Anybody have any clue what this is?

[DrAwesome]

So if you haven't read my intro, I am Tim. I came into possession of this camera from my boss. He had it in a warehouse he had just bought and told me to throw it away and I asked if I could just take it cuz I figure its something cool.

I've looked into who made it, the lenses, and I can't find anything directly about it. I'd like to think I have some insight on its aproximate worth, but I'd like more about it if you can help just by seeing a picture.

Strangness is there is no numbers or name or anything on the camera. I took it apart and cleaned it out real good. This thing is really cool, but I want to sell it.



So the lenses are as follows. One is made by Burke & James and says this on the side.

"SOLAR 3 1/2" f:4.5 ANASTIGMAT

The other says this.

"Vivitar 6 ELEMENT 1:2.8 50mm No. 14136"

So what are you're suggestions? What do ya think? If you want more pictures, lemme know, I can take them.

Thanks in advance!

[Tim Meisburger]

It looks like a 35mm and medium format enlarger. I don't think its a camera.

[lenser]

Solar was indeed a brand of enlarger. The biggest problem is that you only have a few bits and pieces of the whole. Looks as though the baseboard, column and parts of the lamp house are all missing.

[Peter Gomena]

It's a bunch of bits from an incomplete enlarger, all right. It's worth about what it cost you. People give away entire working enlargers because there's very little market for them.

Peter Gomena

[DrTang]

tear it apart and keep the bellows/focusing part for future crazy projects...keep the lenses for the same

toss the rest away

[Lynn Jones]

Solar was a brand name for a Burke & James enlarger. More often than not they were diffusion enlargers, occasionally they had condensers. The one shown was a medium format, likely up to 2 1/4 square or 2 1/4X3 1/4. The 3.5" (90mm) lens was almost certainly a 3 element lens usually OK but not great especially in color, the 6 element Vivitar was really quite a good lens although I don't remember who actually made it now.

Those enlarger were actually quite well made if not handsome. My long time friend the great Wegee (Arthur Fellig) used a Solar enlarger which he kept either in his sleeping room or in his car.

Lynn

[DrAwesome]

So you think I could sell the lenses or part this thing out for a few bucks?

[DrAwesome]

And what exactly is an enlarger?

[Joe O'Hara]

An enlarger is just a camera working in reverse. There's a light source above (in the usual arrangement) the film. The lens projects the image of the film on to the photographic paper (don't ask) below. Just like how in a regular camera, the image on the film is usually smaller than the subject, with an enlarger, the image on the paper is larger than the one on the film.

It's the same, just different.

To your other questions: You probably can't sell them. Why not take up photography instead?

[DrAwesome]

Strapped for cash. I had planned on playing around with em but I thought maybe I could turn a quick buck but if it isn't worth it, I 'll hold on to it and start tinkering around.