Letix

Template:127 Japan The Letix is a 4×4cm format camera, using 127 film, released by Asahi Kōgaku Kōgyō (Asahi Optical Industries) around 1940. This company was a sub-company of Riken (today Ricoh). The attribution to Asahi Kōgaku Kōgyō is confirmed by a 1940 advertisement.

It is said on this page that the Letix was made by (Asahi Kōgaku Kōgyō, 旭光学工業, a sub-company of Riken) whereas the Roico introduced the same year was made by Riken Optical Industries (Riken Kōgaku Kōgyō, 理研光学工業). McKeown lists the Letix under the Asahi Optical Works / Asahi Bussan entry.

The Letix has a bakelite body with a hinged back, like the Olympic, but the lens and shutter assembly was mounted on a metal telescopic tube. The Letix had a tubular optical finder and an accessory shoe. At the time, the rollfilm paperback was not marked for 4x4 pictures, so the film advance was not by red window but there was an exposure counter.

The lens was a Ukas Anastigmat 50/4.5 front cell focusing triplet. Ricoh's corporate site says the lens name later became Helios Anastigmat. The T-B-25-50-100-150 shutter was probably the same as on the Olympic. The shutter plate was marked Letix, with an AKK logo, probably for Asahi Kōgaku Kōgyō. The body was also embossed Letix, but McKeown shows a picture with the body embossed Retix. This funny mistake can be explained because the Japanese language does not distinguish between the "l" and "r" letters.

A camera looking very much like the Letix has been observed at an eBay auction with the name Kraft followed by No2586, with a Seikosha Licht shutter. See also this page at Asacame with a Kraft. Maker said to be Ehito Kogaku (エヒト光学).

Links

In Japanese:

• Letix in the camera list at the Ricoh official website

Other:

• Riken 127 cameras and A-Z 127 cameras, including the Letix on this page, at Asacame
• A page from the All Japan Classic Camera Club, presenting the Roico and the Letix side by side