Kodak Recomar 33 (1932–1940)
The Kodak Recomar 33 is a 9×12 cm folding bed camera produced by German Kodak AG from 1932 to 1940. It started as the Nagel No. 33, made by the Nagel Camera Works of Stuttgart from 1928, before Kodak got involved. The Recomar 33 is what came out of that collaboration. It shoots 9×12 cm sheet film or glass plates (3¼×4¼ inches) using a holder of the proper size. The usual lens is a fast Kodak Anastigmat f/4.5 135mm in a Compur shutter. Some examples carried a Schneider-Kreuznach Radionar f/6.3 135mm instead, so lens configurations varied.
The collector record is modest but real. A YouTube video documents using a Recomar 33 9×12 cm camera to build an Afghan box camera. An eBay Australia listing sold in July, and a Pinterest listing calls the camera "Rare." One eBay condition note mentions a working shutter and diaphragm with minor lens fog, which is about what you'd expect from an eighty-year-old plate camera. A Kodak history document (Tech Pub AA-13) lists the KODAK RECOMAR 33 at $40.00. The original price is also recorded elsewhere as 48, and the record isn't clear on currency or which figure is authoritative.
Little else is documented. There are no production quantities, no serial number ranges, no detailed user manual content specific to this model, and no dimensions or weight. The Recomar 18, a related model, is better documented. A guide covering both models notes the Recomar 18 allows intermediate exposures from 1 second to 1/100, but those specs belong to the sibling, not this camera.
Known specs:
- 9×12 cm sheet film or glass plates (3¼×4¼ in.)
- Kodak Anastigmat 135mm f/4.5 in Compur shutter (standard); Schneider-Kreuznach Radionar f/6.3 135mm on some examples
- Folding bed camera, black finish
- Produced 1932 - 1940 by German Kodak AG; originally the Nagel No. 33 (1928 - 1932)
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