Ensign 220 Autorange with Tessar Lens

[@diegoscopia]

This must have been an expensive camera in the 30s! German shutter and lens + combined lens coupled rangefinder and viewfinder, and a frame counter. Really sweet to see it working so well still.

[@ChloeJessica06]

miss you sir 😔

[@Schlipperschlopper]

There are two other very unique and HQ cameras made in France after WW2 with Tessar clone optics (HQ!) There is the wonderful KINAX SUPERKINAX III (That thing is a gem it has a Som-Berthiot Lens 3.5 102 TESSAR clone coated "BELAR", and there is the Lumiere Lumirex III with a coated tessar clone 4.5 /100 or 3.5 /100 made by Lumieres own Lens Shop)

[@Haffschlappe]

Please try French Royer Teleroy and Telka III

[@beforedigital]

Thank you, I will look out for these!

[@Schlipperschlopper]

@@beforedigital Yes the french cameras are excellent, few people know that the Optical factories in Paris and Lyon were up to Zeiss and Leitz standards, French factories supplied German Wehrmacht with advanced tank optics during WW2 like Czech and Polish did. So they knew how Zeiss did their optics and it was easy for them to produce Tessars and Sonnars and Biotars after WW2. The best lenses came from the following factories: Angenieux, Som-Berthiot, Boyer and Roussel. Angenieux is still around making top tier army and airspace optics and Leica lenses. Som Bertiot and the others merged and were absorbed by FOCA today they are SOPELEM (Société d'Optique Précision ELEctronique et Mécanique) still making superb optics for Submarines and tanks.

[@robertspeicher5047]

Interesting. Looks alot like my two Kodak Tourists 6x9 cameras. 620 film. What size does this camera take?

[@conrad1837]

These take normal 120 film. I have the version with the lesser quality Ross lens myself

[@robertspeicher5047]

@@conrad1837 My cameras would take 120. But I have to transfer the film to the 620 spool. There are places to have my cameras modified to change the camera to take 120 spools. The in 120 spools have a smaller hole in the ends. Thank you for answering. Enjoy using the camera.

[@ecch1955]

I have this camera. I just found it in some old things. Tessar Lens. I think it is the 2.8. Interested??

[@beforedigital]

@@ecch1955 sounds most interesting.

[@ecch1955]

@@beforedigital Let me send you some photos. It looks like it was purchased in the early to mid 40's. I want to make sure that this is the one you mentioned. Honestly, I don't know that much about cameras or what a fair price is.

[@beforedigital]

@ecch1955 hi, the key information will be on the lens. Thanks Andy

[@ecch1955]

@@beforedigital did you get the Lens information?

[@SloopJohnBeeRockabilly]

Wow, very innovative with a coupled rangefinder and ahead of its time in design. Not seen one before. I think shooting at 100ASA helped with that Kentmere 400. I wasn’t that impressed with it when I shot it. HP5 still better 👍📸

[@conrad1837]

Very nice! You may have to bribe this Geoff chap to sell it to you