Linhof Technorama 612 PCII

[apophoto]

As much as I love this camera , it needs a new home
Selling a Linhof Technorama 612 PCII
Comes with the SK Super angulon 58mm
In excellent working order, focusing is firm and accurate
Shutter speeds is accurate to my ears.
Glass is clean from haze and fungus.

Selling for $3499 shipped worldwide.

 

[Bill_Evans]

I purchased this camera and it wasn't nearly in the condition that was advertised. The focus is so difficult to turn that camera is functionally unusable and the shutter button is sticky and slow to return. My worst camera transaction in 15 years as a working photographer. The seller refuses to reply to any of my attempts at communication.

Negative Feedback posted here.

 

[darr]

Bill,
If you paid via PayPal or credit card, you may be able to get a refund if you open a case.
Repairing this camera may be expensive, and you did pay a fair price for a "working" camera.

Darr

 

[Paul Spinnler]

What you describe sounds like a CLA job for which you should get a partial refund, no? It can happen with very old cameras and perceptions on working order relating to stiffness of say the focusing helical may vary. It sounds all fixable by a camera tech?

 

[Bill_Evans]

Bill,
If you paid via PayPal or credit card, you may be able to get a refund if you open a case.
Repairing this camera may be expensive, and you did pay a fair price for a "working" camera.

Darr

Your advice nudged me towards that solution so I did opened a case with my credit card. For some reason PayPal didn’t give me that option. I’ve always tended to be too trusting and that‘s not without some risk.

 

[darr]

I wish you the best with it, Bill. Repairs on Linhof cameras can be pricey. I spent $450 plus shipping on a CLA and a minor repair for my MT. If the camera isn’t functional, the seller should either give you a full refund or cover the repair costs. As a fellow classic camera buyer, I appreciate you sharing your experience with the seller.

 

[Bill_Evans]

What you describe sounds like a CLA job for which you should get a partial refund, no? It can happen with very old cameras and perceptions on working order relating to stiffness of say the focusing helical may vary. It sounds all fixable by a camera tech?

The camera was advertised to be in working condition. That said if it was just a “routine” CLA I’d be slightly disappointed but I’d carry on. But in my correspondence with Austin at LAFLEX, I got the impression that servicing the focusing helicoil could be time consuming, aka expensive. His advice was to return it.

I’m a working photographer and I don’t really have the time or desire to sort out gear so I’ll wait and see how my credit card dispute turns out and go from there. Luckily this was a camera for a personal project and not for paid work. The Hassy’s do that heavy lifting.

 

[Bill_Evans]

I wish you the best with it, Bill. Repairs on Linhof cameras can be pricey. I spent $450 plus shipping on a CLA and a minor repair for my MT. If the camera isn’t functional, the seller should either give you a full refund or cover the repair costs. As a fellow classic camera buyer, I appreciate you sharing your experience with the seller.

What‘s odd, to me at least, is that getdpi shows that the seller routinely visits the forum but doesn’t respond to any of the threads on this camera or the PMs I’ve sent. And he has other items for sale which is one of the reasons I felt compelled to share my disappointing experience.

 

[darr]

It seems like he only engages with the community to sell gear. Perhaps he’s a small dealer trying to keep his business intentions under the radar since the forum allows personal sales but not commercial ones. But who knows?

 

[apophoto]

The case has gone into paypal dispute.
Remember, a stiff focusing ring is not a jammed focusing mechanism. As old as the camera is, you'll still be able to take pictures.
I'll let Paypal handle the case.
Good luck.

 

[darr]

I bought a used Nikkor 300/5.6 lens that looked good cosmetically but arrived with a stiff aperture ring. Within a week, it broke. The eBay seller accepted the return based on the seller's terms. From this experience, I've learned to never accept a lens unless all its controls operate smoothly, as intended.

 

[Bill_Evans]

The case has gone into paypal dispute.
Remember, a stiff focusing ring is not a jammed focusing mechanism. As old as the camera is, you'll still be able to take pictures.
I'll let Paypal handle the case.
Good luck.

The focusing ring isn’t “stiff” it requires excessive force to change focus. I thought when I first tried that it was totally frozen. Why can’t you stand behind your sale? Why is this the first time you’ve responded to my inquires since then? I only filed a case with my credit card because you wouldn’t answer my communications.

And I’ve use, many different camera systems and lenses both for personal and client work. Old schools lenses from Mamiya, Rolleiflex, Pentax, Nikon, Xpan etc. I know what a lens “In excellent working order” feels like.

 

[Bill_Evans]

Unfortunately, and to my dismay, my Apple Card decided not to honor the dispute and paid the seller. I’ve bought and sold hundreds of items for my photography business and this is the first time I’ve been ”taken” by a dishonest seller who wouldn’t work to resolve an issue. Currently the Linhof is a, $3000, shelf queen while I decide whether to invest more money into fixing the issues that prevent my from using it as it was described.

I have always been a trusting person and I don’t expect this experience to change that. But the biggest disappointment for me is that I deliberately decided to purchase more items from this forum as a small way to “pay back” this incredible user base.

And the plus side, I have a pair of Hasselblad C12 film backs for my Cambo WRC-400 and a sweet Makina W67 while I ponder the future of the Linhof.

 

[f8orbust]

In situations like this, it's a good idea to get an independent report - e.g. from a local reputable camera repair shop (one that handles insurance claims would be good) - and then present that as evidence to your CC issuer. Otherwise it comes down to he says / she says. And since there is a difference between 'firm' and 'so stiff it's unusable', a qualified independent assessor should be able to reach an objective conclusion quite easily and, I would imagine, for less than $100. Even though the CC issuer has paid the seller, you could still pursue the matter with them if the independent report confirms what you're saying. BTW depending on how you paid through PayPal (hopefully not 'friends and family' - never, ever, use this to pay for goods folks) you should be able to 'report a problem' through the 'resolution centre'. If the goods were not as described, and you have objective evidence to support this (i.e. the report I mention above), you stand a very good chance of being successful; PayPal is heavily weighted towards protecting buyers.

 

[Bill_Evans]

In situations like this, it's a good idea to get an independent report - e.g. from a local reputable camera repair shop (one that handles insurance claims would be good) - and then present that as evidence to your CC issuer. Otherwise it comes down to he says / she says. And since there is a difference between 'firm' and 'so stiff it's unusable', a qualified independent assessor should be able to reach an objective conclusion quite easily and, I would imagine, for less than $100. Even though the CC issuer has paid the seller, you could still pursue the matter with them if the independent report confirms what you're saying. BTW depending on how you paid through PayPal (hopefully not 'friends and family' - never, ever, use this to pay for goods folks) you should be able to 'report a problem' through the 'resolution centre'. If the goods were not as described, and you have objective evidence to support this (i.e. the report I mention above), you stand a very good chance of being successful; PayPal is heavily weighted towards protecting buyers.

All Good advice and I guess there is a fine line between trusting and being naive. For some reason PayPal wouldn’t get involved. I don’t know if it’s because I have a business account that I used in the past for my client invoicing or something else. And of course, camera condition can be subjective, but in my case I wouldn’t feel comfortable selling this camera at all. Even for parts. And I’ve bought and sold a ton on the bay. Anyway, time to put this in the rear view mirror. Live, learn and adapt.

 

[viablex1]

This sucks and why I don't buy older film cameras mostly. From Japan everything is mint which is BS and from other sellers they are usually selling their problems. I hope this works out for you.

 

[f8orbust]

It's a shame this couldn't be resolved. If the goods weren't as described I'd still pursue the matter with my CC issuer since this is clearly a breach of even the most basic aspects of consumer law and distance selling regulations. That said, I realise that sometimes the juice just isn't worth the squeeze.

If a buyer wasn't happy with something I'd sold them on the forum I'd always offer to refund them the full amount (and split shipping), so long as the goods were returned in 'as sold' condition. No need to play 'hard ball' on the part of the seller methinks - leaves a bad taste in the mouth and goes against the ethos of the forum as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Bill_Evans]

It's a shame this couldn't be resolved. If the goods weren't as described I'd still pursue the matter with my CC issuer since this is clearly a breach of even the most basic aspects of consumer law and distance selling regulations. That said, I realise that sometimes the juice just isn't worth the squeeze.

If a buyer wasn't happy with something I'd sold them on the forum I'd always offer to refund them the full amount (and split shipping), so long as the goods were returned in 'as sold' condition. No need to play 'hard ball' on the part of the seller methinks - leaves a bad taste in the mouth and goes against the ethos of the forum as far as I'm concerned.

I feel the same way and that’s how I behave as a seller myself. To be honest I was shocked that the seller wouldn’t even reply. But so it is. And as shelf queens go, the Linhof is pretty sweet. And life is too short to dwell on the negative.

 

[buildbot]

I feel the same way and that’s how I behave as a seller myself. To be honest I was shocked that the seller wouldn’t even reply. But so it is. And as shelf queens go, the Linhof is pretty sweet. And life is too short to dwell on the negative.

Also I guess they no longer want to sell anything here either. In my opinion ban/delete the account.

Even when people have bought things from me to use as a rental for a month before returning because of some alleged issue (on ebay), I accept the return. It’s just better customer service and in the end, maybe it was broken! If not, I can sell it again. Happened recently with a cat lens, they claimed the package was damaged in transit, wanted to test the lens to see if the quality was impacted. 3 weeks later, they returned it, quality was the same mediocre sharpness of a cat lens as before. ReSold it for 100 more after including test photos/the history, so no secrets or anything.

Unfortunately the camera world has a lot of not very ethical individuals and companies.