Agfa Isolette III, rangefinder, serviced, case, exc

Agfa Isolette III with f/4.5 85mm coated Apotar in synchronised Pronto shutter speeded 1/25th to 1/200th plus B and delayed action (self timer). The camera has a built-in uncoupled rangefinder and double exposure lock. The Isolette produces 12 6x6 images in colour or monochrome on standard 120 film. The ever-ready case is in fairly good condition.

The camera has been serviced and film tested, with excellent results. The lens is clean and the shutter operates at all speeds. The delayed action and double exposure prevention mechanisms function correctly. The rangefinder is accurate and in correct vertical alignment, and front cell focusing is smooth and precise. Bellows are sound and light tight.

On Isolette cameras which have not recently been serviced there is a 90 per cent chance of the rangefinder wheel and the front cell focusing ring being completely seized. 

This is a late model with the double knobs on the top plate and depth of field tables around the lens mount. Earlier models had the depth of field indicator on the top plate.

As the photographs show, the camera is in excellent condition. The viewfinder system incorporates a split image circle in the centre. The images are made to coincide by means of a wheel on the top plate, and the distance to the subject displayed on the wheel is transferred to the lens. It is a simple, fast and accurate operation which ensures pin sharp focus.

The Isolette rangefinder is perhaps the clearest and most precise of any medium format camera, and the same applies to Isolette viewfinders. They are always bright and clear and present no problems, even for spectacle wearers.

Those who are familiar with the Isolette range will know that it was one of the best folding cameras of its time. All Isolettes embody sound mechanical and design features. They have robust struts and spring mechanisms which despite, or perhaps because of, their seeming simplicity, snap the lens/shutter assembly firmly into position, ensuring parallelism with the film plane. This is an essential feature in any folding camera, and it is a tribute to the original designers that Isolette strut mechanisms work as accurately now as they did when the cameras were first produced.

The Isolette is perhaps the most streamlined of all the medium format folders and the rounded front and ends add to the compact appearance. It measures just 5.5 x 4 x 1.5in (140x100x40mm) approximately.

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