Sister Six, Crystar Six and Super Naiku

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Japanese Six (6×6)
Postwar models (edit)
folding
Aires Viceroy | Angel Six | Aram Six | Astoria Super Six | Atom Six | Balm Six | Baron | Beauty Six (1950) | Beauty Six (1953) | Calm Six | Carl Six | Centre Six | Crown | Crystar Six | Daido Six | Dorima Six | Doris Six | Ehira Six | Elbow Six | First Six | Flora Six | Fodor Six | Frank Six | Fujica Six | Super Fujica Six | Futami Six | Gotex | Grace Six | Kohken Chrome Six | Kyowa Six | Liner Six | Lyra Six | Mamiya Six | Middl Six | Mihama Six | Mine Six | Minon Six | Mizuho Six | Motoka Six | Mount Six | Muse Six | Super Naiku | Ofuna Six | Olympus Six | Olympus Chrome Six | Orion Six | Oscar Six | Pigeon Six | Planet | Please Six | Pluto Six | Poppy Six | Press Van | Press Van-120 | Proud Chrome Six | Proud Super Six | Renown Six | Ricoh Six | Ruvikon | Ruvinal | Sanon Six | Silver Six | Sisley 1 | Sisley 2 & 3 | Sister Six | Tenar Six | Toho Six | Tomic | Toyoca Six | Ugein Six | Wagen Six | Walcon 6 | Welmy Six | Wester | Windsor Six
rigid or collapsible
Dia Six | Ehira Chrome Six | Enon Six | Flora | Flashline | Fujipet | Harmony | Mikono-6 | Orion | Ponix | Rich-Ray-6 | Shumy | Weha Chrome Six
Japanese 6×6 TLR, pseudo TLR and medium format SLR ->
Japanese Semi (4.5×6) and older 6×9 ->
This is a work in progress.

The Crystar Six is a series of Japanese 6×6 folding cameras made from 1954 to 1957 by Crystar Kōki, later Crystal. The Sister Six and Super Naiku are rebadged versions.

Common features

All the models share the same horizontally folding body with smoothly tapered ends. The three-part folding struts are inspired from the 6×6 Ikonta, and they are engraved COC, certainly for Crystar Optical Company. The film is advanced by a knob at the left end of the top plate, as seen by the photographer, and there is a decorative flange on the other end. The shutter release is at its usual location on the right. The back is hinged to the right, and contains two red windows, one above the other, protected by horizontally sliding individual covers. The upper red window is for 4.5×6cm exposures and the middle one is for 6×6cm; the cover housings are accordingly engraved 4.5X6 and 6X6. The tripod thread is in the middle of the bottom plate and there are film flanges at both ends. All the models have a striated covering, certainly made of some synthetic material.

The viewfinder models

Description

The Sister Six and the Crystar Six or Crystar 15 are viewfinder-only models. The viewfinder is contained in the middle of the top housing, and the accessory shoe is placed immediately above. The folding bed release is placed on the left, next to the advance knob. The name Crystar or Sister is engraved on the top housing, in front of the accessory shoe.

The shutter gives B, 1–200 speeds, is synchronized and has a self-timer. The lens is a front-cell focusing C-Master C Anastigmat 75mm f/3.5.

The Sister Six

It seems that the camera was first released as the Sister Six (シスターシックス). It was featured in Japanese magazines dated January to March 1954 and was advertised in February and March.[1] The February advertisement in Asahi Camera lists the camera together with the Crystar 25, for ¥9,800 (case included).[2] The shutter is called Crystar. The maker is mentioned as Crystar Kōki and the distributor as Sumimitsu.

The surviving examples observed so far have an SOC logo stamped on the covering of the front door, and no marking on the back; one of them has the name SISTER engraved at the bottom of the speed rim and some marking, perhaps OKK, at the top of the shutter plate; another has the name CRYSTAR on the speed rim and no other marking.[3] All have an ASA synch post.

The Crystar Six or Crystar 15

The camera was soon renamed Crystar Six (クリスターシックス) or Crystar 15 (クリスター15). It was featured under one of these names in Japanese magazines dated May 1954 and was advertised from April to August.[4] The SOC logo was replaced by a Crystar embossing in the covering of the folding bed, and a similar embossing was added at the bottom right of the back. The engraving on the top housing was changed from Sister to Crystar. The only other apparent change is the addition of a black depth-of-field plate around the lens, inscribed CRYSTAR OPTL. CO. at the bottom.

The May 1954 advertisement in Asahi Camera, again by the distributor Sumimitsu, lists the camera as the Crystar 15 for the unchanged price of ¥9,800.[5] The August advertisement in Camera Mainichi lists the camera as the Crystar Six, for the same price; the distributor has become Lista Shōkai.[6] Both advertisements show an ASA bayonet post.

Suriving example are known with an ASA synch post or a PC socket.[7]

Bibliography

Links

In Japanese:

  • Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.352.
  • Advertisement reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.140.
  • SISTER: example observed in an online auction. CRYSTAR: example pictured in this page by SCR.
  • Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.351.
  • Advertisement reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.135.
  • Advertisement reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.140.
  • ASA: example observed in an online auction. PC: example pictured in Sugiyama, item 1291, example pictured in this page of the Yamada Camera Museum, and examples observed in online auctions.