Leicina Special vs Beaulieu 4008 ZM II

[leicinawanted]

Here's a question...

In your opinion, which is the better camera? I have an opportunity to buy a Beaulieu 4008 ZM II which I just tested with a roll of BWR, or hold out for the Leicina Special or RT-1.

Any major downsides to the Beaulieu? I know about battery life, but I have a friend who can make a new battery pack.

Thanks,

Amanda

[super8man]

Bring on the flame wars with this kind of question (Nikon vs Canon, etc).

Seriously, considering they both use the same Schneider 6-66 Optivaron lens, results should be identical...Your only limitations will be your own ability.

Cheers,
mike

[Mr. Apathy]

The beaulieu is a great camera but the Leicina Special will be more stable. to be totally honest for most uses you probably won't notice that huge of a difference, but there will be a difference.

[leicinawanted]

Thanks for the advice...

What about the Leicina RT-1? I think that the RT-1 is plenty of camera. Are there large advantages with the Beaulieu?

[reedsturtevant]

The RT-1 does not have a removable lens, nor switchable focus screens and no ASA dial for the built in meter.

Compared to the Leicina Special the Beaulieu has:
- mirror shutter so no light loss to reflex viewfinder
- ground glass focus screen (easy DOF preview)
- more filming speed variation
- more commercial support (repair, battery packs)

The "feel" of the cameras is radically different; I have used both but found the Leicina Special easier to handle - perhaps just a matter of personal taste.

Any of these 3 in good working order is a great camera, IMHO!

[BK]

I believe the Leicina Special with the 10mm Cinegon produce the "sharpest'' super 8 image available.

Bill

[Justin Lovell]

what about the leicna "super"?

seen one of those at the local pawn shop for $300 CDN, but i believe it's not nearly as versatile as it predecessors(?)

May prove to be more solid for registration than my nizo pro or my canon (which is really solid... better than my nizo).

btw i've found my nizo s800 and the pro to both have difficulty maintaining solid registration when shooting high speed. (54fps).. i guess the carts and gate just weren't built to handle that kind of speed... the canon 1014 holds strong at it's max of 36fps though.
... i wonder how the 1014e is with stability when shooting at 54fps...

j

[BK]

... i wonder how the 1014e is with stability when shooting at 54fps...

It's amazingly stable, even with 18 to 54fps instant slow motion and only 1 frame slightly over exposed.

The 1014E is really a "marvel" of Japanese super 8 camera engineering.

Bill

[ccortez]

btw i've found my nizo s800 and the pro to both have difficulty maintaining solid registration when shooting high speed. (54fps).. i guess the carts and gate just weren't built to handle that kind of speed...

neither of my 801s have shown any registration problems at 54fps so far...

[leicinawanted]

Wow,

thanks for the great advice. I agree, any nice camera is working order is a good one...

The thing is, I have the Beaulieu in hand, whereas the Leicina I have yet to find. I am a little impatient, but am willing to wait.

I like the look of both cameras. I shot a test roll and had it processed yesterday, it looks like the automatic exposure is not working right, but it could be low battery (after a while, the camera was dying). What's cool is that I can test it and hold it.

I think I just talked myself into the Beaulieu.

Oh, BTW, I would agree about the Canon. I have found that even the 310 model is a great camera!

Thanks Again,

Amanda

[reflex]

I like the look of both cameras. I think I just talked myself into the Beaulieu.

The good think about Beaulieus is that they're relatively easy to find - you can get parts from Wittner Kinotechnic or eBay quite easily. And Bjorn Andersson has the skill and parts to repair/maintain a Beaulieu.

External battery packs are quite easy to find or get local battery shops to build, and they'll last many rolls to a charge.