Polaroid back questions

[Kate Prather]

I have been looking into getting a used Polaroid 545 or 545i back on Ebay. I ha ve used the 545i, but never the older model. On some pictures of the 545's I ha ve noticed a small lever on the front that has a "C" on it. Are there two diffe rent models of the older 545? What is the purpose of this lever? Is there a pa rticular model that is better than the others? Thanks, Kate

[David Brown]

Kate,

The lever you're referring to is a latch that holds the cover over the rollers closed. On newer 545s the cover snaps closed without this extra latch.

[Andrew Cole]

There is one important thing to remember when looking at 545 holders. The holders with the "C" latch will not fit all cameras.

I have had two 545s, I think both were non-I models. The latch is a cleaning latch that permits you to clean out the rollers if there's a spill inside. The models without the latch permit the same cleaning, but use a different latching mechanism.

I'm sure for most cameras it makes no difference BUT, on one of my cameras, the latch came into contact with the back of the camera and caused a light leak fanning onto the surface of the polaroid film.

I only mention this because I had to buy a second holder (one without the latch) and sell my holder with the latch to someone who could use it without problem. Chances are your camera will not have the same problem, but all things being equal, take the one without the "C" latch.