Fuji GW67II/III and Fuji GW69II/III opinions

[alex_z]

Hi.

I just came across an ad in our local photo forums selling all four

cams: GW67II, GW67III, GW69II and GW69III.

The following information has been fetched out of the seller:

Most of the cams are in very good condition, very clean except of 67II

(or was it III ?) that has flash shoe replaced. All are equipped with

90mm/3.5 lens of course. The GW67II appears to have the largest number

appearing on its counter (arround 500), the 69III appears to have the

least leap (counters show about 100).

I'm not familiar personally with these cameras, although have read

through lots of online reviews on these and mostly the opinion is held

up for all of these, particularily for 69II and 69III models. Optics

is reprotedly top-notch except of their bokeh loosing to Zeiss

counterparts.

I would be glad to read personal opinions about these cameras, such as

hands-on experiences, what is good and what is bad...

I'm aware about the system specifications (rangefinder, no switchable

film backs, of course, fixed, although leaf shutter lens, purely

mechanical (no powering is necessary, however no metering is available

either). What is the number shown on the camera's counter ? Is that

amount of frames (i.e. shutter actuations) done so far or amount of

film rolls through the camera ? What are the average life span of GW

67II/III and GW69II/III shutters ?

To put the things into proportions I must tell that I'm MF SLR user,

shooting with Bronica GS-1 (6x7) system right know, however thinking

of adding a kind of rangefinder for hikes and when weight/size are a

considerable issues.

 

The prices as asked by seller ranging from 550$ for 67II to 800$ for

69III. Are they fair prices for these models bearing the condition

described above ?

 

Any additional help is highly appreciated.

 

Regards, Alex

[eric friedemann]

Here's the Fuji 670 v. 690 thread of the day:

 

 

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00D18e&unified_p=1

[doug andrews]

The counter on the camera is the number of shutter actuations x 10. That is, if the counter is at 76, then the shutter had been tripped 760 times. Since a roll of 120 film gets you 10 frames, the counter number on the 670s also is the approximate number of rolls of 120 film that's been put through the camera. A roll of 120 film gives you 8 frames on the 690s, so the counter number is not a good indicator of the number of rolls put through that camera. I believe Fuji recommends that the camera be sent in for a CLA when the counter reaches 500 and the shutter replaced when the counter reaches 1000. As for the life span of the shutters, I'm not sure how firm one should hold to Fuji's recommendations. When I bought my GW670 III, the counter was at 21. I'm now at 38 after owning the camera 9 months. I'll probably go 100% digital before I reach 500 on the counter.

[ben conover]

Seems like a good deal on the 69III, good price, excellent cameras with nothing to go wrong.

 

Cheers and all the best.

[michael erlich]

I've used my GW67III more recently than any of my other film cameras. The image quality with that Fujinon 90mm is amazing, but the camera is big and heavy and the rangefinder is not as bright and clear as the one in the Mamiya 7II. No built-in meter means you will have to use a handheld. And the loud and (to my ear) ugly shutter noise means stealth photography will be difficult. Those big, beautiful negatives make big, beautiful prints, though.

 

Personally, given your choices, I'd go with the 69III, for the bigger negative as well as the lower shutter count.

[paul_sauer]

I posted this on another thread. You might find it helpful. You might not.

 

I had a hard time deciding between the GW690 and GW670.

The advantage of the 670 was the ability to make the most use of ready cut papers, matts,

and frames, plus a distinctly different aspect ratio than 35mm.

 

I chose the 690 because I can easily turn a 6x9 frame into a 6x7 frame through cropping.

Plus there was something thrilling about getting the biggest size MF chrome/neg that one

can get. And, I suspect, because I just like the 3:2 aspect ratio. Now I can say that the

negative is twice as big as my Pentax 645, which might get sold now.

 

Check out KEH. Last I checked they had a fair deal on an excellent condition 670III.

 

So far I love my 690. It's simple and lightweight considering the size you get. And though

some have complained about the build quality, I think it's excellent considering the weight

of the camera.

[darron_young3]

Hi Alex-

 

this is already noted in the previous link, but to make clear, the 67 and 69 are the exact same camera body (i.e. size and weight) and lens. the 69 gives you the flexibility to crop, the 67 gives you 2 extra frames per 120 roll, without the flexibility and not giving you a more compact/lighter camera. I actually bought the 67 version (as I prefer to print full frame), but then quickly sold it, as I felt "jipped" that I had to lug the same camera that was capable of producing a 6X9 image. Anyways, I think the best fuji is actually the GSW690III which has the 65mm and the 6X9 size. this is the camera I now have. This is equivalent to a 28mm. This is really nice for pseudo panoramics (cropping the top and bottom), w/o the wide angle distortion. I actually prefer the wideangle distortion, but I wouldn't be able to get that w/o paying a lot more for a 6X12 Horseman or the MF noblex. The contrast, and the sharpness of this lens seems to outperm my mamiya 6 set. However, I may have a non optimized mamiya set, or a killer gsw?

My take is get the GSW690III if you into landscapes and prefer 28mm over 35mm point of view.

[alex_z]

Thank you guys.

Do I understand correctly that GW690III isn't featured by cable release ability ? If so, what about shooting off tripod at less then fastest shutter speeds ?

[richard_warburton]

top-plate shutter release threaded for standard cable release. I presume the use of 67 and 69 in the model description is mearly shorthand for 670 and 690, quite how much fuller my life could be if I cut out typing all those extraneous zeros I guess I'll never know!

[ben conover]

Hi, I think the big fuji is good for hand holding down to 1/60th. without too much hassle.

 

Cheers.