Pentax 67 vs Pentax 67ii

[jnorman2]

i used to have an old pentax 6x7 which i liked. i dont remember it

needing a battery to operte, though it may have. it was replaced

several years ago by the model 67 which included MLU, but i dont

know what other changes or differences. i do not know if that model

needs a battery either. now, the 67 has been replaced by the 67II,

which i know has electronically-controlled shutter, so defintely

needs a battery.

 

1. what other differences are there between the models?

specifically, why should i spend the extra $1000 or so to get the

67II rather than one of the older ones?

2. do all the models have at least one mechanical shutter speed

that can be used if your battery dies?

3. how hard is it to get replacement batteries for these guys if

you are in south america or africa? (why dont camera makers all

design for the use of common batteries? the mamiya 645AFD can use

regular AA batteries.)

 

thanks.

[gustav1]

No, the older 6x7 still needs battery for holding the shutter and for metering if you have that prism. You can however have your 67 modified to not require batteries but that's mostly for astrophotogs.

For astro there is also this: http://www.sciencecenter.net/hutech/pentax/battelim.htm

 

 

But I've found out that the battery holds for such a long time it's not economical to have the camera rebuilt unless you really have to..

2cents only...

[george_rhodes]

I own the most recent 67, prior to the electronic 67II. The 67II has an adjustable diopter, which is helpful, if you need glasses. It has an electronic aperture priority meter, with spot metering capability. It has a built-in right hand grip. Some say the 67II has a quieter and smoother shutter and produces less mirror slap. It also has a brighter viewfinder and user-interchangeable screens. It has electronically controlled shutter speeds, up to 4 seconds. The longest shutter speed on the 67 is 1 second. I've installed a Maxwell Brightscreen with grid lines in my Pentax 67, as well as a corrective diopter. It cost me approximately $200.00 for both enhancements combined. I've never had problems with mirror slap or shutter-induced vibration. I find the TTL meter for the 67 to be quite accurate. Therefore, I'm perfectly happy to keep using my 67 and I don't think there is anything that the 67II offers that would improve my photography. However, since I plan to get a second body fairly soon, it will be the 67II. It's just a little nicer than the older model, but my photography will certainly not improve.

[ilkka]

Just couple of additions to George's excellent comparison. 67II shutter speeds can be manually set up to 4 seconds but on auto it goes up to 30 seconds. The AE prism has three selectable measuring areas, center weighted, spot and six segment matrix. The meter is probably a bit more sensitive in low light as well. The new camera has through the lens auto flash, when using the new flash bracket/hand grip and Pentax flashes. On 67II you can get 21 exposures on 220 film, one more than with the old version. While the mirror slap may be slightly less than in the Original P67's it is still quite a thump so at best only minor improvement there.

 

There are no mechanical shutter speeds. It uses two Lithium 123 cells. Nowadays quite easily found in most places and the good thing is that the shelf life of these lithiums is quite long so no problem keeping a few spares in the bag. It is important to carry spares since the camera goes dead quite fast after the low battery warning comes on.

[dave_cheng1]

I have a p67II. In my opinion the most significant improvement of

67II over older 67 is the adjustable diopter, brighter screen, and

electronically controlled shutter. There is no old gear box type

shutter speed control that tends to break down with age any more.

The extra right hand grip is terrific. It makes handling very

comfortable. TTL metering and AE auto make the 67II like a huge

35mm camera. 120 films have become too short on this camera for me.