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sobahguy · Joined: 09 Oct 2001 Posts: 173 Location: Massachusetts

hi, i'm thinking about getting a kalart focus-spot & focus-scope. can anyone let me know how the focus-spot works? i'm guessing that it is powered by one of the outlets on the 2773 handle but which one? (i will need the focus-spot which mounts on the top of the rangefinder and its cord?) how well does this accessory work i.e. does it really significantly aid in low-light conditions? i am also interested in getting a focus-scope which appears to be just an eyepiece extension for the back of the rangefinder. does this item magnify the image at all or is it just a little more convenient than having to get the eyeball up close & personal to the rangefinder while focusing?
i know it seems like it will atleast keep sync cords from dangling down & blocking the rangefinder window.
thanks for any guidance.....

alecj · Joined: 09 May 2001 Posts: 853 Location: Alabama

I strongly recommend you get both while they are still available. The focuspot gets power from a short cord, one end of which looks like the end of a razor cord, and the other is a household plug which goes into the "battery" outlet of your battery case [that's because that outlet is always hot]. For those having a Heiland battery case, the same unit is used, but the cord is different with the male end having two short posts [the reverse of the plug which goes onto the focuspot unit].

The unit is mounted to the top of the rangefinder [there is a plate there, held by a screw which is removed]. It just bayonets into place. It has a bracket which mates up with the hole where the plate came off, and the screw from the plate is used to anchor the unit to the camera. [Keep the plate - if you ever remove the Focuspot, you'll want to close that hole.] The unit is turned on and off by turning the chrome wheel on the end of the unit itself.

These work VERY well, especially in low light. The story is they were developed to be used for taking quick and dirty shots in nightclubs, where there was lots of low-light photography opportunities. Then they printed the negs wet! [I had that done one time in New Orleans - didn't think to ask to see the darkroom - had other things on my mind.]

I always use my Focuscope too. But, be careful and look for the model which telescopes into itself [it has a spring inside]. Much safer than the rigid unit which could be jammed back into your eye if someone hit the camera accidentally.

Finally, for the Focuscope, take it to a camera flea market and try on various rubber eyecups [w/o any metal rings - remove those]. Find one which will slip over the eyepiece end tightly, and you'll be set - no scratched glasses! They aren't hard to find if you'll just look.

Good luck.

[ This Message was edited by: alecj on 2002-05-30 09:11 ]

Les · Joined: 09 May 2001 Posts: 2682 Location: Detroit, MI

Be aware there are two different items out there. There is the true focusope which has a 2x power lens in it, and there are just rigid tubes with nothing in them. these just keep stray light from obscuring the image. something like a dark cloth for the ground glass.

Stephen Furley · Joined: 11 May 2001 Posts: 79 Location: London, England

When I bought my Pacemaker, about three years ago, it had neither spot nor scope. I managed to obtain a spot from Stephen Shuart, but he did not have a scope. Since then I have tried contacting various places, mainly in the us, I think I stand almost no chance of finding one here in the uk, and I also keep an eye on Ebay, but so far, no luck.

Does anyone have any idea where I might find one?

alecj · Joined: 09 May 2001 Posts: 853 Location: Alabama

I'd try MidWest Photo, Pacific Rim Camera, and Fred Lustig. Good luck.

Stephen Furley · Joined: 11 May 2001 Posts: 79 Location: London, England

alecj · Joined: 09 May 2001 Posts: 853 Location: Alabama

Fred Lustig
4790 Caughlin Pkwy, #433
Reno, NV 89509
775 746 0111

No e-mail.

sobahguy · Joined: 09 Oct 2001 Posts: 173 Location: Massachusetts

thanks for the replies..invaluable as always...i have both a focuspot & focuscope on their way to me now. the focuspot, however, is coming with no short cord to connect to the "battery" outlet. i guess i will have to try to cobble one up because if the focuspots themselves are so hard to find then i'm guessing the cords are even rarer! the household plug end is certainly easy enough to locate. where might i be able to find a proper end plug to fit to the posts on the focuspot? i'm also guessing (from photos) that the 2 posts on the focuspot are of a different size and distance from one another than, say, the biposts on shutters-- is this correct? Could I find a plug perhaps @ radio shack or another electronics supplier?

thanks in advance for any further help.....

Stephen Furley · Joined: 11 May 2001 Posts: 79 Location: London, England

The cable which fits the flash sync posts on the focal plane shutter of my Pacemaker Speed also fits the Focus Spot; it's a bit long, but it works. I'm not sure if this is the same fitting as the bipost on older lenses.

sobahguy · Joined: 09 Oct 2001 Posts: 173 Location: Massachusetts

Thanks all for the info. The focuspot is a great little item. It came with a working bulb. All it needed was a spare Heiland household-to-bipost cord that i had in my rat's nest bag of cords. Drove the Mrs crazy shining little white spots on everything in sight. It boggles the mind what little it takes to amuse boys with "new" toys!!!
Does anyone know what type of bulb it takes should it ever need replacing?
Anyway, so long as Mr.Lustig's great job at fine-tuning the rangefinder works, then the focuspot will work quite well i'm sure.

Lensman · Joined: 20 Jan 2002 Posts: 63 Location: British Columbia

To SOBAGUY
From a Kalart Brochure regarding the bulb for the Focuspot....
"Replacements should be the Mazda # 13 lamp designed for 3.8 volts, or equal. These are the ordinary Mazda flashlight bulbs, commonly used with 3 cell flash lights.

If a replacement lamp projects only one beam of light through the Range Finder instead of two, the lamp should be discarded and another tried. Although this lamp is suitable for use in ordinary flashlights, its filament is off-center and therefore not suitable for use with the FOCUSPOT."

NOTE: unlikely Mazda brand still available, but the description above, plus that it is a round glass bulb with a screw socket, should allow an easy replacement....although even these are hard to find....newer ones are a bayonet socket and a pointed tip bulb and/or a molded-in lens.
I beleive Fred Lustig has the correct bulbs.