russ_butner1

<p>The Konica Auto-S3, Hi-Matic 7SII, Revue400SE, Vivitar35ES and the Prinz (forgot about the exact designator) are of very similar design. The body cast is slightly different, the Hi-Matic has slightly rounded corners while all the others have a "brick" body design. Shutter/lens assembly is identical, except for the auto-flash features of the Konica and Revue/Vivitar/Prinz versions. The Konica has an additional indicator for the aperture selected by the auto-flash mechanism in the viewfinder... and all the others still have the support for the indicator lever beneath the top plate.<br>

I do not know whether the lenses are of identical design, at least the Konica Auto-S3 claims to have 38mm focal length instead of 40mm on all the other versions.<br>

There are also slight variations in the meter circuit, the Auto-S3 has two variable resistors for meter adjustment, all the others have just one, but the tiny board behind the galvanometer is identical on all models.</p>

Meters are easily adjusted for 1.5v batteries?

If an f2.8 aperture is enough I'd go tor the Olympus 35RC. Had one for years. The Konica Auto S3 has a great lens, but no manual aperture selection. Also, they tend to be pricey. The Canon GIII 17 is also a good option.

My all time favorite, although not compact, is the Konica Auto S2. Bought mine new in 1974 and except for exposure counter not resetting, it still works great.

Mike

What did you think of the lens quality on the Oly RC?

Russ

I have read on numerous occasions, that quite a few of the older rangefinders have circuits that automatically compensate for voltage difference with batteries. Is this true? If so, are they listed somewhere?

Thanks

Russ

That Sears 35rf is a nice looking compact. Looks like it could be a Ricoh or a Konica.

It’s a Ricoh.

Interesting. My results were a bit different. I found the Vivitar ES, to have the sharper, better lens.

Russ

Interesting. My results were a bit different. I found the Vivitar ES, to have the sharper, better lens. However, the Canon was no slouch.

Russ