Zorki's hinged-back rangefinder — 35mm, Leica Thread Mount, lever wind, self-timer, 1959.
The Zorki 6 is a Soviet 35mm rangefinder made by the KMZ plant at Krasnogorsk near Moscow, a later development of the Zorki line based on the Zorki 5 body. It appeared around 1959. It keeps the Leica screw mount and the combined long-base finder while adding a hinged back for easier loading and a lever film advance.
This is a 35mm coupled-rangefinder camera using the Leica Thread Mount (39mm screw). It has a horizontal-travel cloth focal-plane shutter and a combined rangefinder and viewfinder window with a long rangefinder base. Focusing is by the coupled rangefinder and exposure is set manually; there is no built-in meter. It has lever film advance and a hinged back, and a self-timer is fitted.
The Zorki 6 suits users who want a screw-mount rangefinder with lever wind, a hinged back and a self-timer, working with Leica Thread Mount and Soviet Industar and Jupiter lenses. It is fully mechanical and fires without a battery. The hinged back makes loading easier than the removable-back Zorki bodies while keeping the same lens system and finder.
On the used market the Zorki 6 is affordable and offers strong value, though the sample-to-sample quality-control variance typical of former-Soviet-Union bodies means individual inspection is advised. Check the rangefinder patch for contrast and horizontal alignment, examine the cloth focal-plane shutter curtains for pinholes and capping, and confirm the slow speeds run. Aged shutter ribbons and curtain tapes are the usual items needing attention.