igoesmyth Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 I have the honor of trying to sell this camera for a third party and I wouldlike to be able to sell this camera but I am unsure of which wista this is. See photo here at http://www.camren.com/ebay/images/wista.jpg Thanks kindly for any help David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert x Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 looks like a Field 45 to me.... (sorry, I couldn't resist) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manjo Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 Looks like a cherry wood wista DX II but I have not seen steel(chrome)/aluminium fittings all metal fittings I have seen are copper. If you can get someone to read jp, you can try this website http://www.wista.co.jp/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_harrigan Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 Looks like a wista copy. The camera should not be sold as a wista unless its marked. Is there a wista marking anywhere on the camera? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igoesmyth Posted July 5, 2006 Author Share Posted July 5, 2006 yes their is a wista plate on the back. it says "WISTA CO LTD MADE IN JAPAN NO" but no serial number. I just want to be fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joseph_chapman1 Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 It's not a Wista on the face of it -- unless Wista itself isn't telling the truth. The metal corners and the chrome bits are the giveaway. The only way to certify it as a genuine would be the Wista importer, HPMarketing, or an experienced Wista dealer who'd probably charge you for the time and say no. The company sold its first 4x5 technical camera in 1972 according to its website and eventually added a field camera line. Although some of the hardware strongly resembles Wista, Wista does not use any plated metal. It does use NOT use any metal metal at wood joints, but dovetailed wood joints. The wood, incidentally, does not appear to be cherry when compared to Wista. Wista cherry in its catalog appears lighter. A dark color would more likely be Rosewood or Ebony. Wista lists a long line of features such as interchangeable bellows, auto stop down, etc. on that web list. The bad news is that you could have those features and still not have a Wista. I don't know about Wista serial numbers, But it doesn't seem likely. It looks like a cheap knockoff (which isn't to say it doesn't work well). if it somehow is a Wista, it's going to be work to identify. Best way to describe it is as a 4x5 field camera that appears to be a Wista knockoff. That's a hard disclaimer, but if it lacks any of the Wista features, you could have an unhappy buyer who might think it is an accurate knockoff. I bought a couple of tarted up Russian Leicas, fake to the core and not very good quality. But the price fit the product and I knew what I was buying. The best segmentof the Wista site for this is http://www.wista.co.jp/e_wista/e_show/e_camera/e_camera.htm which has links on the cameras. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael_briggs2 Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 As Manoj wrote, it has strong similarities to the Wista DX. I had one of these (I forget the exact model -- it was a slightly modified version sold by Zone VI), and it had a dark cherry wood finish, but brass hardware. I have never seen the chrome hardware. Wista cameras have changed over the years. It seems unlikely that someone would bother to forge a Wista label, so probably it is an early Wista. Joseph is incorrect in implying that all Wista view cameras have interchangeable bellows. That is confusing the description of the metal technical camera with the wooden field camera. Probably what you should do is describe the camera as accurately as possible, describe the label as evidence that it is a Wista, and say that the specific model is unidentified (unless someone identifies it). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_harrigan Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 The Wista does not use dovetail connections the corners are box joints. The wood on the camera in the pics appears to be cherry as it gets significantly darker as it ages. Cherry is also highly variable in color depending on the age and each individual tree. I think what you possibly have is an early knock off with a wista back on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_lipka3 Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 The wag that suggested the camera was a Wista Field 45 is actually correct. It is a Wista. I own one just like that. I purchased it from Lens and Repro in 1978 or 1979 (I'm at work and don't carry my camera receipts with me.) At that time Wista was not well known in the US, which might lead some of the other folks to suggest that it is not a Wista. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igoesmyth Posted July 7, 2006 Author Share Posted July 7, 2006 Thank you everyone for your repsonses. I just wanted to make sure that everything was kosher when I described this camera. Thanks again David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_johnston2 Posted November 4, 2007 Share Posted November 4, 2007 It's a Wista and not a Wista. In the early days, before Wista designed and built its own wooden field view cameras, it relabeled Tachiharas. Your camera is a relabeled Tachihara. It is indeed labeled Wista, and was sold as such, but it wasn't built by Wista. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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