Difference between revisions of "Camel, Comex 35, Kikuca 35 and Rolex 35 III"

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== Common features ==
 
== Common features ==
All the models share the same octogonal body. The back is removed together with the bottom plate for film loading. The viewfinder is contained in a short top housing, which also supports an accessory shoe on the right. The advance and rewind knob, exposure counter, shutter release and rewind unlock lever are shaped as on the early Leica or Canon rangefinder cameras. There is a thin metal casing around the lens, with a characteristic shape. The body release linkage probably runs through this casing, and an axis protrudes at the bottom to connect it with the shutter itself.
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All the models share the same octogonal body. The back is removed together with the bottom plate for film loading. The viewfinder is contained in a short top housing, which also supports an accessory shoe on the right. The advance and rewind knob, exposure counter, shutter release and rewind unlock lever are shaped as on the early Leica or Canon rangefinder cameras. The film advance is not coupled to the shutter cocking. There is a thin metal casing around the lens, with a characteristic shape. The body release linkage probably runs through this casing, and an axis protrudes at the bottom to connect it with the shutter itself.
  
 
== The Camel ==
 
== The Camel ==

Revision as of 14:45, 19 May 2007

The Camel, Comex, Kikuca 35 and Rolex 35 are Japanese 35mm viewfinder cameras with a leaf shutter, made in the first half of the 1950s.

Common features

All the models share the same octogonal body. The back is removed together with the bottom plate for film loading. The viewfinder is contained in a short top housing, which also supports an accessory shoe on the right. The advance and rewind knob, exposure counter, shutter release and rewind unlock lever are shaped as on the early Leica or Canon rangefinder cameras. The film advance is not coupled to the shutter cocking. There is a thin metal casing around the lens, with a characteristic shape. The body release linkage probably runs through this casing, and an axis protrudes at the bottom to connect it with the shutter itself.

The Camel

The Camel has a focusing helical with a focusing tab at the base of the lens barrel. The distance is visible in a window placed above the barrel.

It was ostensibly made by a company called Tōhōkōken: the top housing is engraved Camel mode II and Tōhōkōken camera in smaller letters. There is a typo, and it is not known if the intended engraving was "model I" or "model II". The front metal casing is engraved 24X36 at the top.

The lens is a Camel Anastigmat 50mm f/3.5, with a "C" for coating. The shutter is engraved NIPPOL at the base of the speed rim. It has B, 1–200 speeds, a self-timer and an ASA bayonet synch post.

The only actual example observed so far is pictured in Sugiyama.[1]

The Comex

The Comex is a name variant of the Camel. It was announced in the April 1953 issue of Ars Camera as the Sanon 35 (サノン35) by the distributor Takasago Shōkai.[2] It seems that the June 1953 issue of the same magazine says that the name was changed to Comex 35 (コメックス35), and the camera was advertised as such until October of the same year.[3] In an advertisement dated June 1953,[4] the camera was offered for ¥12,000 with a Comex 45/3.5 lens and a synchronized Purax shutter (B, 1–200, self-timer): the name PURAX is engraved at the base of the speed rim.

The only actual example observed so far is pictured in Sugiyama, where it is attributed to "Akimoto Co., Ltd." for an unknown reason.[5] Its body shows no apparent difference. The top housing is engraved Comex and mode II or model II.[6] The 24X36 engraving is absent. The lens is a Comex Anastigmat 45mm f/3.5. The shutter is engraved WACO at the base of the speed rim, it has the same features as the Nippol mounted on the Camel.

The Kikuca 35

The Kikuca 35 is a rangefinder version of the Camel, attributed to Tōhōkōken by some sources.[7] The top housing contains a coupled rangefinder, with two additional round windows and a separate eyepiece on the left. The name Kikuca 35 and the serial number are engraved above.

The lens barrel is wider and the focusing helical has a more usual arrangement: the distance ring is fully visible and there are depth-of-field indications. The focusing tab has a different shape. The lens is a Kikuca Anastigmat 45mm f/3.5 and the shutter is engraved K.O.C. at the base of the speed rim. It has B, 1– 200 speeds, a self-timer and a PC synch post. The aperture is set by a lever at the top of the lens barrel.

Two actual examples have been observed so far.[8]

The Rolex 35 III

The Rolex 35 III is similar to the Camel, but it was ostensibly made by a company called Toyo Seiko. The helical at the base of the lens barrel is replaced by a rigid tube, and the lens is a front-cell focusing Luna Anastigmat 50mm f/2.8. The name ROLEX–35 MODEL III is engraved on the top housing, together with the company name TOYO SEIKO Co.

Three actual examples have been observed, each with a different shutter type. The first has a KOC shutter (B, 10–200), with an ASA synch post and no self-timer visible.[9] Unlike the two other cameras, it has no visible coupling arm for the body release, perhaps because the linkage runs inside the tube. The second example has an Orient II shutter made by Hachiyo.[10] The third has an unmarked shutter giving B, 1–300 speeds, with a self-timer and an ASA synch post.[11] Unlike the other two, it has the aperture scale at the bottom.

A completely different Rolex 35 is known, name variant of the Cosmo 35.

Notes

  1. Sugiyama, item 3137.
  2. Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 352.
  3. Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 352.
  4. Advertisement published in Photo Art, reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p. 138.
  5. Sugiyama, item 3224.
  6. The picture in Sugiyama, item 3224, is not legible enough.
  7. Sugiyama, item 3290, McKeown, p. 922.
  8. Example pictured in Sugiyama, item 3290 (lens no.6141), example observed in an online auction (body no. 5071, lens no. 6024).
  9. Example pictured in Sugiyama, item 3736 (lens no. 2159).
  10. Example pictured in this page at Japan Family Camera.
  11. Example pictured in Sugiyama, item 3737 (lens no. 2269).

Bibliography

Links