Minolta SRT101 Film Camera

Minolta SRT101 Film Camera. (Serial 2498014) in fully working and refurbished condition, recently professionally CLA’d. Meter working and accurate and supplied with a beautiful clean 55mm f1.7 MC Rokkor (serial 2957978). The meter has been professionally calibrated to work with a standard SR44 battery.

The lens has a beautiful smooth focus, snappy aperture and near mint glass showing only small dust particles which is normal for a lens of this period and will have no effect whatsoever on photographs.

The camera and lens have been fully tested with film and results are shown in the gallery.

Camera and lens are fully working and clean but do show some signs of age-related wear including a small depression on the front left side of the prism housing and some scuff marks to the left shoulder of the camera.  Overall a very nice example showing only normal wear.

Supplied complete with its original metal lens cap.

Normally this model of camera would require a battery adaptor with a short-lived zinc-air battery or an expensive Weincell zinc-air to operate correctly (read our article on Classic Camera Batteries ) but this one has been professionally calibrated to work with modern 1.5v batteries so you can use standard SR44 silver cells with an adaptor or PX625 alkaline batteries which are a perfect fit.  We recommend buying an adaptor and using an SR44 as silver cells last longer and provide more stable power.

Fully manual SLR manufactured between 1966 and 1975. The SRT101 set new standards in its day being the first camera with a full aperture metering and automatic lens indexing.

The SRT101 features a micro prism focusing screen.

The only electronics are for the light meter which on this camera has been calibrated to use a standard SR44 battery with an adaptor. Users should remember to turn the camera off after use as otherwise it will drain the battery. The Minolta SRT series comes from an age when people were expected to use their noodle rather than rely on electronics. For details on an adaptor check out the guide on power for these classics.

Camera and lens cleaned throughout, camera wind mechanism lubricated with appropriate materials. Degraded light seal and mirror buffer removed and replaced with new high-quality professional camera foam.

Mirror, viewfinder and focus screen cleaned of debris and dirt and viewfinder now presents a clean and bright image. A few small specks are visible in keeping with the camera’s age.

Metering system repaired and now fully operational and accurate within the limits of its original design, calibrated for use with standard SR44 1.5 Volt batteries using the PX625 adaptor with SR44 batteries.

Deep cleaning throughout and UV treatment to ensure long term fungal kill in both lens and camera.

Shutter tested with Phocron XA Tester.

Please be aware that the cameras and lenses for sale can be up to 50 years old.  They have been serviced and/or checked and are always as good as they can be made, but please don’t expect them to be flawless as if they were made yesterday.

All lenses of this age exhibit some small particles of dust and coatings are not up to modern standards. Cameras will exhibit some wear signs and likewise may have small dust specks in their viewfinders or focus screens.  These do not affect the picture in any way.

ANY problems or issues will be described in the main text which you are advised to read carefully. If you are unfamiliar with film cameras we suggest you do some online research and read the manuals which are freely available from online resources.

We are enthusiastic film fans and spend our time hunting cameras and lenses that have been or are being unloved. We then spend hours to bring them back to full working and clean condition, ready for a new lease of life with you  We always change the film seals, give the camera a clean/service and make sure it’s fully working before we sell it on to you.

Most lenses are cleaned, re-lubricated and all of their functions checked before sale so you know they will work, full details will always be in the text. All items are packed safely for transit using proper packing material NOT something the cat was sick in.

Having been stung both on eBay and by dealers alike who often know very little about film cameras we decided to offer people a chance to experience film using a camera that will last for many years and which we can say for sure works reliably

Mel & Claire