Agfa Karat, Agfa Karat 36

<p>Just wondering if there are any other Agfa Karat users on this site. I'm enjoying this pair. Color in the 36, B&W film in the other. Focusing was very stiff due to old green grease fixed patience, a Q-tip, and a bit of alcohol. Focus freed up, I find them both a treat to use Each is a very pocket-able pair of "walk around"cameras. Solid in the hand, not too heavy-weigh-wise. A pleasant classic pair built to last, built to use.</p>

<p>Glad to hear you got the cameras working right. I think they have uncoated lenses. Have you any pictures to show?</p>

<p>Yes, those are nice rangefinders. I have a Karat and an (Ansco) Karomat.</p>

<p>How do you like the focusing on the Karat 36? The whole top half of what you see in the viewfinder shift relative to the bottom half.</p>

<p>One of mine has the Heligon and the other the Solagon lens. The focusing was so stiff on both that I decided to do an overhaul. Had the helicals apart to replace the old grease. The design of the wind/advance mechanism is a bit complicated, and I have not seen that same design in any other camera so far. But in both of mine, a bit of oil and light grease on the sliding saw-tooth bar made the advance action very smooth.</p>

<p>My Karats are the mid 1950s post-war version that take normal 35mm cassettes. I have seen earlier versions which I think require using a pair of special Agfa cassettes. Mine have coated 6-element lenses. The previous version might have had uncoated lenses.</p>

<p>Sorry Mathew, Don't have anything processed yet. John I only did a partial tear down. Just enough to get a Q-tip in there to work that green grease out. Mine are the "new" versions made after the war. Is there a post on this site with instructions on how to add pictures to a post?</p>

<p>Congratulations on joining the Karat Klub! Nice, solidly made cameras with some clever features, but unfortunately when AGFA moved from their own 12-shot Karat Kassettes to the Kodak 35mm cassette, they confused a lot of folks. The very early Karat 36 models used a 'Compur Rapid' shutter, which only confused things even more, In hindsight, AGFA should have dispensed with the 'Karat' name and come up with something different, but wisdom iin hindsight is always 20/20, isn't it?</p>

<p>You've probably done about all that a 50s Karat 36 usually needs in the way of CLA'ing, by cleaning out that Dreaded Bayer Green Grease and relubing. In my experience, apart from that, Karats are normally very reliable. One of the other postees has mentioned the unusual split rangefinder imaging which confuses a lot of folks, but I kind of like it. Come to think of it, wasn't the very first Kodak folder with a CRF similarly configured, way back when in the 1910s?</p>

<p>Lastly, I've posted a pic of my Karat Kollection, which covers both the original 12-shot Karat ones and the later Kodak cassette users too. However, don't assume that it's just a matter of different body styles to distinguish them. There were also transitional models, just to confuse! For example, the first CRF model with the 'new' body shape came out around 1941 but still used the 12-shot Karat Kassette.</p>

<p>PETE IN A WARMING PERTH</p><div></div>

<p>Can't compete with Pete's little collection but I do have three, one is labelled Karomat so probably came from the US. They have a range of standard lenses, Xenon F2, Heligon F2 and a Xenar 2.8...all coated.<br>

All came with the dreaded AGG (Agfa Gummy Grease) and I have since cleaned one up (with the Heligon) and they are an excellent picture taker. I really like the rangefinder setup once you get used to it.</p>

<p>Hi, Tony Well, mate, you've made me dead jealous, with one of your Karats having the F2 Heligon. All mine are either F2 Solagons or Xenons, with one Karomat having a Solinar. For some reason I just can't get my mitts on any camera with an F2 Heligon. Even my Diax collection only has a single Rodenstock triplet Triotar lens on the L-1.</p>

<p>Getting back to Karat 36s, I got lent a late 1952 Oz 'Popular Photography' last year. It was the one with the big supplement with all the camera thumbnail advert and prices. I was quite surprised to find that the Karat 36 was the most expensive of all the 35mm CRF fixed lens stuff from Germany - even more expensive than the equivalent Diax 11a, Futura Standard Compur and Retina 11a. The price differences weren't that great, but maybe that little extra was enough to keep folks away - on top of the film cassette confusion factor. Hence Retinas especially seem to be far more common today here. Only one of my Karat 36s came locally, the rest came from either the USA or Canada. (Pete In Perth)</p>

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<p>For some reason I just can't get my mitts on any camera with an F2 Heligon. Even my Diax collection only has a single Rodenstock triplet Triotar lens on the L-1.</p>

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<p>Hi, Peter, I got my Retina rangefinder with Heligon lens. I think those are relatively easy to find compared to Heligon-equipped Karats. I also have a Certo Super Dolina 35 with the Heligon. And it is said that the Cintagon 48/2 lens on Argus V-100 camera is actually a Heligon. Those are also fairly common and inexpensive.</p>

<p>Hi, Yefei Well, you certainly know how to make a camera-collecting guy feel jealous! Congratulations on your Rodenstock optical acquisitions, by the way. I've often wondered if there was a geographical 'plan' at AGFA HQ regarding marketing of Karats with this-or-that lens fitted. There certainly was with Mirandas, which also came in their early days with a variety of lenses. We here in Oz got some quite obscure ones, like the ARCO F2.4 on the Miranda T and the Kowa Prominar F1.9 on the Miranda B. Luckily these are all quite rare from a collecting angle nowadays.</p>

<p>Just getting back to those Rare Rodenstocks, I've just been rummaging through my collection of enlarging lenses and find I have an F5.6 80mm 'Rodagon'. So that makes two examples I have of Rodenstock stuff, along with the Diax L-1's Triotar. The 'Rodagon' looks to be relatively recent though. Before you ask just why I have a collection of maybe 25 enlarging lenses but no actual enlarger, I can only reply that I don't know. Its just a compulsive collecting thing ...... (Pete In A 34C Spring Day In Perth)</p>

<p>Well well now, over a year now with no Agfa Karat posts .This does not bode well for a "KARAT CLUB". Me ?, after cleaning up my pair, A 36 & a IV, other cameras caught my eye. A search for old Canon 28 uncovered my Agfa's in a cabinet. Still have film in them but no worry as no batteries to leak! All said my Adventure begins again! </p>

<p>I'd like to revive this moribund group by joining it. I'll be posting a picture of my collection of Karats shortly, all 31 of them, and 4 dismantled ones. In the collection, I have 3 with Heligon f2 lenses, 3 with Xenon F2 lens, and 2 with Solagon f2 lenses. All of the f2's are on Karat 36's.</p>