Ihagee Exakta VX 1000

The modern Exakta 35mm SLR had a good run against the other DDR and the Soviet camera makers, with the up-and-coming Japanese running circles around the old guard.  The models first designed in the early 1950s were long in the tooth and lackluster to the ever-growing amateur market. All that, and the shaky independent status of Ihagee, pushed the wise man at the helm to try one more variant of the old design, namely the Exakta VX 1000.

The 1967 VX 1000 carried slight changes over the Varex VX IIa of 1957, ignoring the short-lived VX IIb. No breakthrough here, technical or style.

The single major upgrade was an auto return mirror, the first in the Exakta line.

Other than that, there was a redesigned (again) slow speed / self-timer dial, with film speed memo now within the dial, movable via a tiny pin. A fresh-style main speed dial and a shorter winding lever travel, 235^o opposed to 300^oon previous models. An added film-type reminder dial at the bottom, solving the confusing memo type on previous Exakta models. The rewind knob has a folding lever at the bottom; no more on a cardan shaft.

Gone is the cog that moved the counter dial, which now can be turned directly; the elaborate back opening knob and the removable back hinge pin are gone too.

The dropped high forehead style could perhaps contribute to the cost savings, or they wished for a modern look with the new style logo placement.

An altogether new (for Ihagge) feature, an aftermarket CdS TTL prism viewer, was made by Schachat, the Travemat, and another by Harwix. Exakta dealers offered it in Export markets, neither at home nor in other East Block markets. See below for more information links.

I am at a loss here, as these viewers could be mounted in any legacy Exakta models, so it is not model specific as it is often referred to. All settings and readouts were built into the viewer.

The Elbaflex 1000 was a sister model, export version only, and was identical but for the nameplate. Of both models, there were only about 100,000 made, a short run compared to earlier models. Assume that it was as the technology was just shy of being obsolete when introduced. An even cheaper model, the Exakta VX 500, followed two years later. Here Ihagee sacrificed the high-end chrome finishes in favor of painted surfaces, reduced shutter speed options to  B, 30, 60, 125, and 500, and removed the dreaded slow speed dial altogether.

It seems that Ihagee stepped o their own tail, as the cheaper Exa line did exist parallel to the Exakta. A new budget model was not in place, even with the Exakta glory in tow.

These two modes were the independent Ihagee swan song, where Pentacon kept offering SLR cameras under the Exakta brand but with a distinct Prakktica bloodline and style.