jani_heikkinen Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Hi everyone! I already have a nice collection of different kinds of ribbonmaterials I've used on other cameras, but non to be suitable on acontax II. Does anyone know a place within EU where I could buysuitable ribbon online? Jani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ed_balko3 Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Although he isn't within the EU, you might try Oleg at: http://www.okvintagecamera.com/ he has repair parts for Kievs, the Contax clones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stwrtertbsratbs5 Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Henry Scherer has the proper material, though I'm not sure if he resells it. http://www.zeisscamera.com/First.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mskovacs Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Oleg's Kiev-grade material is around $10-15 if I recall. (its no longer listed on his site) The stock Kiev ribbon is synthetic, nylon I think. Henry does sell his silk ribbon at $75/yard according to his parts price list. His is likely of higher quality and better fit but the decision is up to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_elek Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 A couple of years ago, a friend of mine and I tried a bunch of different material bought from fabric shops. I think I was using some of the specs from Rick Oleson's site and also by measuring the existing straps. I eventually found some material that seems to work well. It was a lot of trial and error, and I paid only a couple of dollars per yard, so it didn't cost too much to experiment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jani_heikkinen Posted December 23, 2004 Author Share Posted December 23, 2004 Thanks for the answers so far. I have found several places which offer the one and only correct ribbon for pre-war contaxes and all of them also state that theirs is the only one that works. Also the same thing with repair services of old contaxes, so it is quite difficult to decide who is telling the truth. So far have I fallen in love with my "new" old contax II and I have started to think about sending it to a proper place for complete overhaul, but as all the places I've found so far say that all the others are not doing things correctly I'm more then puzzeled of what to do. Are there any good repair services inside EU which are known to do a good and complete job on contaxes? And it needs to be in EU as I don't want to send the camera anywhere alse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rogerp Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 I have just had Kiev 2 back from Steve Ash and I am delighted with the result. The shutter was completely broken plus a cloudy viewfinder and other bits. He fixed the lot including calibrations in a week or so for 50.00 GBP. His web site is http://www.sdash.plus.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mskovacs Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 50 quid is a pretty reasonable price for an overhaul as Steve Ash describes. Even in the hands of a seasoned expert, it must take at least half a day's time to strip a prewar Contax down and back again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_elek Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 That's a very reasonable price. There can be a great deal of labor involved in working on a Contax II, especially if you're performing a much-needed overhaul. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jani_heikkinen Posted December 23, 2004 Author Share Posted December 23, 2004 Hi! This Steve Ash seems like the guy to do the overhaul, I think I'll maybe contact him. Has anyone else had any experience with him with contaxes? I found a local place that has serviced these old contaxes when they were still new, but unfortunately they have no more shutter ribbon in their stock if it needs replacing. If I could get the ribbon then maybe I would give it to the local place.....although they are not sure if they are willing to fix them anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericd Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 Look at this page : http://www.zeisscamera.com/ContaxI/Page2.html#Shutter%20Tapes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jani_heikkinen Posted December 24, 2004 Author Share Posted December 24, 2004 I noticed that on Henry Scherer's page http://www.zeisscamera.com in one place he says that he cannot sell any of the silk ribbon he has and yet there is silk ribbon listed on the parts he is selling? Also there are several things written on his site that other contax repair sites or repairman say are differently. There seems to be quite a lot of marketing talk on his site and also on many other sites too, but who is telling the truth about repairing contaxes, i.e what kind of ribbon is suitable? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mskovacs Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 You need to find a ribbon of the correct dimensions and thickness. It needs to be resistant to stretching and friction wear. Honestly, the worst that could happen is that you could end-up replacing the straps again IMO. Whether the type of silk Zeiss chose is the only material suitable or not, I cannot say 100%, but surely there must be some type of synthetic material that fits the bill as well or better since the last 70 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_elek Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 I've thought of using some Mylar, as it doesn't seem to stretch. However, I haven't figured out a way to provide a bond that would be both pliable and secure. Some type of heat crimping could work, but I haven't figured out how to do this either. The problem with the material I found at fabric shops is that it has small stitching running the length on each side, which makes it too fat when rolled up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_scott Posted December 25, 2004 Share Posted December 25, 2004 Er...have you thought of e-mailing Zeiss Oberkochen and asking them whether they can recommend a source of tape? Or am I out of date? Last time I visited Oberkochen was in 1987. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jani_heikkinen Posted December 25, 2004 Author Share Posted December 25, 2004 Terry, who should I contact at Zeiss? Zeiss Ikon that manufactured the Contax II camera has not been in existance since 1970's. And also all the design documents of the contax II were destroyed in the firebombings during WW2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericd Posted December 26, 2004 Share Posted December 26, 2004 I was in a hurry when I posted the link think Henry Scherer page. AT second though I think it's marketing and that what works on a Kiev should work on a Contax. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jani_heikkinen Posted January 12, 2005 Author Share Posted January 12, 2005 Hi everyone! I decided to take my new contax II to a local repairman a week ago and he has repaired contaxes before and he told me that he can put in new ribbons if needed. I got my Contax II back today and it works perfectly and all the times are also accurate, it seems that he did a very good job. Now I'll start looking for some accessories and lenses for it. I can't wait to go and take some pictures with it tomorrow, this camera is truly love at first sight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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