Topic: More than you ever wanted to know about the Contax RTS

[hookstrapped]

I was a wee lad when this camera first came out and I was just getting into photography and I wanted one desperately but my minimum wage gas station earnings didn't allow it.

I was set to get one now as, 50 years later, the price has gone down and my earnings have slightly gone up, but opted instead for its less feature-packed cousin, the Contax 139q, mainly because of its smaller size and weight (comparable to an original Olympus OM or Pentax ME). Anyway, beautiful camera, interesting history, amusing video.

https://youtu.be/8SUYjhPnpas?si=sPv0cvcLeLoCelxj

[Pete_R]

A slightly biased view I think. A significant model in the Contax history but not one to consider using today. They are unreliable and difficult to repair. I've repaired a number of them but, today, I won't touch them as they are too much trouble. And most of them were used by professionals and got hammered. If you want an RTS, get the RTSii. A much better camera, more reliable and repairable.

I currently have nine RTS bodies, none of which work and I have three RTSii bodies of which two work and the third is repairable (if I ever get around to it).

The 139 is a good choice. It can have issues but is repairable. I still have my original one I bought in 1980 and a couple of others. I have one on the bench now going through a full service before being put up for sale.

[hookstrapped]

Wow!

Yeah, I was thinking RTS ii before settling on the 139q. Also was looking at the Aria but they cost to much. Glad to hear your informed opinion about the 139q!

[Francois]

One thing's for sure, I wouldn't like to be the one trying to repair the RTS that had the vacuum back. This thing must be a nightmare to crack open.

[Pete_R]

One thing's for sure, I wouldn't like to be the one trying to repair the RTS that had the vacuum back. This thing must be a nightmare to crack open.

The RTSiii had the vacuum back. The back never gave any problems that I'm aware of but the RTSiii suffers from power problems. It uses a power board made by another Company that has proven to be a very poor design. It provides power to the CPU and also the high voltage required for the LCD back lights in the viewfinder. So you can often find RTSiii bodies with no viewfinder displays due to the back lights not working or the whole camera being dead due to no power to the CPU.

I have three RTSiii bodies, all with issues. I've spent a lot of time trying to fix the problems with limited success.

So many cameras to fix and so little time. ;-)

[Pete_R]

Wow!

Yeah, I was thinking RTS ii before settling on the 139q. Also was looking at the Aria but they cost to much. Glad to hear your informed opinion about the 139q!

I never got on with the Arias. Not sure why. I've had a couple but always moved them on. They do tend to get electronic problems too.

[Francois]

Morale of the story: the old cheap Yashica FX-3 is still one of the most reliable cameras you can get  that can take those Zeiss lenses 😉

[Kai-san]

If you judge a camera model only by those that fail, it's bound to look bad. I never had a problem with my RX, AX, Aria, S2 or N1. They were all purchased from Japan, another "prügelknabe" for those that don't read the ads properly and don't check the pictures for all details before they hit the buy button. Considering getting an ST as well if I can find one in good shape, it will probably come from Japan. 

[Francois]

Funny because all this Yashica/Contax talk is making me feel like taking one of mine out of the cupboard and taking it for a spin 😊

[Pete_R]

If you judge a camera model only by those that fail, it's bound to look bad.

But equally, if you judge it by the fact one person has one that works perfectly, you could be disappointed. It's more about the number of failures. It's also about the reparability.

[Francois]

And the ease of repairability.
So far, I've fixed two Minolta X370's that had the same exact problem. But it took only about half an hour and I only had to remove the baseplate to fix them, so to me it counts as a definite win in terms of being fixable.
I don't know about the Yashica/Contax world but I know from experience that Minolta made some quite easy to fix gear. It's almost like they thought of the repair person when designing them!

[Kai-san]

When I have a set of lenses that I like I make sure I have several bodies that can use those lenses. That's my insurance against the possibility that a camera cannot be repaired anymore, which gets more likely as they get older and can happen to any film camera. Lenses rarely fail and can in most cases be fixed. Regarding the Contax cameras. I appreciate them over most other brands because of the ergonomics and handling that are top notch. I also have many Nikon cameras and lenses, but I've given up the Nikon autofocus cameras because of poor ergonomics. The location of controls are scattered all over the place, the worst example is putting the auto focus lock beneath the lens.