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Argus: Argus C3
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1939-1966. 35mm rangefinder camera. Known as "brick". Several variations of wind knob, accessory clip and name plates. During the years it was manufactured, it was the best selling
35mm camera, around 2 million cameras were sold.
There were a couple of hundred models refurbished in 1998, which could cost a little more.



Camera featured in these collections: winder44 Markv86 mobilene Tom O'Neill cassanova9876 Brenainn Kenson ChrisandHolley PAINisLIFE
HWCollectables AtomicOrange kamera king arnstone
tomidery rahmannnn YATRIK Danielclark1335 lauracr GFcollection enderxen
motto27 Daily135 NanoKara OneDayHappened Pickofthelitter Jeff L
mauro.corneo
lorax412 gwenever nagalagretep LizardAM spydr955 bill339
sethmerrell Williamlee111
JimBot Selbur overinvested manzanita1968
Blesaster KevinWilburnPhoto
eppaar WMBWILSON mshefa hell_se
VRLangton Davoyles OhioCameraSwap LPaul
gopernoper Amuzed2death Drdeath
bajada_christian camerasofyesteryear Jackel bMw88 Augusto vickiwolkins Dodgertown
Moonman blammert Ger russwm
boriscleto
PartsUnknown atarget3
bretbolton tonymc Highkirk Christopher carlos_ezetateam vayasteve Alexey_Grishin busedad Oldsalt53 jlegond
DoozerNZ Mwallen1982 magmabrawler Megwri agilli 22banazzi Raidriar02 jnbryson Chrissy7886 MLX
Camera is in these wishlists: jokerrabit
converted and inflation-adjusted prices:
Condition | Price | |||
2020-01-01 | $20 | |||
2019-12-01 | $9 | |||
2017-12-05 | $13 | |||
2013-05-22 | $21 | |||
2003-02-28 | $59 | |||
2002-01-01 | ~$17 | |||
2020-01-01 | (body only) | $28 | ||
2019-11-01 | (body only) | $17 | ||
2019-10-01 | (body only) | $4 | ||
2019-09-01 | (body only) | $12 | ||
2019-06-01 | (body only) | $6 | ||
2019-02-01 | (body only) | $17 | ||
2018-04-01 | (body only) | $8 | ||
smokey_hathaway@yahoo.com
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The C3 was constructed primarily of Bakelite plastic and metal castings. The design featured an unusual and simplistic diaphragm shutter built into the camera body, so the camera could make use of interchangeable lenses without the need for a complex focal plane shutter. The rangefinder utilized a separate viewfinder from that of the regular viewfinder and was coupled to the lens through a series of gears located on the outside of the camera body. The profusion of knobs, gears, buttons, levers, and dials on the camera lent it a "scientific" look that was found in customer surveys to be one of the things buyers most liked about the camera.
By virtue of its low price and reputation for rugged durability the Argus C3 managed to outlast most of its American competition and fend off precision German-built cameras and the cheap high quality Japanese cameras that began to enter the American market in the 1950s. But eventually the design simply became too outdated and clumsy and production ended in 1966 after sales had slumped. Interestingly, sales of the C3 had slumped many times during its production life, and each time Argus announced they were going to discontinue the camera, dealers and photographers would rush to buy what they believed to be the last of the cameras, leading Argus to reverse their decision to end production several times.
It has been argued the Argus C3 is responsible for popularizing the use of 35mm film, and considering the long production run and the high number of Argus C3 cameras made, this may very well be true, especially in its native United States.
Although the design is now over 75 years old, the C3 retains a strong following due to its simplicity and durability, as well as nostalgia value. Used C3s are cheap and plentiful, and their simple construction makes them relatively easy to repair.


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