Ask for help in our forum if you can't find a price for your camera.

Find a camera by name:  

Cameras > Argus > Argus A Black

Argus, Argus A Black

Average
Very good
Mint
$10-20$20-30$30-40

We don't have enough information to provide an accurate price for this camera, so this is the suggestion based on what we have.

Scroll down for the auction sales and other prices.

1936-1941. 35mm cartridge, viewfinder camera. First camera by Argus. First American 35mm camera. Several changes during the lifetime of the camera:

  • type 1: fixed pressure plate, steel back, round spring wire, smaller lens elements, sprockets on one side of the film, embossed front dial;
  • type 2: tripod socket added, rewind knob thickened;
  • type 3: floating pressure plate, aluminum back, squared spring wire, larger lens elements, sprockets on both sides of the film, painted front dial.

    Black is the least valuable model. In ascending order of value: black, gray or olive, brown/gold, and ivory/gold (most expensive, very rare).

    Camera manual

    Argus: Argus A Black camera

    Camera featured in these collections: diser test

  •  Camera sales and other sources with converted and inflation-adjusted prices:
    Date
    Condition Price
     2003-02-28
     B
     $17


    Community comments:

    by Luvantique on Sat May 15, 2010 9:54 pm

    This is not the first American 35mm camera, by a very long time. The first American 35 was the first (commercially manufactured) 35mm still camera in the world, the Tourist Multiple, first sold in 1913, beating out the Simplex by a very narrow margin. The Ansco Memo appeared in 1925, so Argus was hardly the first. A possible but more iffy early member would be the Retina line, made in Germany by the American-owned company Eastman Kodak.

    by diser on Sun May 16, 2010 2:30 pm

    You are right, I need to rephrase this. Argus A was the first american camera to use Eastman Kodak 35mm cassette. Does this sounds better?

    by bjully on Sun Jun 27, 2010 8:33 am

    Hello, I am a first time user of the forum as I just bought an Argus V100. I am trying to understand how to use it amd am very excited about this camera. The light meter apparently doesn't work. My first issue it that I have to set film exposure index on the meter. If it is broken why would I do this? Is it like an ASA setting? The manual tells me to set it according to the index of the film and there is a chart with various film brands, eg Anscochrome Daylight with Daylight 32 and Tungsten 8. I happen to have a fuji film and have no idea where it would fit in. Can you help me? Thanks in advance.

    by diser on Mon Jun 28, 2010 8:08 pm

    I'd ask this question in the the arguscg group at yahoogroups.com, you'll need to subscribe first though.


    Icons legend:
    PW Photographica World
    PA Photographica Auctionen
    WL WestLicht Auction
    LP LP Foto Auction
    TK Tamarkin Auction
    CR Christies Auction
    Searching eBay listings:
    Searching other listings: