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Serial number inconsistent with look and technical details of Contax IIa

Michael Khan All Messages By This Member #15369 Apparently, this is a late Contax IIa, identifiable by its colour dial. It has a colour dial with a yellow 50 and red numbers for the faster speeds on the exposure speed dial. It also has an electronic sync (i.e., PC sync terminal) rather than the mechanical plunger sync of the early, black dial bodies. It has the two small screws to the left and right of the rangefinder lookout window that are indicative of late versions of the Contax IIa. The screws that hold the front plate to the body are rounded and not countersunk, unlike those of the black dials that are smaller, flat and countersunk. However, the serial number that is engraved into the accessory shoe and also the camera body, when I take off the back, is T28612. According to Hans-Jürgen Kuc's authoritative work "Auf den Spuren der Contax, Band II" and numerous other sources (which in fact might all be traced back to Kuc's book and then would then not be independent sources), such as <a href="http://forum.mflenses.com/contax-iia-iiia-serial-numbers-t16023.html" rel="noreferrer nofollow">here</a> state that T28001 through T35000 were manufactured from August 1951 through December 1951 and are definitely early, mechanical sync black dial versions. So in short, the serial number indicates an early model Contax IIa, while the camera clearly is a late model. Can anyone help me out on this?
Iain Mott All Messages By This Member #15371 开云体育 Hello, I have two IIa bodies which are both very early ones, with the "P" serial numbers i believe (unfortunately they are not with me so I can't give you the exact codes). They definitely have a different, slightly simpler rangefinder window. I have a photo of the older of the two (with Jupiter 8 lens), here: Perhaps they changed to the "screw rangefinder window" version before 1951? I may be confusing the Contax with the Kiev, but is the serial also embossed in the camera interior? I have a vague recollection that it is, but i may be mistaken. All the best! Em 28/03/2019 17:55, mkk707@... [ZICG] escreveu: toggle quoted message Show quoted text ? Apparently, this is a late Contax IIa, identifiable by its colour dial. It has a colour dial with a yellow 50 and red numbers for the faster speeds on the exposure speed dial. It also has an electronic sync (i.e., PC sync terminal) rather than the mechanical plunger sync of the early, black dial bodies. It has the two small screws to the left and right of the rangefinder lookout window that are indicative of late versions of the Contax IIa. The screws that hold the front plate to the body are rounded and not countersunk, unlike those of the black dials that are smaller, flat and countersunk. However, the serial number that is engraved into the accessory shoe and also the camera body, when I take off the back, is T28612. According to Hans-Jürgen Kuc's authoritative work "Auf den Spuren der Contax, Band II" and numerous other sources (which in fact might all be traced back to Kuc's book and then would then not be independent sources), such as "http://forum.mflenses.com/contax-iia-iiia-serial-numbers-t16023.html" rel="noreferrer nofollow">here state that T28001 through T35000 were manufactured from August 1951 through December 1951 and are definitely early, mechanical sync black dial versions. So in short, the serial number indicates an early model Contax IIa, while the camera clearly is a late model. Can anyone help me out on this?
Michael Khan All Messages By This Member #15372 Thank you for your reply. The Contax IIa body in the picture you posted is a early, black dial version. The serial number starting with a P is entirely consistent with the look of that body. As I wrote in my posting, on mine, the S/N is also engraved inside the body. I can see that when I take off the back. The S/N engraved inside is the same as the one on the accessories shoe. It starts with a T, which is inconsistent with the technical layout and looks of my IIa.
Iain Mott All Messages By This Member #15374 开云体育 When I was deciding on whether or not to purchase the camera in the photo (which came with a 1930s Zeiss lens and not the Jupiter), I wrote to rangefinderforum.com for advice. A user there called Highway 61 said the following: "Looks like this is an early production Contax IIa from 1950-1951. Later models had an additional glass unit hold in place with two tiny screws in front of the rangefinder window. This one doesn't have it." So according to this, 1951 was the year it changed to the two-screw window type. Perhaps the colour dial and the electronic sync are a retro-fit? Maybe some someone on rangefinderforum can shed some light on the subject All the best, Em 31/03/2019 17:37, mkk707@... [ZICG] escreveu: toggle quoted message Show quoted text ? Thank you for your reply. The Contax IIa body in the picture you posted is a early, black dial version. The serial number starting with a P is entirely consistent with the look of that body. As I wrote in my posting, on mine, the S/N is also engraved inside the body. I can see that when I take off the back. The S/N engraved inside is the same as the one on the accessories shoe. It starts with a T, which is inconsistent with the technical layout and looks of my IIa.
Michael Khan All Messages By This Member #15375 Thanks for the suggestion.? I the discussion under the picture I had posted on Flickr: ... someone had suggested the possibility of a retrofit. A late retrofit appears unlikely, viz. Henry Scherer's statements on his web site. According to the historian Hans-Jürgen Kuc, author of several books on the Zeiss Ikon product line, retrofits were offered by Zeiss Ikon early on, but it was not usual to change the black dial for a color dial. Then there is the rangefinder window and the screws on the front plate. It doesn't seem very likely that anyone would go to all that trouble.? My Contax IIa looks like a bona fide late version in all aspects except the serial number.?

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