Agfa Karat 36 CLA and minor fixes: Now With Test Photos 4/12/12

[br1078lum]

This has been one interesting camera to work on.  Lots of innovative thinking went into it, and that makes it quite different from others of it's ilk (front panel collapsing/fixed lens rangefinder).  About the same size as a Kodak Retina IIIc/IIIC, it came in a variety of lens/shutter combinations.  Mine has the 2.8 Agfa Solinar, a Tessar design, mounted in a Synchro-Compur M-X.  

It was pretty stiff, and quite dirty, and the shutter release didn't work (but the shutter did).  The former owner has a booth in one of the local antique stores, and told me he bought about a hundred cameras at an auction, and was putting them up for sale a few at a time in the store.  Most of them looked like they had been stored in a basement somewhere, and this one was no exception.  It looks like it was worked on in 1987, from some scratchings I found. And somewhere along the line, someone tried to seal the bellows from the outside with a cotton swab, leaving behind a lot of fibers, and giving the bellows a 'shaggy dog' look.  I was able to seal up the light leaks for now, but might try my hand at making a bellows for it.  The only problem would be is trying to glue the darn thing in.  Innovative doesn't always connote "easy to work on".  And from what I've read about these, they weren't the joy of camera repair techs when they came through the door.  I wouldn't have bought it if it hadn't gone on sale.

I will admit, this was not my best effort.  I kept thinking "I'm gonna wreck this thing yet", but through a little perserverance, and a judicious amount of verbal cajoling, I got it to working again.

Here are some sample photos.


P1070462_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070493_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070503_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070508_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070510_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070549_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070560_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070557_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr


P1070556_2 by br1078phot, on Flickr

If you would like to see all 90 photos, go to my Flickr page at http://flic.kr/s/aHsjyUvJs5

You will also read about all the missteps I took along the way, trying to wing it without any guide for the teardown.  Sometimes you just have to dive in, and hope it's not too shallow.

PF

[Philip]

I wish I were as handy as you are, Phil.  That's amazing work.

[Olypen]

Phil,  You've been dealing with some heavy metal recently -- the Mercury and now the Karat.  I hope that the Karat will turn out as well as the Mercury did.  I had one 20 or more years ago; it produced excellent results, but I didn't find it much fun to use and sold it.  If you go ahead with your plan of making bellows for it, I'll be interested to hear how you did it. 
Bill

[rentavet]

another great job PF!

[BillyBob]

Fantastic Phil!  Very inspiring.

[br1078lum]

Well now, this is a revolting predicament.  I loaded the camera with some Kodak Ultramax 400, as I wanted to make sure that if there were any leaks in the bellows after my treating them, it would definitely show up with the higher speed film.  And I've gotten some good results with the Ultramax in other cameras.  But apparently, when I reassembled the lens, I got the rear element group in backwards.  Oh well, it's a simple matter of taking it out, and flipping it back the right way.

These were taken at Camp Roanoke, part of the Parks and Rec Department of Roanoke, VA.  It's mostly a kids place, but they have programs every once in a while for adults too.  I hadn't planned on going there, but their entrance is right next to the Spring Hollow Reservoir Overlook entrance, which has been closed since 9/11/.  I drove out hoping it would be open by now, but no such luck.  So the campground was a pleasant diversion, and I wish the photos would have come out better.  Now I'm glad I didn't take a second roll of film with me.

The camera is a tad hard to hold, as there isn't much freeboard either side of the lens/shutter mount.  And I was always afraid I was going to poke a finger in behind the frame, and hole the bellows.  It didn't like the cool temperatures (upper thirties at the time), and even slightly overlapped some frames around the middle of the roll.  But it didn't chew up the sprockets, and even though the shutter release hung up a couple of times, I was able to trip the shutter with a finger on the exposed lever.  I used a Vivitar 24 shoe mount CdS meter that works very well, as long as you point it at the right spot.  One has to remember to match the needle, then point it up to see the reading on the scale.  Almost all of the photos were well exposed, but these are the only shots from the bunch I like.  I'll have to shoot another roll after flipping the rear elements to their proper orientation.

PF


Camp Roanoke Admin Cabin by br1078phot, on Flickr


Colorful Canoes by br1078phot, on Flickr


Stream Boulder by br1078phot, on Flickr


Looking Up by br1078phot, on Flickr


Cabin Path by br1078phot, on Flickr


Campground Morning by br1078phot, on Flickr


Flipped Element f Stop Comparison by br1078phot, on Flickr
The top photo setting was f4 @ 1/250 sec, and the bottom photo was f16 @ 1/10 sec.  Quite a difference stopping down the lens makes.

[br1078lum]

Thanks, Bill, John, and Billy Bob.

Bill, I don't know if I will make a bellows, as just putting the thing on the camera would mean having to tear it down even further to be able to glue it in.  I'll be happy just getting the lens back together correctly.

PF

[radiophoto]

Phil,

There's a Bel-Jac for that: http://www.f6point3studio.com/ansco_karomat/

[br1078lum]

Yeah, I know, Pete.  But I've got it sealed up for now.

PF

[shadowfox]

Phil,
Bad news is I missed this thread when you posted it.
Good news is, I now can read the whole adventure in one sitting 

I would love to sit with you when you're working on your projects.
Were Roanoke and Plano within reasonable driving distance...

Honestly, I *like* the pictures with the rear-element flipped.

[br1078lum]

Phil,
Bad news is I missed this thread when you posted it.
Good news is, I now can read the whole adventure in one sitting 

I would love to sit with you when you're working on your projects.
Were Roanoke and Plano within reasonable driving distance...

Honestly, I *like* the pictures with the rear-element flipped.

I'd have to make more room in the apartment, Will.  Been trying to straighten out the place, and get rid of some of the accumulation of my railroad career.  Some of the flipped element shots came out cool, but the ones that I really wanted to look nice, I'll never get a shot of again.  It's still not my cup of tea.

PF

[OpenWater]

I like the "lens in backwards" photos.  They have a very dreamy look to them.

[LarryD]

Keep it reversed. Start a second business doing mods for the High class Lomo crud I mean crowd. :-) 

[br1078lum]

Too late, Larry, but I haven't flipped the lens back in my Nettar yet.

PF

[melek]

Very nice work. Those Agfas can be a real challenge, especially in loosening the focusing helicals. That camera definitely looks much better. Nice Flickr gallery to go with it.