(Temporary image)
This camera is a very recent (11/14) acquisition so I don't have much information on it yet. I bought it from the Parts Camera page at Pacific Rim for $25 as "dead". It came with an f/1.4 lens which I've been tempted to buy anyway which in turn comes with a skylight filter stuck on it. I've also been meaning to buy a skylight filter but last time I looked at one they were $8 and I wasn't sure the size was right. I'd consider $25 as not a bad price for the lens, but I got a filter and body thrown in.
I don't know what the Electro-X was, or I'd consider this to be a more advanced version of the TL Electro-X. It has a form of Aperture Priority auto-exposure which I hadn't expected: you can set the F-stop and if the shutter speed is set to "Auto" it will choose its own speed depending on what the light meter tells it. It has a metal focal-plane shutter with a maximum speed of 1/1000 second. The battery test light lights up the exposure counter, and there is another (green) light on top which comes on while the shutter is open (bad for astrophotography!). It takes a huge PX-32a battery, the same as many of the Electro 35 rangefinders take. There's a locking ring on the shutter release to prevent it being accidently pressed. It also has a strange little shutter that flips down inside the viewfinder when you turn a lever on the back: it prevents stray light when your eye is away from the eyepiece (like when the camera's on a tripod). There's a clunky-looking piece of knurled brass rod sticking out the front inside a chrome trim ring which looks like it has a rubber cover missing. The camera seems to be permanently in depth of field preview mode unless you push this button which opens the aperture all the way.
The camera is essentially dead as far as being immediately usable, but shows some signs of life. The most devastating problem is that the shutter opens when you advance the film and stays open until you push the shutter release button.
The light meter seems to work in Auto shutter speed mode: I can see over and underexposure LEDs in the viewfinder, and when in Auto mode the shutter sounds faster when I point the camera at a light than if I point it somewhere dark. There is an ominous clunking sound when I shake the camera a certain way, as though the prism is loose. There are also clumsy screwdriver marks on the outside. :-( This could be a good first repair project: I probably won't make it worse.
