Russian tessars are really sharp, especially stopped down. <br>

I got a similar Zorki 4k, it was not assembled correctly and all shutter speeds were about 1/30. Not being very well built it sat in San Diego a few decades before I got it. It was in mint condition except it didn't work. Had it rebuilt and now its really smooth. I have not developed any of the film yet, but your beautiful images of India are pushing me to get them developed.<br>

Seems there should have been a Jupiter 8 on the camera, that is what came with mine. Some of the later N-26, I have been told by Ukranians, had lanthanium glass which shows an Amber coloring. I got one N61 that had the amber coloring but was not labeled lanthanium.<br>

<strong>Subbarayan</strong>, when you shoot these pictures they all seem sharp, no evidence of shaking, are you using a tripod or are these hand held and what ISO film are you using. Are you adjusting exposure index at all? Most my work is MF or LF and I am experimenting with hand held shooting. I bought these old camera for that purpose, something small I could hand hold. I may be too shaky.</p>

 

<p><strong>Roy</strong>, this one came with a 50mm f/3.5 Industar [black]lens. The N26M I am using on it was bought with a group of "6 Bad lenses" from Ukraine for $2 a piece. I disassembled and CLAed it to focus. I mounted it on this camera to try out the focus and the quality. I also have a Jupiter 8 lens that came with the lot of bad lenses. Will try that soon.<br>

In this series I used the ORWO UN54 film ASA100. I used the camera hand held and shot at 1/125sec and f/4 to f/5.6. I should, actually use a tripod or a monopod to be on the safe side. The N61 came in two varieties, one plain and one marked LD in Cyrillic for lanthanum. They are both very good, the optics as well as the construction and finish. Thank you, regards, subbarayan.</p>