Minolta Autopak-8 D6 (c. 1970–1974)
The Minolta Autopak-8 D6 is a Super 8 movie camera that Minolta made in Japan, marketed from 1970 through roughly 1974. It's a silent cartridge camera - no sound recording - built around a 6x Rokkor zoom lens. It's one of the more substantial Super 8 bodies from that era, and collectors still chase it.
The lens is the main attraction: a Minolta Rokkor 8.4-50mm f/1.8, built from 14 elements in 12 groups, with a 49mm filter thread. It zooms six times. Zooming is automatic at two speeds, or manual. Focusing is manual, through a single-lens-reflex viewfinder with a microprism aid. The other viewfinder details are only partly documented. The camera runs at 18 fps, 32 fps, or single-frame exposure, and it has lock exposure and backlight compensation. It takes standard 8mm cine film cartridges, and the body is metal and plastic in black. Multiple sources agree on the core lens spec and the 18/32/single-frame speeds. The 14-elements-in-12-groups figure comes from a single dealer listing, so it's plausible but unconfirmed.
Documentation on this model is thinner than its build quality suggests. No original retail price, no battery specifications, and no official production-year statement from Minolta have surfaced. Two different dimension sets appear across sources, one giving 70 x 128 x 196 (units unstated) and another giving 205 x 135 x 70 mm. They don't reconcile, so dimensions are left out here. Weight is listed at 1234g by Kamerastore, a single source. The user manual exists (56 pages, with sections on specifications and preparation), but its content wasn't accessible for this page.
One caution for researchers: a Kamerastore listing has a stray sentence describing a camera "introduced by Canon in 1970." That's an obvious error, since the lens and model name identify this as a Minolta. Treat that listing's descriptive prose with care. Its hardware specs (lens, speeds, weight) line up with other sources.
Surviving examples are generally described as working and in good condition. One YouTuber shot a London protest on Kodak Vision 3 500T Super 8 film with an Autopak-8 D6, paired with an external Carl Zeiss 85b daylight filter. Current market prices range widely: a Du-All Camera listing at $350 USD (currently sold out), €249 at a European dealer, and £75 on Gumtree in London. Minolta also offered two intervalometer accessories in this period, the intervalometer-P (0.5 to 60 seconds) and intervalometer-S (0.2 second to 10 minutes). The record doesn't make clear whether these were bundled with the D6 or sold separately for it.
Known specs:
- Type: Silent Super 8 cartridge film camera
- Lens: Minolta Rokkor 8.4–50mm f/1.8 zoom (14 elements in 12 groups per one source), 49mm filter thread
- Zoom: 6x, automatic at two speeds plus manual
- Focus: Manual, microprism viewfinder aid
- Speeds: 18 fps, 32 fps, single frame
- Exposure: Lock exposure and backlight compensation
- Body: Metal and plastic, black
- Weight: 1234g (single source)
- Production: c. 1970–1974, made in Japan
If you own an Autopak-8 D6 with the manual or a spec sticker, the Archive would welcome the missing details: battery type, dimensions, viewfinder coverage, and the original asking price.
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