Frank & Heidecke
SUPERB! 1936 Rolleicord with leather case. CLA's, Freshly Serviced!
Cleaned, Lubricated & Adjusted. Ready for immediate use!
If you’re familiar with the Rolleiflex and Rolleicord cameras you’ll know that they are considered a cult classic by many fans. They are also often mentioned by photographic websites as an excellent way to get into medium format photography. The Rollei TLR is a very famous design that just like Leica, inspired countless copies over many decades.
This week we have an exceptionally fine Rolleicord which was built by Frank & Heidecke in prewar Germany in circa 1936. It uses readily available 120 roll film. It’s been carefully cleaned, lubricated and adjusted. Focusing is accurate. The mirror has some age-related marks but this has no effect on the viewfinder image which is clean and clear. The film counter works as it should. The quality Compur shutter works smoothly and all speeds (T, B & 1 Sec-1/300th) are appropriate. The slow speeds buzz along nicely and the faster ones are clean and snappy.
This camera has a sharp Carl Zeiss 3.5/75mm Triotar lens which is a classic Cooke design with three elements in three groups. It’s well known for the attractive rendition and bokeh it produces. The glass is exceptionally fine. It’s, clear and clear. There are no scratches, no cleaning marks and it’s capable of producing beautiful photos with modern color & B&W films.
Great lenses are not simply defined by high resolution. What artists and photographers love about certain lenses is the beautiful rendition in the fore and back ground. It’s something the Japanese refer to as bokeh. This Zeiss lens has an excellent reputation in Europe for a lovely bokeh and its soft smooth backgrounds.
All in all, a very enjoyable vintage camera. Load it with your favorite film and keep it handy for that perfect shot you’ve been looking for. You know the one... the one with the perfect Ansel Adams light breaking through the dark storm clouds that leaves you wishing that you had a vintage camera with you…