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ZORKI CAMERAS
THE HISTORY
During World War II, The Soviet camera maker FED had to evacuate its plant to escape advancing German troops. After the war FED had trouble getting its copy of the pre-war German Leica 35mm camera back into production. Because KMZ's plant near Moscow had escaped destruction, that company started making the FED camera under a joint FED-Zorki logo. When FED got back in operation, KMZ continued to produce the cameras under the Zorki trademark and made some design changes.
The first Zorki is engraved FED / Zorki. It is a FED-1(e) with different engraving. Since the FED factory had been destroyed it is very possible that was an expedient to get the cameras into production as soon as possible after the war. This theory is lent credence by the fact that the manual provided with these cameras has "FED" on the cover. However the Illustrations in the booklet show the FED/Zorkii camera. The other possibility is that the equipment and parts had been evacuated from the FED factory to the Zorki factory. Unfortunately, due to the secretiveness of the Soviets we may never know the true story. The lens for this camera is the 50mm f3.5 collapsible Industar-22 with apertures of 3.5,5.6,8,11 and 16. This industar-22 has an lock button like the FED lenses. These cameras are marked with their year of production and as were all made in 1948 or 1949. 1948 production was about 2000 cameras and 1948 production was only 500. The base plate of this camera has a film guide attached with 2 screws. The large FED variation is the rarest but both are rare. Zorki-1 cameras were manufactured from 1948 to 1956. The camera has a removable bottom for film loading and requires a longer than normal film leader.
The eveready case for this camera has two snaps and is made of brown leather with Zorki embossed inside a large circle on the lens cover. They also exist with just FED and the KMZ symbol and with FED/Zorkii on them but are very rare.
The Zorki 2 is the last of the true KMZ Leica copies. It boasts a self-timer and a different shutter speed dial that seems to be more quiet than the earlier cameras. It also has lugs on the body to attach a strap so the camera can be carried without its heavy leather case. The Zorki 2 was only manufactured from 1954 to 1956. Only 10,310 were made. Today they are scarce. The Zorki 2 shutter speeds can allegedly be set without first cocking the shutter. It's probably best to wind the camera before changing shutter speeds, just to be on the safe side.
Zorki 2
This camera introduces a self timer on the left front of the body and a new shutter mechanism. The shutter speed dial mow sets by lifting the outer ring and setting it to a mark on the inner ring. The camera has strap lugs. Zorki-2 cameras were manufactured from 1954 to 1956. The camera has a removable bottom for film loading and requires a longer than normal film leader. The eveready case for this camera has two snaps and is made of brown leather with Zorki embossed inside a large circle on the lens cover. These cameras are scarce.
Technical Specifications
Film Size: 35mm
Image Size: 24X36mm
Dimensions:
height: 6.7cm
width: 13.3cm
depth: 6.6cm
weight: 519gm
Normal lens: Industar-22
Lens Mount: m39 LTM
Typical serial no: 540758
Zorki 2 S (C)
The Zorki-S (the letter S is written C in Cyrillic) introduced a new range finder housing. The shutter release is now surrounded by a cylinder that functions as the rewind selector. This camera introduces flash synchronization with a jack on the front of the rangefinder housing. The flash synchronization speeds are adjustable with a lever below the shutter speed adjustments. The available synchronization delays are 0,5,10,15,20 and 25. The first two digits of the serial number on these cameras indicates the year of production. There are several variations in this camera itemized below. Zorki-S cameras were manufactured from 1955 to 1958. The camera has a removable bottom for film loading and requires a longer than normal film leader. The eveready case for this camera has two snaps and is made of brown leather with Zorki embossed over a large C all inside a large circle on the lens cover. VARIATIONS: 1. Engraved Zorki C. 2. Stamped Zorki C. 3. Gray, white or green cameras, with a nylon herringbone patterned fabric. 4. Made in the USSR (in Cyrillic) on the back of the rangefinder housing below the shutter speed dial. 5. Chromed rangefinder housing. (rare) 6. Engraved "FESTIVAL" in Cyrillic on the back of the rangefinder housing below the shutter speed dial. This is for the 1957 Moscow Youth Festival and is very rare.
Technical Specifications
Film Size: 35mm
Image Size: 24X36mm
Dimensions:
height: 6.7cm
width: 13.3cm
depth: 6.6cm
weight: 519gm
Normal lens: Industar-22
Lens Mount: m39 LTM
Typical serial no: 56017560
HERE IS OUR SELECTION:
 Zorki C Lens: Industar 50mm F3.5 |
 Zorki C Lens: Industar 50mm F3.5 |
 Zorki C Lens; Industar 50mm F3.5 |
 Zorki C Lens: Industar 50mm F3.5 |
 Zorki 2 C Lens: Industar 52mm F2.8 |
 Zorki 2 C Lens: Industar 50mm F3.5 |