flash meters?

[rugbyducky]

i've posted this on graflex.org, but i figured more people might see it here. i'm looking to get a not-too-expensive flash-only meter (i've got an ambient) and there are a couple that look nice and are priced about the same, but i can't find much about them online. one is a spiratone sss and the other is a bowens ssr. anyone have any comments or experience with either or the companies in general? i'm leaning towards the bowens because it looks a little slimmer. any info would be great.

thanks guys.

[Mark Sawyer]

The Sekonic L-308S Flashmate is a great little incident flash meter with a digital readout for $150-$200 new.

[Capocheny]

Hi Rugbyducky,

Consider looking for a good, used Minolta Flashmeter III. They can be had for a pretty reasonable price these days on Fleabay.

The only drawback is that (IIRC) Minolta is no longer selling/servicing any flash meters but there are other folks out there who are perfectly capable of repairing them.

Cheers

[David Beal]

My advice would be to get one which uses either AA or AAA batteries.

I have a used Sekonic (analog) which has served me well, but it uses a hard to find 6v battery that looks like an AA on steroids (with + and - reversed!). That means someday I'll have a working meter but no batteries to make it work!

Good shooting.

[Brian Schall]

I have a Polaris. Uses AA batteries. Takes single or multiple flashes. Also ambient and reflective.

[Aahx]

Just FYI if you get an older Minolta meter. Sony purchased the camera division of Konica/Minolta and is offering service to some of there prior cameras, meters, etc.. more info can be found here:

http://esupport.sony.com/perl/news-item.pl?news_id=120&region_id=1

[Kuzano]

I just sold a nice Minolta Autometer IIIf, plus the spot attachment for $110 on eBay. That or lower seem to be the going rate. I calculate that about $30 of the final bid was attributable to the spot attachment for ref light readings.

That meter is digital, uses the small readily available 6v battery, has a swivel head and was very accurate. There seem to be a reasonable number of them on eBay.

The downside of that meter is that it has no off switch, but a timeout function.

I also sold a Gossen Luna Pro F with a 7/15 degree attachment for $90 (ebay) in excellent condition as was the Minolta. These come up relatively often. Flash function and uses commonly available 9 volt battery. Analog and a bit larger than the Minolta.

Shop for auctions that close on Sunday. Photo equipment closes lower on Sunday as a rule....less people shopping that day? I don't know, but I buy on Sunday and resell on midweek.

Just look for a fair amount of feedback, spread over time and recent and don't by from ANYONE below a 99% positive feedback. Those are the rules that keep the risk really low.

I am hard and fast on that 99% rule and recent substantive feedback. There are rarely any items sold on eBay that won't turn up again soon from a seller with a good reputation.