Kiev IIa

I've finally gotten around to putting a page about the Kiev IIa on my vintage cameras web site.



I acquired the camera about five years ago when prices and postage from the former Soviet Union were a lot lower than they are now. I also picked up a very fine Jupiter 12 lens and an accessory viewfinder around the same time. It turned out that the Kiev needed a shutter repair, but that was also obtained at a trivial price from Oleg Khalyavin in Ukraine.

I later did some small repairs on the Kiev IIa myself. One of the most common problems with this camera is irregular frame spacing. A temporary fix is to slightly loosen the screw controlling the clutch under the forked end of the film advance. A better solution is to disassemble the simple advance mechanism for cleaning and re-lubing. At the same time, I replaced the worn yarn light seals where the top deck meets the camera body.

I haven't used the Kiev IIa nearly to the extent that its fine quality demands. I'm thinking I should acquire some more of the great glass that is available for this camera. Please contact me if you have any Contax-mount lenses you might like to trade for some other classic camera gear.