ken_hart3

<p>Because of the rarity of this lens, there is no "blue book" value that I am aware of. I have three of them; one purchased from an auction house in Germany for $2000USD (plus another $500 to get it into the USA!), one cost me $1800, the cheapest purchased from a private individual who sold it to me for a song- $800!<br>

This lens is part of a series of four "convertible" lenses that Canon made in the FL-mount: a 400mm f/5.6, 600mm f/5.6, 800mm f/8, and 1200mm f/11. The lens(es) consist of a focus/control mechanism and a lens head-end that attaches to the control unit. The control section has a filter slot just forward of the camera mount, a selector for the head-end lens, and an aperature ring. Note that the 1200mm is a preset lens: the control unit aperature is deactivated wide open, and a manual aperature built into the lens head is used.<br>

There were available cases for each of the lenses with it's head end. I have the "official" Canon metal cases for one of 1200mm and for the 600mm. I am not aware of any Canon case for the entire set: a control/focusing unit and all four head-ends, so I suspect that the lenses were not sold as a set.<br>

The cost of the lenses (according to the Canon Museum website) in 1970 US$ were comparable to the FL-F 300mm ($277) and FL-F 500mm ($533). The 1200mm went for $528, but I don't know if that was only the head-end or if it included the focus/control unit.<br>

The 1200mm is a very cool lens, if for no other reason than seeing the expression on people around you! It is a difficult lens to use- the slightest movement at the tripod has you aimed at an entirely different scene "out there". I use mine on an old Davis & Sanford tripod with a Majestic head.</p>

<p>Back in the late '60's- early '70's, the major manufacturers often offered a "pro" version of their 35mm slr's. The pro version was black over brass instead of satin chrome. It was the mark of a working pro that his camera showed brass through the worn paint on the corners. It could simply be the posted pictures, but it appears that this camera is chrome in the areas where the paint is chipped/worn away. Otherwise this camera looks just like my black Canon FX- yes, I am the other owner of an all-black FX! If the chipped/worn areas are chrome, then it's a paint job. If those areas are brass, then it's an 'official' black FX, and you need to go to Wikipedia and edit the entry to "three known" instead of two. By the way, if it is black over brass, please contact me with your price!<br>

Correspondence with Canon in Japan says that they no longer have production records to say how many black FX's were made. I have talked to retired Canon salespeople and repair people, and they tell me that the black model was a special order. The unofficial consensus is that any black FX's were owned by pros and used heavily, so if they exist 40+ years later, it's as a paperweight or collection of parts.<br>

Also, Canon sold the FP at the same time period as the FX. The FP was the 'pro' version of the FX- it was identical except that there was no meter built-in. Pros of that era did not trust a built-in meter, and considered it amatuerish to consult the built-in rather than that Gossen hanging around their neck! (When Canon introduced through-the-lens metering in their cameras, the meter in the FX became known as "through-the-thumb" because of the placement of the photocell!) Because Canon had the FP for the pro market, that's additional reason for the lack of black FX's. The FP was offered in chrome finish; I don't know about a black FP.<br>

The serial number of your FX places it in June or July of 1965; my black FX is from March of 1965. There may be a date code inside the film chamber, a letter followed by 4 or 5 numbers. The letter indicates the year; "E" is 1964, "F"='65, etc. The first one or two digits indicates the month. In my inventory database, I maintain the date codes and serial numbers, so I can usually place the 'birthday' of an FX, even if the date code is missing or covered by a label. I currently own 370 Canon FX's- no that's not a typo.<br>

In the years that I have been collecting the Canon FX, I have only found one, which I promptly bought from the owner in Riga, Latvia (on the Baltic Sea, west of Moscow). I got lucky with that one, as it only went for around $250US. Working chrome FX's currently go for around $125 on eBay.</p>