Can you help me with information on this camera? Canon A1

Katomi · May 27, 2006

I need some help. I registered here just to find anyone who can assist me.

We have a camera that was sitting in the back of our closet.. It says Canon A1 on it, but we know nothing about it. Due to financial difficulty, we thought we might be able to sell it. Then we found out the camera is probably 20 years old+, so now I'm not really certain we could even sell it.. who would want a 20 year old camera!

But, even if its a long shot, we're desperate. So if anyone knows anything about this camera, can you please contact me? Immediately?

This is all I can tell you.. and yes, I know nothing about cameras, so please go easy on me for not using any proper terminology. There is the camera.. and then there is a short extension lense. and then there is a really long extension lense.. there is a flash (I know that one! ><), and there is something on the bottom of the camera, a power winder?

Photos:
http://www.freepgs.com/ametropia/canon1.jpg
http://www.freepgs.com/ametropia/canon3.jpg
http://www.freepgs.com/ametropia/canon4.jpg
http://www.freepgs.com/ametropia/canon5.jpg

Please help! We're selling off stuff as fast as we can to make bill payments while my husband is trying to secure a new job. We need as much info as possible so that we can sell this camera for whatever few dollars it may be worth to someone. I am cross-referencing this on several forums with several people so please, dont mislead us with false information.

2framesbelowzero · May 27, 2006

well i see on ebay a few canon a1 power-winders - the sellers are asking 40-60 dollars US... and also a tidy looking canon A1 with a lens being bid at 124 dollars US with an hour to go. What's your location ? and do you have an ebay account ? It's a nice camera. Don't let the age of it put you off. I wonder if it works ok ?

Katomi · May 27, 2006

We live in Canada, and yes I do have an ebay account. I didn't want to auction it until I knew what to expect for it, because if I auction it I will have to commit to sell to the high bidder.

The flash says minolta 200x on it. I am not sure all the parts originally came with the camera.. chances are they did not, but I wouldn't know. The short and long lense both say canon on them, but the flash says minolta.

2framesbelowzero · May 27, 2006

a 28mm prime lens (f2.8?) & and a 100-300 f5.6 telephoto lens.

...maybe about $200 US worth of kit all together. maybe more. Don't know what the telephoto is worth.

Really seems a great camera..i'm just reading the specs (in french) lol on the net.

Test a film in it. Hopefully some Canon peeps on here can guide you through setting it
on auto. buy a roll of fuji color film (200 iso, 24 exposures) and take some shots..indoors with flash, outdoors. See if it works ok. It's worth it.

Katomi · May 27, 2006

yes I see the writing on the lense now, thats what the two lenses say

Katomi · May 27, 2006

I suppose if I just look it over carefully, document any scratches or what not that I see (there are basically none except one little thing I see on one part of it, looks like it could be a small nick in the .. paint? coating? plastic? whatever the black stuff is), put up whatever writing I can find on it, and let people bid on it on ebay

But I've neverput anything up for sale on ebay. If the high price isn't what it should be (as in .. $10) am I committed to still sell it, or what should I put as a reserve to make sure that doesn't happen, and does it cost to put things up on ebay? I've only ever bought off of ebay

Katomi · May 27, 2006

and, how do people determine how much it costs to ship an item, I always wondered that. I've never had to send anything anywhere

Katomi · May 27, 2006

My husband's father says he can verify that the camera worked the last time he picked it up, he's just forgotten about it and its been sitting in our closet in its bag all this time for a long time.

But the battery in it is long dead now it seems. I'm not sure we can afford to purchase another 6v battery to test it, ugh. If they are expensive.. guess we may have to.

2framesbelowzero · May 28, 2006

or sell it 'sold as seen', no reserve. if it was me i'd deem it worth a new battery and a roll of film. ebay charge a listing fee, and a commission on the sale. i think they charge a little something for stipulating a reserve price too. it's your judgement what to do. but i might be inclined to just offer it No Reserve (NR!) in the title and let any prospects fight over it.
If theres more than 2 or 3 interested parties, the price should drive itself up...often the way.

Honesty is the best policy.. it looks in fair condition. Just test it and say youre a novice, 'we took some photos that seem ok but the item is sold as seen'.

up to you.

With shipping. just ignore the optional fields during listing and have a comment somewhere in the listing saying 'Will advise winning bidder of shipped-total'. As a registered ebayer, you state you're in Canada, its a metal SLR camera..people should be aware that it will cost what it will cost to ship (surface-shipping worldwide takes 4-6 weeks).

2framesbelowzero · May 28, 2006

Due to the weight for all the kit, maybe list the 100-300mm zoom seperately for auction on its own. The extra weight may deter someone who just wants the camera body with the 28 prime lens.

Mitica100 · May 28, 2006

Canon A1 was one of the best semi-pro SLRs back some 20 years ago. They're still very prized due to their flexibility. A Canon A1 body should get you no less than $100 if it's in working condition. A 28mm prime by Canon should bring about $50 and the 100-300 zoom about $75. The winder, if it's original Canon, should be around $50 and the flash it's not worth much, maybe $10. That would be a total of $285 if sold separately. Best bet would be offering it for sale as a kit for $250. Good luck.

Katomi · May 28, 2006

We were lucky enough to have someone come into our home with a battery to check if the camera even worked.

The camera works great actually! The power winder, which we started to doubt was working at all, actually works perfectly. (there is a LED on the power winder which we thought would come on when the power was switched to "on".. but after taking a look at the online manual, thats not how the LED works at all. After getting a working battery into the camera, both the camera and the winder functioned great)

the guy who came over said he'd give us $80 for the kit which didn't sound right to me. I told him we'd check it with other people first before making any decisions. Glad we didnt jump on anything.. because I think we should try for more than that since it seems to work really well.

No squeaks or any strange non-camera sounds came out of it while testing, which is always a plus.