Argus Model C camera

My Argus Model C camera

During my time working in a camera store from the mid-1970s until the mid-1990s, I must have seen hundreds, if not thousands, of Argus cameras, and to be more specific, the Argus C3, or as they were affectionately known as, "The Brick" because of their boxy shape and very sturdy construction. These cameras came in on an almost daily basis just because they were so popular back in the 1940s and '50s.

 I saw so many Argus C3 cameras in my time in the camera store that, when it came to collecting cameras, I had no interest in collecting this particular model. Yet, it seemed like every time I purchased a group or "lot" of cameras, there was always an Argus C3 in the groupings of cameras. 

 I still recall thinking that if I collected enough Argus C3 cameras, I could build a retaining wall in my front yard out of them, as it was cheaper to get the Argus C3 than to purchase real clay bricks.

 To this day, I still see the Argus C3, or similar models like the C2, C3 Matchmatic, or C33, all the time at people's garage sales, estate sales, and camera shows. It is undoubtedly one of the most sold cameras in the history of photography.

 With that said, I'm still looking for one model, which I'm certain I came across during my time at the camera shop. It's the original Argus Model C camera, featuring a dual range switch located under the shutter cocking lever. It's a little earlier than the camera in this blog post, but the pricing for one of these is higher than I'm willing to pay for, so I'll wait and see if I can find one during my quest for a camera. 

 For me, the fun is the hunt for the treasures. The thrill comes from finding a camera or other photo item I've been looking for, especially when it's in an unexpected place and hopefully at a reasonable price.

History:

 Argus Cameras holds a unique place in photographic history as a pioneering American camera manufacturer that made high-quality photography accessible to the masses. The company was founded in 1931 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, as the International Radio Corporation (IRC), by local businessmen including William E. Brown Jr., George Burke, and Charles Albert Verschoor. Initially, IRC's primary business was radios, but seasonal sales fluctuations led Verschoor to seek another product to stabilize revenue. Inspired by the success of his molded plastic radio cases, he envisioned an affordable camera built with similar materials.

This is the early version with switch under cocking lever

 In 1936, IRC launched the Argus Model A, the first low-cost 35mm camera manufactured in the United States. Priced at just $12.50 when most competing models were much more expensive, the Model A democratized 35mm photography and quickly found commercial success. The Model A's innovation lay in its molded plastic body, making it both durable and less costly to produce.

 This success prompted IRC to focus entirely on cameras, eventually adopting the name Argus, Inc. in 1944, and later Argus Cameras, Inc. in 1949. The company's most iconic product, the Argus C3, was introduced in 1939. With its brick-like appearance and robust rangefinder mechanism, the C3 became known as "The Brick" and enjoyed a production run lasting until 1966, with more than two million units sold. The C3 is widely regarded as one of the best-selling cameras in photographic history.

 During World War II, Argus shifted its production to support the war effort, manufacturing military optics and radio equipment for the U.S. and Allied armed forces. By the war's end, Argus had received multiple Army-Navy "E" Awards for excellence in production. After the war, civilian production resumed, and Argus became the second-largest U.S. camera manufacturer, trailing only Kodak.

 In the late 1950s, the company was acquired by Sylvania Electric Products and later sold to Mansfield Industries. Over time, as competition intensified, especially from Japanese manufacturers, Argus struggled to maintain its leadership. U.S. camera production ended by 1969, but the Argus brand persisted in importing photographic products.

Today, vintage Argus cameras, especially the Model A and C3, are valued collectibles. The legacy of Argus endures as a symbol of inventive American manufacturing and mass-market photographic innovation.

My Camera:

 My Argus C dates from 1938, has a serial number of 12127C, so it's not one of the earliest models, but it was introduced before the Argus C2 was introduced in late 1938. The Model C measures 5 3/8" wide by 3" tall, including the shutter release, by 3" deep, including the lens. My Argus Model C camera weighs 1 pound, 7.4 ounces without film loaded in the camera.

The camera has a 50mm f3.5 Argus lens with aperture settings of F/3.5, 4.5, 6.3, 11, & 18, which are odd compared to aperture settings now. The aperture setting is made by turning a ring with two knobs on the inside of the lens that line up with a black line on top of the lens. 

The item missing on early Model C cameras is the coupling gear connecting the focusing ring on the top left to the lens, which adjusts the lens distance during focusing. To focus this model, look through the rangefinder window on the back of the camera, bring the two lines together to focus, and then check the front of the rangefinder dial to determine your distance from the subject. Finally, set that distance on the lens. On the side of the lens, there are markings indicating the focusing distances for the subject. There is an aluminum thread in style lens cap for the Argus Model C camera I own.

The shutter speed dial is located on the top right-hand side of the camera, on the front. The shutter speed settings are 1/300, 200, 150, 100, 75, 50, 30, 20, 10 & 5. There is no "B" setting on the shutter speed dial. The "B" setting is actually set on the "mushroom" shaped shutter release. You can turn the shutter release to either settings, "I" for instant, or to "B" for bulb, or timed exposures.

 The camera's shutter also needs to be cocked before you can snap the photo. The shutter cocking lever is located on the front of the camera, positioned on the far left side, in the middle. It looks like a handle that you flip down to cock the shutter, then springs back up after the shutter is released.

 On the back of the camera are just two small viewfinders. The one on the right is the rangefinder, which has a split that, by turning the focus wheel, will bring two separated vertical lines into one straight line when focused. The other window on the left is the framing window used to frame your subject when you're ready to take the photo.

To open the back to load the film, press the bump on the left side of the camera. This presses in a bar that holds the back onto the body. My camera is very difficult to open by just pressing the button, so I sometimes need to use a small screwdriver to pry the back up slightly to get it to open.

 Once open, the camera looks like any other 35mm camera, with the take-up spool on the left side. The fresh roll fits onto the right side by pulling pot the rewind knob on the bottom of the camera, bring the lead over to the take up spool, and thread into the take up spool. The film advance knob is on top of the camera. To wind to the first frame, there is a small locking lever just behind the frame counter that needs to be pressed down. This unlocks the winding gear, allowing you to wind to the first frame. Close the back of the camera and start taking photos.

This process must be repeated every time you wish to advance to the next frame. Additionally, at the end of the roll, the locking lever must be pressed down to unlock the drive gears, allowing the film to be rewound into the 35 mm cassette.

 The real reason to write about this camera was more of an exercise on how easy it was to use the early Mode Cameras, especially during a time of rapid change with cameras. Like many cameras from this era, it's not the quick and easy cameras of today, where either the shutter or aperture is being set for you. In many circumstances, both settings are being set. 

 To use cameras from this era, you need to take your time and use an external light meter to get the proper settings for your camera. Set the shutter speed and aperture settings depending on the film used. Do you lean more to the aperture and depth of field, or shutter speeds and stopping motion? Then focus on your subject. In this case, focus, then transfer the settings to the lens regarding distance. Frame your image and take the photo.

 On my camera, I also have an accessory finder, which clips onto the top for showing what a 35mm wide-angle or 100mm telephoto will do. I leave it on my camera to hide a bit of paint scratched off by it, as it's more for show, and I don't have either of these lenses. There were several different lenses available for the Argus C line of cameras, as the lens just unthreaded from the body. 

My Results:

 Once you slow down and think about the process, which I'm very used to, the images are really nice. Here are a few from my walk around the neighborhood.

 I photograph similar items, which I am sure you'll notice if you're a regular reader.

Conclusion:

 While the camera isn't the most ergonomic one I've used, it's certainly not the worst.

 The camera performed very well. The images are sharp, and the shutter and aperture were easy to use. The one thing that slowed me down was the process of focusing, then transferring the distance to the lens before taking the photo. The addition of the coupling gear between the focusing wheel and the lens, which sets the distance on the lens, was a vast improvement for Argus. Without this improvement, I doubt they would have sold the number of cameras as they did.

 Thank you for taking a few minutes from your day to familiarize yourself with this early model camera from Argus.

 Here is a link to my other camera reviews.

I also have a shop on eBay, Cuny's Cameras and Photo. Please stop by and see what new and wonderful photo items I have for sale.

 Until next week, please be safe. 

Argus Model K Camera

I was looking through a group of cameras purchased a while ago, and when I opened the case to look inside, I remembered thinking that I’d never heard of an Argus Model K camera. 

My Argus Model K Camera

 I was familiar with the camera company Argus and have owned hundreds of their very familiar models, like the grand old dad of cameras, the Argus C3. I’ve had Argus C4, C33 and lenses, C44, Argoflex, many of the different A series, and even projectors.

 At this point, I figured it was an interesting camera to do a blog post on, as it had some real oddities, and I’d never done a post on Argus, so here it goes.

The Company:

The company Argus started as International Radio Corp., was started in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 19931 by a group of local businessmen and produced radios during this time. Some of these prominent business people were William E. Brown Jr., who became the mayor of Ann Arbor; George Burke, a prominent judge at the Nuremberg Trial after WWII and who later became director of the Argus; and Charles Albert Vershoor, the company’s president.

 International Radio Corp. employed around 75 people, producing radios made from molded plastic rather than wood, which was popular at the time. Producing the radios from molded plastic was also less expensive, which made them popular during the Depression era. These radios were sold under the “Kadette” brand and are still collectible today.

Radios were a seasonal business that did well in the fall and winter seasons. To keep the company busy in the slower spring and summer periods, the company produced a low-priced 35mm camera, the Model A, made from molded plastic and sold for the ridiculously low price of $12.50 in May 1936.

 The camera became wildly popular due to its low cost and the rising popularity of Kodachrome film. Because of the camera’s popularity, the company decided to sell its radio patents and change its name to International Research Corp., where it concentrated on the photographic portion.

In 1940, Argus produced optics and radios for the war effort. In 1942, all domestic production was halted to concentrate their effort on military optics and radios for the US and allied forces. With Government loans, Argus expanded, and in 1944, the company changed its name to Argus, Inc. and won several awards for its war effort in producing products.

 After the war, Argus, Inc. revamped production for its consumer line, and by the 1950s, Argus Cameras was the second largest camera producer in the US, second to Eastman Kodak. Later, in 1957, Argus was purchased by Sylvania, the flash bulb company. In 1962, Sylvania sold Argus to Mansfield, a Chicago company, where they started to move out of Ann Arbor. There were several different transactions, and in 1969, all domestic camera production ended.

 An interesting note is that Argus’s most popular camera, the Argus C3, started production in 1939. It was a departure from their molded plastic A series with a metal body. The ever-popular camera, fondly known as “The Brick,” sold for $25.00, and by 1962, 2 million cameras had been produced. The Argus C3 was known for its robust build, simple controls, and excellent image quality, making it a favorite among photographers.

A tremendous website is dedicated to The Argus Reference Site. It includes links to the Argus Museum, a treasure trove of information and artifacts related to the company's history, and a book on the company, Argus - Fine American Cameras -- a book by Bob Kelly, Ron Norwood, Mike Reitsma, and Phil Sterritt. The book provides a comprehensive overview of Argus's journey from a radio manufacturer to a camera producer, along with many other great links.

My Camera:

First, my camera isn’t by any means in perfect condition. But all the shutter speeds sounded accurate, and the aperture opens and closes, so that’s a good first step. Now for the not-so-good things about my camera. The front viewfinder glass is missing, and the extinction meter window is completely black, which means I’ll need to use my handheld meter.

The transport was in good condition, so I opened the back of the camera and wanted to put a roll of 35mm film to see how this camera performed. Not having the instruction manual didn’t help, especially when loading the film. I kept looking at the film chamber and thinking, “There’s no way a 35mm cartridge will fit into that area”. So I started to pull, prod, and push different things until the film plug popped off the bottom of the camera, exposing where to put the film to load the camera. That’s an interesting thing to do to load the camera. For demonstration purposes, I had a roll of color for the photos, but below, I shot B&W.

The camera loads like any 35mm camera, but similar to cameras like the Kodak Pony 35, to advance the film to the next frame, you need to “unlock” the advance gear. This button is also the button you need to release the advanced gear so you can rewind the film into the film canister.

 Now that I have film loaded in the camera, and my viewfinder didn’t effectively work due to the missing front glass, I needed to guess on composition. Around the lens is the focus ring, which moves pretty smoothly on my camera. I walked around my front yard, focusing on my subjects and composing in my mind what the photo would look like. Using my trusty handheld meter, I set the shutter speed at 1/200 and my aperture to what the meter told me. The aperture settings are on the bottom of the camera and are right next to the shutter speeds, which are coupled to the extinction meter. There is a second shutter speed dial around the lens, too. My camera has an Argus Anistigimat f4.5 lens. There is no focal length on the lens.

The camera has an odd design as the viewfinder and aperture controls are on the bottom of the camera. I kept wanting to hold the camera upside down to take images, but without a working viewfinder, it didn’t matter. The camera shape is slightly different for a 35mm, and more resembles a smaller medium format camera or one that shoots 127 or 828 film, as opposed to 35mm. The camera measures 4.75” wide x 3” from the front of the lens to the back of the camera x 3.25” tall, measured from the top of the film plug to the bottom of the winding knobs. The camera weighs in at 1 lb. 3.2oz without film.

Now that I had shot the film and wound it back into the cassette, it was time to take it to my darkroom, process it, digitize the negs, and show you what I had done.

 The Results:

Here are some of the images I took with the Model K camera. Overall, the lens did a good job; the photos are relatively clear and sharp. The film I used was some older B&W T-Max 400, so it was a bit grainy, but I was surprised by the results.

Conclusion:

Besides the flaws I mentioned above, the camera was surprisingly fun to shoot and produced very nice images. My case is very stiff, as the leather is very dry, and the front is coming off. I didn’t realize this camera is rare, as they only produced about 2000 before they ended production. I would be inclined to sell it at some point, but I’m thrilled I put film in it and shot with it.

 Thank you for taking a few minutes from your day to look through this blog post. I have a few other gems to review, so I hope you’ll watch for the next post.

 Until then, please be safe and well.