1936 Zeiss Ikon Super Ikonta, Tessar lens, Freshly Serviced!

Cleaned, Lubricated & Adjusted. Ready for immediate use!

This is a quality prewar camera. Its body serial number (A66296) and that of its lens indicates that it was built in Germany in 1936. Produced at a time when the world looked incredible different than it does now, this camera was a testament of genius, pride and faith in precision mechanics. It was the cutting edge of photography at that time and it was very expensive. The high purchase price reflected the time, money and effort that went into the design, production and patient hand assembly of each camera. Now holding this Super Ikonta camera 80 years after it was produced, I see that the effort did not fade into the darkness of all the passing years… it is still a thing of beauty.

In the 1930’s this Zeiss-Ikon camera was a top of the line product and the best 6x6 medium format rangefinder camera that money could buy. When it comes to photography, bigger is better and this camera can produce a negative that’s more than four times larger than the average 35mm snapshot. It’s capable of producing large prints with fine grain, rich tonal gradations and lovely colors. The quality of construction and finish is exceptional. Simply put, if you’re looking for one of the best classic cameras ever built... then you’ve found it. It’s constructed of precision die-cast metal, covered with fine Moroccan leather and trimmed in black lacquer and chrome. It also has a sophisticated coupled rangefinder which makes focusing quick and easy. It has an advanced film wind mechanism that counts the exposures for you and automatically stops when you’ve wound far enough. In use this means all you have to do is take a shot, advance the film until it stops and you’re already for another one. You won’t be slowed down by the need to look for exposure numbers through a red ruby window. (There is a counter window on the rear of the camera but it’s only used when first loading film into the camera.) The camera also folds into a convenient size so there’s never an excuse to leave it at home. It’s the perfect camera for people interested in historical photography or WWII period reenactments.

This camera has been carefully cleaned, lubricated and adjusted. It is in excellent condition and works very smoothly. The top of the line, Compur-Rapid shutter works smoothly and all speeds (T, B & 1 sec - 1/400th) are appropriate. The slow speeds buzz along smoothly and the fast speeds are clean and snappy. The coupled rangefinder has also been serviced. It works smoothly and accurately. The bellows are in excellent condition and completely light tight.

The lens is a top of the line 2.8/80mm Zeiss Tessar lens (a superb design with four elements in three groups). This lens is well respected for its very lovely rendition and the smooth rounded look it produces (great bokeh). It was one of the best lenses of its era. The lens is in unusually fine condition. There are no scratches, no cleaning marks. The glass is clean and clear and its capable of producing lovely photos with modern color and B&W films.

All in all, a wonderful classic camera. Load it with your favorite film and keep it handy for that perfect shot you’ve been looking for. You know the one... the one with the perfect Ansel Adams light breaking through the dark storm clouds that leaves you wishing you had a classic medium format camera with you.