Sawyers: Nomad 127

Notes related to specific cameras
bill339
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Sawyers: Nomad 127

Postby bill339 » Sun Mar 17, 2019 11:00 am

The Sawyer's Nomad 127 is a brown Bakelite camera that produces 4x6.5cm exposures on 127 film. It was introduced in c1957 by Sawyer's Inc. of Portland, Oregon USA. A matching flash holder was available, which fitted on top, connecting with pins into sockets either side of the viewfinder tunnel and used two AA batteries plus M-2 flashbulbs. The optical viewfinder and fixed focus glass lens are approximately 28mm and the shutter 1/50 of a second. The camera has the round film advance clockwise turn knob, an aluminum faceplate, right-handed shutter release button, a red (back of the film) observation window for frame count, and a permanently attached carry strap. An interesting fact is that Sawyer’s Inc. was also the producer of the View-Master 3D viewer and was the nation's second-largest manufacturer of slide projectors. Also, released at the same time as the Nomad 127 was the Nomad 620 which was almost identical but is a little taller, used 620 films, had a smooth Bakelite faceplate and had a Bulb shutter speed setting under the lens. Both cameras sold for less than $5.00 with the 620 version a little higher than the 127. You could get a kit with a flash unit, two batteries, two rolls of film, the camera, and ten flash bulbs for less than $5 in 1958. For $1.79 you could get a case to carry it all in. manufacturing of both cameras was discontinued in 1963 but the cameras sold for a few years after that due to new old stock.

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