Topic: Cameras you sold or gave away and then regretted doing so

[Ordinal]

I am thinking of seriously paring down my collection - the damn things occupy every flat surface including the floor, the choice of camera to pick up before leaving the flat distracts me and can take half an hour to make, and also I am skint and need the money. However, for the sake of a few quid on eBay, sometimes it is not worth losing something you will find it hard to replace later.

So, for research purposes and also to give people the chance to repeat a few anecdotes, what cameras have you disposed of in some way and then later really regretted losing? BONUS QUESTION: is there anything you thought you'd never be able to live without, then had to, and found that in practice you didn't miss at all?

[Chalky]

I sold my 600se with 150 lens without doing proper price check, for £70. Regretted that.
I've just sold everything I don't frequently use pretty much, my collection was turning into hording.

Luckily, at the moment all my favourite cameras are still with me, so don't know If I can live without any if them. Hoping I don't find out for a moment or two!

[Sandeha Lynch]

If I were to win a lottery I would likely buy back the 500CM kit, and my Pentax MZ-S ... immediately.   

[Urban Hafner]

My Voigtländer Vito II. It's a bit cumbersome to use but it was my grandpa's. Other than that I'm still exploring what's out there and haven't really sold anything important, yet.

[choppert]

My near mint Leica and summicron.

See Mr Late Developer for the last sighting of this beauty!   

Chops

[Late Developer]

I am thinking of seriously paring down my collection - the damn things occupy every flat surface including the floor, the choice of camera to pick up before leaving the flat distracts me and can take half an hour to make, and also I am skint and need the money. However, for the sake of a few quid on eBay, sometimes it is not worth losing something you will find it hard to replace later.

So, for research purposes and also to give people the chance to repeat a few anecdotes, what cameras have you disposed of in some way and then later really regretted losing? BONUS QUESTION: is there anything you thought you'd never be able to live without, then had to, and found that in practice you didn't miss at all?

I empathise with your predicament, Ordinal. I'm seriously considering selling some of my surplus kit as I need to get back to basics with kit that I use most. I want to understand it front to back and top to bottom. It's been great fun having additional kit / toys to experiment with but I know because of the cameras I always "go to" that numerous others are surplus to requirements.

In answer to your second question, there's no "thing" I've ever owned that I couldn't live without. Maybe I'm odd but I've never allowed "things" to exercise that level of control over me. There are "things", however, that I've wanted badly and which, once I'd acquired them, failed to deliver what I'd hoped for. My fault entirely. I suppose this is why I'm considering offloading some of them right now.

[Jack Johnson]

Getting rid of cameras? Preposterous! Next thing you'll be trying to convince us they make coffee without caffeine.

[gothamtomato]

For me it isn't what I sold but what I didn't buy: Several years ago, I knew someone who was selling their MINT condition Hasselblad SWC903 for $2800 -- but it might as well have been a million I was so broke at the time. I could have taken an advance on my credit card, but I didn't and passed on it. And I have regretted it and obsessed about that camera ever since!

One thing I got rid of and regretted though was my collection of every issue of B&W Magazine. Every once i a while I want to refer to something in one of them and then remember, oh crap, I recycled them!

[gary m]

I sold this SX-70 that I had used for all my Polaroid Time Zero work. I even added the blue green lizard covering. I was really pissed that Polaroid stopped their original formula film that I could manipulate

[sapata]

I've sold a nice Agfa Isoly including case and regreted so badly that I bought two afterwards!

[mcduff]

I have been lucky. I have to go back the the Middle Ages when I sold my Instamatic 10 when I got my 'real' camera (OM2). I later regretted that so much that (when lomo brought out 110 again) I bought an instamatic 10 on eBay

[original_ann]

To this day I rue THROWING AWAY my Kodak Brownie that I was "forced" to buy for a college Photography course.  I with full knowledge put it right in the trashcan back in the 90s.  Oh, and I thought I'd never develop film again... back in the 90s and I threw all my stainless steel reels and tanks.  Yes, THREW them OUT - - not sold to someone who could put them to use when I could not....  SHUDDER!!!

[Mab]

I've never regretted having sold a black M4-P with a matching Summilux 50mm/1.4 but I sorely miss a 'Made in Germany' Rollei 35 I sold when I needed some cash. Byhyy, my sweet Rollie.. come back to papa.

[Paul Mitchell]

I now so regret selling my XPanII with 45&90 lenses  but never regret buying my Agfa Super Isolette 

[Pete_R]

So here's a twist on the question. How many and which cameras have you ever owned? What have you now and what do you wish you still had but haven't?

Here's my list (in no particular order and as far as my memory allows):

Red ones I still have.

Diana
Kodak Instamatic 126
Kodak 110
Zenith EM
Cosina CSR
Yashica FX3
Yashica FRI (x2)
Yashica FRII
Contax 139 (more than I would admit to)
Contax 159 (a couple I think)
Contax 137 (a few)
Contax RTSII
Contax RTSIII
Contax RXII
Contax Aria
Minolta Hi-Matic F (several)
Pentina TLR
Canon EOS30
Canon EOS30V
Pentax ME Super
Mamiya Universal
Mamiya RB67
Mamiya M645 Super x2
Mamiya M645 1000s
Canon Canonet 25
Canon Demi EE17 (a few)
Yashica Electro 35 GTN (several)
Zeiss Ikon rangefinder (ZM)
Zorki 6
Voigtlander Bessa L
Voigtlander Bessa T
Gakkenflex
Vivitar Ultra Wide and Slim (a couple)
Minolta CLE
Yashica T Zoom
Contax IIa
Rollei Giro 70 AW
Olympus Pen F
Richo Auto Half
Holga 120Pan (modified)
Home built 5x4
Horizon 202
Yashica D TLR x2

And which do I regret selling - er... none!

Edit: And there was a Zeiss Ikon 521 somewhere as well.

[jojonas~]

no regrets!! ...so far. I tend to cling on to my cameras ^^ it's just recently that I've started to sell or give stuff away.

[Suzi Livingstone]

Kinda miss my Nikon F501 for sentimental reasons but the bleeding thing gave me terrible neck and backache 

[mobilene]

I miss two: my Stereo Realist and a Polaroid rollfilm camera that had been my grandfather's.

I have collected cameras twice: once as a boy through my early 20s, and again starting in my late 30s.  The first collection is long gone (it included the two cameras listed above) and I've forgotten most of what was in it.  My current collection is starting to become large enough that I'd probably leave a camera or two off the list if I listed it.

My list at Collectiblend isn't fully updated but it's close.

http://collectiblend.com/Cameras/mycamprofile.php?uid=353

[Sandeha Lynch]

That certainly prompted a moment of reflection, Peter ...

I've had more than I've got ...
Agfa Isolette 6x6 (x many)
Agfa Record 6x9 (x several)
Agilux Agifold 6x6
Certo Dolly Super Sport
Contax 167MT
Daiichi Zenobia 645
FED 3
Fujica Drive Half-frame
Fuji GS645
Fuji GS645S
Hasselblad 500CM
Houghton Ensign Snapper (Pinhole)
Houghton Ensign Selfix 820
Houghton Triple Victo Whole Plate
Kodak 3a Autographic
Kodak Instamatic
Kodak Retina 010
Kodak Retina II
Konica II
Kowa 35mm
Mamiya Six (x2)
Meopta Flexaret
Minolta A
Pentax MEF
Pentax ME Super
Pentax MV
Pentax MX
Pentax MZ-S
Pentax P30n
Pentax SP500
Pentax SP1000
Praktica FX
Praktica FX 2
Rolleicord Va
Rolleiflex F
Rolleiflex T
Voigtlander Bessaflex
Voigtlander Brillant S
Voigtlander Vag 6x9 (x2)
Voigtlander Bessa 66 (Pinhole)
Voigtlander Bessa 6x9
Walz Electric 35
Walz Envoy 35
Walzflex TLR
Welta Weltini 35mm
Yashicamat 124G
Zeiss Ideal III 6x9
Zeiss Ikonta 521/16
Zeiss Nettar 645 (x3)
Lynch Surveyor 4x5 No.1


But I've still got more than I thought ...
Agfa Isolette II
Agfa Record 6x9 (Pinhole)
Bencini Koroll S 6x6 (Reversed lens)
Ensign Ful-vue
Holga 120FN
Kodak Brownie No.2
Kodak Brownie Cresta II
Kodak Retina 013
Leica M2
Lynch Garden Camera 6x7
Lynch Micro 6x7 (Reversed lens)
Lynch Neretta 4x5 (Fixed 90mm)
Lynch Portrait 4x5
Lynch Surveyor 4x5 No.2
Nikon L35
Olympus XA-2 (x2)
Pentax ME Super
Pentax MX
Pentax MZ-5
Pentax MZ-5n (x2)
Rolleiflex 621
Samoca 35 Super Rangefinder
Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim
Wembly Sport 6x9 (Pinhole)

Nutz, or what.   

[Steven.]

i regret selling my Nikkormat FTN since it was my very first film SLR. i also regret selling my Retina IIa since it was such a compact folder with a great lens.

[Ed Wenn]

Gary: that's a fine looking camera....and I used to enjoy seeing you manips appearing on tc.com

Sent from my RM-821_eu_euro1_342 using Board Express

[Ordinal]

See, this thread is now making me think "perhaps I don't own too many cameras after all, and so don't need to sell any".

That wasn't the initial intention. Honest.

[astrobeck]

dragging this post up from the vault just so I/we can reflect on cameras loved and lost/sold.

I'm going to make my list sometime later this week as I have an insurance inventory I need to address...

Initially I was looking in the archives here for anyone using a Pentax MV as I have just come into possession of one.

[Francois]

In my case it's more cameras that I failed to properly fix that I could make a very long list of.