Tourist, clean up.

Well, there really is not much to do about nothing … both of these camera’s needed a cleanup as they appear to have been sitting in an open display for a while (based on how the dust settled).

Both are so similar in design that I will just describe the one … ah, and by the way, isopropyl alcohol does not seem to agree with this plastic, best to clean it with Naphtha.

So on with the Tourist II.

Removing the Kodet shutter … two screws … and that’s all I have to say about that.

Note that the other shutter types are not simply held on by these two screws, so you will have to find your own way of getting it removed.

Ok, so just pull off the shutter.

Note that the top metal plate is not held on anymore, so it may come off first. The two screws also hold on the front plate including the protection filter … yeah, that is not a lens.

You can just pull of the metal cover plate with a wiggle or two.

Front protection lens and the cone baffle can be remove by bending the three metal tabs.

Well now we can see the lens underneath. I noticed that the ring seal is not glued to anything.

Here it is in all it’s glory … the single  Kodet meniscus!

 

Back to the Kodon shutter …

There is not much to this spring loaded mechanism … since I didn’t have to do anything here I ain’t going to show you a disassembly.

Ok, so lets take a look at the top. The viewfinder port was really cloudy, so I had to get in there to clean them.

Ok, so logically both knobs are held on by a screw.

You will find springs and pins underneath. I kinda mixed up the image process so you have to just take both images and mentally work it out.

On the left there is the large film advance winding knob. To remove the coupled pin you have to turn it clockwise while pulling it out from the bottom.

On the right you have film spool centering pin. It should just fall out.

To finally get the top plastic cover off you will need to unscrew the right side securing nut that the spool centering pin sits in. The winder side has a single screw.

 

Then pull off the top cover. You might need to push in the metal strap tabs.

Ok, so you flipped the top plastic cover over and see … a metal plate that seems to be secured on line end by some riveted circular thing … well, we don’t actually have to remove the metal plate … just move it.

Revolve the metal plate, centered around that large riveted thing on the left, to reveal the viewfinder ports. This will let you get at the viewfinder glass that will just slide our and can now be cleaned.

As I mentioned at the beginning, the original Tourist is so similar that I will just point out the differences:

• larger felt seal between shutter and lens
• screw securing the metal plate to top plastic
• larger exit pupil for viewfinder

 

… just a couple of Tourists

Everybody dreams of a Universal Camera … well that’s what Kodak said in an advertisement for their new camera, the Kodak Tourist. The Tourist line (ok, a line to two models) were the last of the folders that they produced. The first model was in production between 1948 – 51.

In my opinion, they were big and ugly … but many Kodak cameras were no designed to be awesomely attractive … after all, they are primarily a film company. Both were designed with an aluminum body, a plastic top cover, and covered on the outside with Kodadur leather (yeah, they had their own special brand of synthetic leatherette).

Both were medium format folders that used 620 film and produced eight 6×9 exposures. FYI, 620 is the same stock size as 120 except that it wound on  a thinner spool. Different variations different shutter and lens combinations … Kodon+Kodet, Diomatic+Anaston, Synchro-Rapid+Anastar. The ones I happen to have came with the Kodon shutter that had a three settings, I, B, and T.  the I was about 1/60s. The aperture ranged from f/12.5 to 32. The Kodet lens is a fixed focus single element 86mm focal length.

The models that I have received came with a fixed focus single element Kodet 86mm f/12.5 lens in Flash Kodon shutter app. 1/50 sec plus bulb and time

The “universal” thing about the camera was the adapter kit … “4 picture sizes with 1 camera”. It allowed the camera to shoot in different formats and even use different film … Bantam 828 film, half 620, square 620, full 620.

As you can notice in the image (that one to the left), the film back can be removed because it is double hinged.

The second model, which happens to be called the Tourist II had some slight modifications … made between 1951 – 58, and was the last of the Kodak folders.