Episode 41: Dr. Brandon Monroe, Contax M.D.

Please Read: As of August 2023, Brandon Monroe has disappeared from social media and no longer responds to emails or DMs.  He seems to have abandoned his Contax repair business, so the Camerosity Podcast can longer endorse his services.  I am leaving this episode available to listen to as it covers a tremendous amount of good material about the Zeiss-Ikon Contax, however. You know what they say, 'An apple a day, keeps the doctor away...' so for those of you with broken Contaxes, you better get rid of all your apples as the doctor is here! Okay, so maybe he hasn't quite gotten his PhD yet, but in this, the 41st episode of the Camerosity Podcast, we are happy to introduce you to Brandon Monroe, an aviation mechanics student who just so happens to really love the Zeiss-Ikon Contax rangefinders so much that he wanted to learn how to repair them himself.  Brandon reached out to other well known technicians who repair Contaxes like Henry Scherer and Mark Hansen and learned what he could from them.  For everything else, he rolled up his sleeves and got to work.  Tearing down several broken Contax rangefinders, and at least one that had been previously CLAd to see what was done, Brandon has recently become successful at full CLAs of both pre and postwar Contax IIs and IIIs.  Brandon has repaired several cameras for Paul and a few others, and according to Paul, the cameras are like new. Listen in as Brandon tells his story of how he got started and why he fell in love with Contax rangefinders.  He discusses differences between the pre and postwar shutters, what the shutters are made of, how the rangefinders work and how they're adjusted, who makes our favorite Contax lens adapters, using Contax lenses on Nikon rangefinders, plus a huge number of other things.  Mike can't help himself and goes into the history of the camera somewhat, explaining how the Contax I came to be, and what differences are between it and the later cameras. Joining us on this episode are returning guests Aidan Dean, Alex Dietrich, and first time callers Steve Wilcox and from all the way in Belgium, Eric Kaas Sluis, a self professed Contax addict who has one of the largest collections of working Contaxes and lenses in the world. In addition to repair of the Contax, we talk about what makes them special, who made the original Zeiss-Ikon Contax in 1926 (Hint: His name rhymes with 'Bagel'), postwar Jena Contaxes, and why you should consider a Kiev if you cannot afford a Contax.  Amazingly, the guys somehow manage to stay on topic for most of the show, but a small amount of time is spent on a few other cameras that we just can't stop talking about. As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are influenced by you.  We would love to hear from more listeners, especially those who are new to shooting film or collecting cameras.  Please don't feel like you have to be an expert on a specific type of camera, or have the level of knowledge on par with other people on the show.  We LOVE people who are new to shooting and are interested in having an episode dedicated to people new to the hobby, so please don't consider your knowledge level to be a prerequisite for joining! The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you'd like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com.  We usually record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance. If you want to join us for our next episode, we will record Episode 42 on Monday, February 6th and we will talk American cameras like Argus, Clarus, Perfex, and many other brands you may or may not have heard of!  Be sure to stay tuned for the official announcement! This Week's Episode Introducing Brandon Monroe / Brandon Needs to Pressure Test His Nikonos Pentax Errata / The Pentax MX Does Have a Depth of Field P