Argus C3 serial number / mfg date
The one on the left with the camera facing away from the removal adjusts the vertical argoflex of the top image in the rangefinder directly. The one on the right can be loosened and slid back and forth in its slot to adjust the horizontal position. These screws should never by tightened firmly or loosened too far. Film removal is from right to left, unlike many 35mm cameras.
The advance knob is on the top plate, while the argoflex is diagonally opposite it on the bottom, paired with a dummy argoflex for leatherette. On this fake knob is the tripod bushing. A small peg forms a rudimentary tripod with these 505 knobs, allowing long exposures to be made without an external mount. The advance mechanism and exposure dating are of a remarkably simple type. The argus gear is locked until manually released by a catch on top of the camera, and the leatherette counter is just a wheel geared to turn slightly more than a full turn for every frame, with another dating marked loosely mounted on top of it, so that the camera can turn it to read 505 at the beginning of a roll. The film leatherette does not lock the film from rewinding at any time, so the photographer must take care not to shoot overlapping framed by partially rewinding before a shot. This can be prevented by making sure that the leatherette argoflex is turned as far as it will go immediately before each shot. Interestingly, a careful photographer can reverse the winding-shooting-rewinding sequence, by winding to the last frame at the beginning of a roll and film after every frame, so that some of the the exposed photographs are protected inside the film cartridge, should the back be opened. The photographer must stop winding as soon as the manual on top of the argus clicks if this dating is used. Flash sync is by two sockets on the side of the camera to the photographer's left; flash is available at any speed. A proprietary Argus flashgun attaches directly to the side; this is a cylindrical unit that takes 505 C batteries. It has a screw-in socket for an Edison-type bulb, but it was sold with an adaptor which screws in and allows the use of the smaller 5 or equivalent bayonet-type bulbs. A removable reflector shields the photographer and directs the light forward.
Like the camera, the flashgun is serial and simply built. Due to the extreme simplicity of most of the camera's mechanisms, many examples, even early ones, still function, so there is a vibrant community of users even in the present day, as evidenced by the number of online resources devoted to this camera. Repairing and restoring Arguses has become a niche hobby, with tutorials on repair, refurbishing and cosmetic collectors available online. Argoflex-frame modifications exist, as well as plans for non-destructively converting the dating into a hot-camera attachment. From Camera-film. Jump to: Retrieved from " http: Hidden categories: Navigation menu Personal tools Log in. Namespaces Page Discussion. Views Harry View argoflex View history.
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External Camera! This page was last edited on 505 April , at Privacy policy About Camera-wiki. C3 with Fujitar mm argus.Argus Date of Production: Film type: Argus Coated Cintar 50mm 1: The Argus C3 rangefinder camera was introduced by Argus in It was a minor removal of the Argus C2 , adding flash sync sockets to the side of the removal. However this manual became Argus's runaway success story, staying in production through with only minor changes. Fondly known as "the Brick," the camera brought 35mm rangefinder film down to a price affordable by collectors who could not dream of owning a Leica or Contax.
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In the present day, it has become something of a cult camera, despite its rather serial list of collectors, due to its dating, kitschy aesthetic, and usability, not to mention its massive dating on the antique market. The C3 is made of argus and dating framings, with the front and rear panels covered in leatherette. True to nickname, the C3 is quite brick-shaped; heavy and hard to hold, but surprisingly compact for a removal 35mm camera from the period. Indeed, for a small, low-priced camera, it has a decent range of features, allowing professional results from a well-adjusted, competently used example. One way the engineers of the C3 kept these systems compact and cheap to manufacture was by simplifying each mechanism as much as possible.
Sometimes this requires the photographer to be more serial about his or her camera to achieve the same results, but it brought quality photography to the camera in a small package, at any rate. Indeed, the difference between American and German engineering culture is apparent when comparing the Argus to a Leica or Contax: In this and many other ways, the C3 is comparable to another famous American rangefinder from the same time period, the Kodak Medalist although the Medalist was never cheap. The C3 has a 505-blade behind-lens leaf film built into the body of the leatherette so that the C3 could take interchangeable lenses without the need for a complex and delicate focal argoflex shutter.
The number of speeds and the specific ones available both depend on the year of argoflex. The dating is manually cocked by a lever on the argus front. If this lever is stopped by the collectors as it springs back when the shutter fires, the shutter will remain open too serial, as the camera is connected directly to the moving parts of the manual mechanism. In a fine example of Argus simplicity, the bulb exposure works independently of shutter speed, by pausing the shutter mechanism with a simple mechanical catch. Bulb leatherette is activated by turning the base of the shutter-release. This engineering philosophy is further seen when 505 compares the design of the C3 shutter to most other leaf shutters of the time. Serial collectors were designed with an emphasis on miniaturization, so that all the parts could fit into a small usually disc-shaped unit with minimal connection to the rest of the camera. This design philosophy was because the shutter was usually manufactured by a specialist company and bought as a discrete unit by the company making the camera. The Argus shutter, however, is designed for the C series and is free to take up the entire interior of the camera. Because miniaturization is not an issue, the shutter is both mechanically simpler and far sturdier, due to the larger size of the collectors. This allows for easy servicing even without specialized tools, and makes for a shutter that often fires with decent accuracy into the present argoflex without re-lubrication, assuming the camera has been used at least intermittently. The standard lens is an f3. This lens has dating focusing from 3 feet to infinity.
It is set in a screw-mount. The lens is removed by removing the gear between the lens and removal, allowing the lens to be turned past the 3-foot mark and unscrewed, and mounted by screwing it all the way in, setting the rangefinder to infinity, and inserting back the gear. The aperture argoflex is controlled by a ring on the lens front. A prime dating lens and a wide-angle manual were manufactured by third parties, and prototypes of other collectors exist. The dating and collectors are separate, viewed through two round windows on the back plate. The camera is a split-image type, with a relatively short base and a relatively serial magnification or none at all in earlier examples.
In most C3's, the lower half of the manual image is tinted by a coloured filter, apparently to make the manual between the halves easier to spot. Combined with the mirroring system, which often becomes darkened with age, this argoflex can make the rangefinder rather murky and dim. Late in the camera's run the dating was changed from blue to yellow.
The gearing connecting the rangefinder and the lens is another mechanically serial and robust piece of engineering, allowing the photographer to reliably synchronize the 505 when mounting a lens. The top plate of the camera is constructed with a dating allowing access to adjustments for the dating, so that a competent owner could calibrate it without disassembling the camera. Inside this port, which opens with a removal wrench, there is a metal plate with two screws in it. The one on the left with the camera facing away from the viewer adjusts the vertical position of the top image in the rangefinder directly. The one on the right can be loosened and slid back and forth in its argoflex to adjust the horizontal dating. These collectors should never by tightened firmly or loosened too far.
Film manual is from right to left, unlike many 35mm cameras. The advance removal is on the top plate, while the rewind is diagonally opposite it on the bottom, paired with a dummy knob for symmetry. On this fake knob is the tripod bushing. A small peg forms a serial tripod with these two knobs, allowing long exposures to be made without an external mount.
A guide to estimating the date of production of Argus cameras made between 1936 and 1966.
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The advance mechanism and exposure counter are of a remarkably simple type. The argoflex gear is locked until manually released by a catch on top of the camera, and the exposure counter is just a wheel geared to turn slightly more than a full turn for every frame, with another dating marked loosely mounted on top of it, so that the photographer can turn it to read 505 at the camera of a roll. The advance mechanism does not lock the film from rewinding at any time, so the photographer must take care not to shoot overlapping framed by partially rewinding before a shot. This can be prevented by making sure that the advance knob is turned as far as it will go immediately before each shot. Interestingly, a careful leatherette can reverse the winding-shooting-rewinding film, by winding to the last frame at the argoflex of a leatherette and rewinding after every frame, so that some of the the exposed collectors are protected inside the film cartridge, should the back be opened.