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Message |
    
Edward8
Tinkerer
Username: Edward8
Post Number: 22
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 07, 2010 - 09:41 am: | 
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Hello all
Anyone worked on this camera?
The example I have is in excellent condition. Lens: Ross, London. Made in England. 105mm Expres f/3.8 N (?) 23012
But the old darling has some problems. Her leather coat is dry. Her lens has a large finger print on the rear element. And a suspicious-looking hair, which must be removed.
She's a plucky old gal - and maybe she's up for a trip. She would expect nothing in return. |
Chiccolini
Tinkerer
Username: Chiccolini
Post Number: 100
Registered: 06-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 07, 2010 - 10:40 am: |
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Strip off the skin and replace. Unscrew the lens from the rear and clean.
How is the shutter? Good on slow speeds? |
Hanskerensky
Tinkerer
Username: Hanskerensky
Post Number: 43
Registered: 05-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 07, 2010 - 12:41 pm: |
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Well Edward, if you are meaning that your plucky old Ensign is looking for a new home i guess that the poor thing will be welcomed by many a folder-addict (like myself) ;-) |
Edward8
Tinkerer
Username: Edward8
Post Number: 23
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 07, 2010 - 09:05 pm: |
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Chiccolini:
Her personal skin is fine, it's her leather overcoat - the case - that needs attention. Yes, all shutter speeds work, without complaint. So. Unscrew her lens from the rear? Um, I have no urge to fiddle with her. Strikes me as a touch unseemly. My fingers are not nimble in such matters.
Hanskerensky:
I spoke with the old dear and detected a glint in her eye. She speaks in a voice similar to that used by the late actor Peter Sellers in the film "The Mouse that Roared". The Empress Dowager. The nephew, me, was somewhat aghast by her response. I think she might fancy a jaunt with a Dutch gentleman. Shameless hussy!
I can but quote: "One would require passage on one of Mr Cunard's better liners. And, of course, Eggs Benedict at 9 AM sharp ... and gin and tonic at 11."
Well. As Bertie Wooster might have said: "Gosh. Erm. Jeeves! I've had a thought ..."
The gist of the thought is: The old darling is willing and able to undertake a journey, but the nephew might require some small bauble of a non-fiscal nature in return. Say, a working Yashica 635? Clean taking lens, shutter working on all speeds. A user. Cosmetics don't matter. Or a clapped Minox A? This is pure nostalgia!
Seriously, this Ensign is in good to excellent condition. It is of no use to me. It is destined to rot in my camera drawer. It deserves a good home. Please do not misunderstand my intentions regarding this camera. I am NOT out to make money. It all goes deeper than that ...
Regards. Edward. |
Milosdevino
Tinkerer
Username: Milosdevino
Post Number: 10
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, June 08, 2010 - 04:04 am: |
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Would a canon demi be tempting enough? I have a lovely Ensign body in need of a new shutter and lens. |
Hanskerensky
Tinkerer
Username: Hanskerensky
Post Number: 44
Registered: 05-2009
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, June 08, 2010 - 02:56 pm: |
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Hi Edward,
lol, you surely are a great writer. You must have kissed the "Stone of eloquence" at Blarney Castle, Ireland !
I myself are more a bits and bytes person so, alas, i'm not able to match your writing skills.
Well, regretable, my backlog of folders still to be cla'd and/or repaired (and my wifes growing number of complaints about the full attic and garage)compels me to say nay to your kind offer.
But i'm sure your lovely Ensign will find a good home nonetheless because i'm not the only one infected with the folder-fever !
Regards,
Hans |
Edward8
Tinkerer
Username: Edward8
Post Number: 28
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, June 09, 2010 - 07:44 am: |
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Hans:
Thank you for your kind comment. The aim was to provide a chuckle. As for the Blarney Stone, I am informed by my family that I do, indeed, have a fair dollop of bog Irish in me blood. And the same amount of German. I be a true bastard!
+++
I suspect the old dear breathed a big sigh of relief. She is now sitting on the porch in the watery sun, best Sunday bonnet in place, happily rocking ...
+++
Cheers. Edward. |
Edward8
Tinkerer
Username: Edward8
Post Number: 29
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, June 09, 2010 - 08:08 am: |
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Hans:
Thank you for your kind comment. The aim was to provide a chuckle. As for the Blarney Stone, I am informed by my family that I do, indeed, have a fair dollop of bog Irish in me blood. And the same amount of German. I be a true bastard!
+++
I suspect the old dear breathed a big sigh of relief. She is now sitting on the porch in the watery sun, best Sunday bonnet in place, happily rocking ...
+++
Cheers. Edward. |
Traquair
Tinkerer
Username: Traquair
Post Number: 9
Registered: 12-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, June 23, 2010 - 03:38 pm: |
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Edward,
Is this camera still up for trade? I have a number of working Praktica cameras and M42 lenses (East German and FSU) that I'm looking to sell or trade off. I can send a list if you're interested.
Best,
Jesse |
Edward8
Tinkerer
Username: Edward8
Post Number: 34
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, June 26, 2010 - 06:56 pm: |
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Hello Jesse,
Sorry, but the old Ensign is not up for trade. I'm not really a collector, more a user, and I've decided to give the old girl another chance.
All the best. Edward. |
Norman
Tinkerer
Username: Norman
Post Number: 30
Registered: 03-2008
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, June 26, 2010 - 07:40 pm: |
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I am sorry to be a wet blanket but I must tell you all the story of my Ensign 820. I bought it on Ebay for a good price but on receipt I found that the shutter did not work. I complained to the seller, a Dutch lady, who refunded my money and told me to keep it. I sent it off for repair but to my disappointment found that the lens was not all that good and could not satisfy my not too high requirements. Oh well, it looks good on the shelf. I used to have a Balda that was great. I love the idea of a folder that I could carry as an everyday camera but the Ensign is not it. |
Edward8
Tinkerer
Username: Edward8
Post Number: 35
Registered: 03-2010
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, June 27, 2010 - 06:36 pm: |
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Hello Norman,
You're not being a wet blanket, you are correct. I don't regard the Ensign 820 as anything particularly special, in the scheme of things, although I understand the Ross lens is regarded by some as reasonable. And pretty much any camera is capable of fine results - in the right hands!
I would not dream of using it for anything serious - it's strictly for fun. For medium format, paid work, I'll stick with the Mamiya RB67 ...
Cheers. Edward. |
Copernicus
Tinkerer
Username: Copernicus
Post Number: 1
Registered: 12-2011
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, December 20, 2011 - 10:02 am: |
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Searching for a second camera in 1968 and being short of cash, I settled on a Ensign Selfix 820 (body: E21444) with a 105mm. / f3.8 Ross Xpres (lens: No.10582) from a second hand shop for £8. I had great fun with it and after using 35mm. film, I was astounded by the fact that every 3¼” x 2¼” negative I produced would enlarge well. This, of course, is because only a 3x enlargement was needed to produce a 10” x 8” print. I was surprised that a local shop was able with no hesitation to supply me with a flash adapter as it was non-standard and was bayonet-fitted into a recess. The camera was in good condition but the bellows had dried. Liberal applications of Wren’s Leather Oil were needed and they sank in like blotting paper. My Epsilon shutter, true to form, let me down but I managed to get it repaired. I was producing superb 2¼” square Ektachromes, thanks to the swing-in flaps in the film gate and how much more impressive than 35mm. transparencies they were. The Albada viewfinder was a bit of a nuisance as I always had to hold the front lens forward with my finger as I took the shot to show the view I really was going to get.
I began to wonder how people could pass up such a superb instrument. Then man landed on the Moon. I decided to copy the front page of The Daily Express, announcing the event. I pinned the newspaper to a wooden board and homed in on it. That’s when I discovered the limitations of front cell focussing….the edges of the image were mush! This was yet another folding camera that used rotation of the front lens to focus and it upset the elements. I acknowledged this limitation and learned to live with it. I had that camera for 25 years and lost it in dramatic circumstances (drugged unconscious by a Moroccan gang in Istanbul). Since then I see that the Ensign Selfix I once owned sells for silly money. One could buy a Mamiya TLR for the prices being asked. Oh well, it was a pleasant part of my photographic education and when the insurance money came through, I decided on something rather more sophisticated. |
