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Contax RX Videos posted on YouTube
- Thread starter mathomas
- Start date
biggles3
Well-Known Member
Hi Dirk,
Please be assured there was a RXII - it was produced in small numbers and was sold mostly in Japan as a reduced specification version of the original RX. They are not easy to find and people tend to ask ridiculous prices due to their comparative rarity outside Japan. What is crazy is that you might typically have to pay up to 3 times the cost of a second-hand RX for a nearly identical camera of lower specification... The RXII lacked the digital focus indicator of the RX which was really what the RX was all about...
super_claret
Member
Yes, definitely an RXII, as it doesn’t have the DFI. It’s certainly a beautiful camera and everything seems to work perfectly. Just need to know what the custom functions are.
Is there anywhere I can download the RX manual, as I’m guessing the custom functions will be the same
Is there anywhere I can download the RX manual, as I’m guessing the custom functions will be the same
biggles3
Well-Known Member
Go to Mike Butkus site ( https://www.butkus.org/chinon/contax/contax_rx/contax_rx.htm ) but PLEASE make a small donation to him - you'll see the link on the page. He runs the site which literally hundreds of manuals for most camera systems and pays for it himself; I always pay about $3-$5 each time I download something so he can afford to keep it going....
super_claret
Member
Thanks, I actually downloaded the RXII manual from that site but it came in 2 parts and the 2nd part was for the RTSIII. Happy to donate to him.
The custom functions are limited to 6 options on the RXII, whereas, the RX has 9. The one I want to change is the film rewind, so that it leaves the leader out of the cassette.
I’m guessing that it will be CF5, will change it and see what happens.
biggles3
Well-Known Member
It would be interesting to know which functions were omitted on the RXII. There is a Japanese version of the RXII manual on scribd.com. If you have OCR and Japanese language available, you could find the appropriate page and translate it... Sadly, so few of the cameras left Japan that I don't think Kyocera printed many manuals in other languages which makes them hard to find. If you go back to Mike Butkus' site, you might leave him a message about the issue with pt2 of the manual. If he has the original, it doesn't usually take him too long to upload changes.
super_claret
Member
Thanks, have already emailed him to ask if it can be corrected. I was going to treat myself to a Contax G2 and 45mm f2 but sellers are asking ridiculous amounts for them. I then came across the RXII, which I’d never heard of. It’s almost mint condition, so very pleased and it was about a 5th of the price of the G2. Just hope the electronics don’t pack up too soon.
biggles3
Well-Known Member
Hi - I think the critical electronics are identical to those in the RX and that camera is pretty reliable. In fact, as the RXII came out a little later, there may be more future-proofing in the selection of components so it should give you service for some time to come! Although a much simpler and decades earlier model, my Contax RTS bought in 1978 is still going strong as are most of my Contax models. Out of 153 post-1975 Contax cameras, I have had only 12 failures in the last 35 years. I have bought quite a few 'dead or damaged' cameras for spare parts in recent times as it's getting harder and harder to find fresh spare parts - donor bodies are the way to go. Hopefully, you won't need to think about such things for a very long time!