P3D Re: Custom Realist

["Greg Wageman" <gjw@xxxxxxxxxx>]

From: James Albert <Cyberguy@xxxxxxxxxxx>


>Hi again ! I am about to purchase a Realist Custom and wanted to know
if any
>of you salts out there know: the production run; what year; if there
are any
>articles written about this particular camera; and finally, has  the
lens
>resolution ever been verified ( I heard 300lpm) ?


James,

One or three words of friendly advice, from hard-won experience: make
sure the camera in question is a real Custom, and not an Olden "Custom"
assembled from a mix of mostly Realist and perhaps some Custom parts.
(Olden was/is a camera shop in New York which whipped together a batch
of f2.8 Realists using some Custom parts [like the oversized Rewind
knob] but mostly surplus Realist parts.  Some ignorant or unscrupulous
sellers will attempt to pass off an Olden model as a genuine Custom.
Once you know what to look for, the difference is as plain as night and
day.  Some key differences include a detented "clicking" focus
mechanism, genuine fine-grained Kangaroo leather, a completely different
finish on the top and front plates and handles on the aperture rings on
a genuine Custom.)

     -Greg W. (gjw@xxxxxxxxxx)






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