Graflex - Series B

Graflex - Series B


Serial Number: Cam0081

Type:
Single - Lens Reflex Camera

Manufacturer:
The Folmer Graflex Corporation

Country of Origin:
New York, USA

Production Period:
1924 - 1963

Approximate Price:
USD 300.00

Reference:
camerapedia.wikia.com

Status: Display

Description:
The Graflex is a single-lens reflex
camera, first produced in 1898 in New York, NY by the
Folmer & Schwing Manufacturing Company. In the
early years, it was made in a variety of formats,
settling down in the 1920s to a number of long-lived
models which share the same basic design and mode
of operation. Most models were for sheet film, some
were made for usage with rollfilm.The Graflex - Series B vertical focal-plane shutter
consists of a single curtain with a series of four slits of
widths from 1 1/2 inches to 1/8 inch. The shutter
spring can be set to six different tensions. Different
combinations of slit width and spring tension allows
a choice of 24 speeds ranging from 1/10 to 1/1000 at
a time. When the shutter is released, the mirror
swings up and triggers the curtain to travel from top
to bottom. In the last models, the tension settings
were reduced to a simple High and Low, permitting 8
different speeds.
The standard lenses are for the most part f/4.5 Kodak
Anastigmats and, in later years, Kodak Ektars. This
features the distinctive tall focusing hood that folds
under the lid of the camera. Most Graflex models
were revolving (actually rotating) back, which
allowed shooting in vertical or horizontal orientations without turning the camera. All were made of
straight-grain Honduras mahogany covered with
black Morocco leather. The Graflex back is unique,
the various film holders and magazines that fit the
Graphic cameras will not fit the Graflex camera and
vice-versa.
In 1927 Kodak divested itself of the Folmer-Schwing
division, which was reorganized as the Folmer Graflex
Corporation. Folmer Graflex, which also manufactures Graphic press cameras, was finally dissolved in
1973. The last of the Graflex SLRs was produced in
1963.