In Soviet Russia.... Slide views you!

[vaantique]

Looking around the local flea market recently, I came across this little guy. I

collect classic cameras and thought it would be neat to have something from the

other side of the iron curtin, and also to replace my previous slide viewer, a

folding cardboard magnifier that has seen better days. Anyone come across these

before? know anything about who made them?

Also if anyone could read russian I'd love to know what the inserts in the box

say!<div></div>

[vaantique]

instructions/insert

[joshroot]

This thread has to have one of the best titles I've ever seen on photo.net. Well played.

[camera_conjurer]

The writing on the box says, "Film-o-scope".

[del_gray]

The letters on the label roughly say "Phelmoskop = Filmoscope". The insert pages are the Instructions. Translating the rest would tax me waaay beyond my energy level tonight!

[camera_conjurer]

Yeah, exactly.

[glenn_mabbutt]

My Russian is pretty rudimentary - basic Ukrainian is more my thing - but from what I can determine, the instructions are exactly that - instructions - put in the slide, hold it up, look at a light source to view it.

<p>

Interesting tidbits: <br>

- Apparently "slide" transliterates to "diapositive" in Russian <br>

- This is the "Filmoscope F-2", so presumably there is an "F-1" out there somewhere <br>

- This comes from something called the "GUMP Lengorispolkoma Optico-Mechanical Works" - the only reference I can find to "GUMP Lengorispolkoma" calls it the "Main Controller Agency of Metal Industry of Leningrad Executive Committee" <br>

<p>

All kinds of Soviet political/industrial groups got into various un- or quasi-related businesses, so the manufacturer here isn't a big surprise (although I've never heard of them previously). Lots of competition and occasional collaboration in the Soviet optics field.

[camera_conjurer]

And the slip to the right seems to be some sort of serial number registration card from the

Leningrad plant. Under the bold type where it says "Filmoscope", it says "Article LG 85 1283",

then, "Sort 1", and I think a suggested retail price of 13 rubles. I think.

[johnw436]

"Beautiful pictures for make benefit glorious nation of Mother Russia... hand make by happy workers, gulag Othosk"

[winfried_buechsenschuetz1]

To give you an idea of the selling price, 13 rubels would have been a very good days pay for a worker in the 1980s and probably somewhat more in earlier days. Before the rubel inflation and the opening to the western market you could get a very good meal in a russian restaurant for 13 rubels, including drinks.

[glenn_mabbutt]

Taking another look, I think the last paragraph indicates you can also use it to view "frames of student film on movie film" ("kadri lubitelskix fotosnimkov na kinoplenky") - I suppose as opposed to just individual slides.

[glenn_mabbutt]

...or rather "kadri lubitelskikh fotosnimkov na kinoplenky"...

[morthcam]

The small sheet is stamped "June 1960" for the manufacture date.