Tougodo folding cameras
See also the postwar Toyoca Six 6×6 folder and the Toyoca B35 35mm folder.
Tougodo made a few folding cameras in the 1930s. Some of them use no-need-darkroom film sheets, others take specific 4×6cm glass plates, and the larger models take 6.5×9cm glass plates or pack film.
Contents
The Yuuhi-Go
The Yuuhi-Go is shaped as a rollfilm camera with rounded edges but takes 4×6cm no-need-darkroom film sheets.[1] The front standard consists of a simple sheet of pressed metal, and has a brilliant finder. The shutter has O, I and B indications and the aperture has three settings 1, 2, 3. The name TOUGO YUUHI-GO is inscribed below the lens.
The Tougo and Nice
The folding Tougo pictured in Sugiyama takes 4×6cm glass plates, and perhaps also accepts no-need-darkroom film sheets.[2] It has a U-shaped front standard and a brilliant finder. The dial-set shutter has O, I, B settings, and the lens has f/8 to f/32 apertures. The name TOUGO is inscribed on the speed-setting dial, and the Tougodo logo appears on the shutter plate.
The Nice has a similar shape and takes the same film plates.[3] It mainly differs by the flimsier front standard made of pressed metal, as on the Yuuhi-Go. The lens has no diaphragm and the O, I, B shutter settings are selected by a small index at the top. The Tougodo logo is inscribed in red above the lens, and the words Nice and TOUGO CAMERA WORKS are written below.[4]
The folding Meiritto
The folding Meiritto pictured in Sugiyama has an all-metal body and a simple front standard made of pressed metal (as on the Nice or Yuuhi-Go).[5] The camera is said to take regular daimeishi (6.5×9cm) glass plates or pack film.[6] The simple lens has f/8 to f/32 apertures, and the shutter has O, I, B settings.[7] The shutter plate is inscribed Meiritto at the top and PATENT SHUTTER at the bottom; the name "Meiritto" perhaps corresponds to the shutter instead of the camera.
The Meiko
The Meiko exists in various versions: the Meiko A takes 4×6cm glass plates or no-need-darkroom film sheets, the Meiko C and Meiko F take regular daimeishi (6.5×9cm) glass plates or pack film.[8] All the models have an all-metal body, similar to that of the folding Meiritto, a U-shaped front standard and a brilliant finder.
The Meiko A has O, I, B shutter settings and 1, 2, 3 aperture settings. The shutter plate has the words PATENT SHUTTER at the top, Meiko A at the bottom and the Tougodo logo on the right.
The Meiko C has the same shutter settings and f/8 to f/32 apertures. The lens is reported as a Flint Crown f/8, perhaps because it is engraved as such.[9] The shutter is reported as a "Meiro" for an unknown reason.[10] The shutter plate has PATENT SHUTTER and the Tougodo logo at the top, and Meiko C at the bottom. The folding struts are similar to those of the Meiko A on some examples, and form two arcs on others.[11] The example pictured in Sugiyama has an additional folding frame finder attached to the side of the camera, which is perhaps not original.[12]
The Meiko F has the larger folding struts forming two arcs, and has an additional wireframe finder, which is sometimes broken on the examples found today. The name Meiko is embossed in the top handle. McKeown reports the same Flint Crown f/8 lens and "Meiro" shutter as for the Meiko C.[13] One example has been observed with a Tougo Anastigmat 100mm f/6.3; it was coming with its original box in light grey with red markings: MEIKO CAMERA and an F inside a circle.[14]
Notes
- ↑ Sugiyama, item 4077.
- ↑ 4×6cm glass plates: Sugiyama, item 4078.
- ↑ Sugiyama, item 4079.
- ↑ Tougodo logo in red: example observed in an online auction.
- ↑ Sugiyama, item 4080.
- ↑ 6.5×9cm glass plates or pack film: Sugiyama, item 4080.
- ↑ Sugiyama, item 4080.
- ↑ Sugiyama, items 4081–2; McKeown, p.930.
- ↑ Flint Crown f/8: Sugiyama, item 4082, McKeown, p.930.
- ↑ Meiro: Sugiyama, item 4082, McKeown, p.930.
- ↑ Struts shaped as on the Meiko A: example observed in an online auction. Struts forming two arcs: example pictured in Sugiyama, item 4082. The folding Tougodo pictured in Lewis, p.43, is presumably a Meiko C with the larger folding struts.
- ↑ Sugiyama, item 4082.
- ↑ McKeown, p.930.
- ↑ Example observed in an online auction.
Bibliography
- Lewis, Gordon, ed. The History of the Japanese Camera. Rochester, N.Y.: George Eastman House, International Museum of Photography & Film, 1991. ISBN 0-935398-17-1 (paper), 0-935398-16-3 (hard). P.43 (small picture only).
- McKeown, James M. and Joan C. McKeown's Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras, 12th Edition, 2005-2006. USA, Centennial Photo Service, 2004. ISBN 0-931838-40-1 (hardcover). ISBN 0-931838-41-X (softcover). P.930.
- Sugiyama, Kōichi (杉山浩一); Naoi, Hiroaki (直井浩明); Bullock, John R. The Collector's Guide to Japanese Cameras. 国産カメラ図鑑 (Kokusan kamera zukan). Tokyo: Asahi Sonorama, 1985. ISBN 4-257-03187-5. Items 4077–82.
