April 8th 2020

 

Agfa Karat 4.5

Agfa was well known for their high quality German made medium format cameras by this point. That was until there was a very important advancement in photography in the mid 1930s. The 35mm cassette hit the market with resounding success. Agfa wanted a competitor to Kodak’s new film design. They wanted an easy system with little room for error. Later re released as rapid cartridges to compete with the new 126 cassettes Kodak was producing, the initial Agfa Memo and Karat line of cameras was the first to dawn this new Karat cartridge format. The second iteration of the Agfa Karat was a redesign, getting rid of the Art Deco ascetic as well as updating features. Of the two redesigned Karat models to come out of 1938, the Agfa Karat 4.5 was the higher end model with the faster lens.

The Karat Redesign

The first redesign of the Agfa Karat

The first notable feature of this camera and its predecessor is the shape. There was little to nothing on the market in the 1930s that had the look of an Agfa Karat camera. Featuring a rounded top and sides, with a flat bottom; it’s a unique shape and design. A matte finished aluminum is on the top, bottom and around the lens, while the body is painted black with a line textured leatherette. The lens has minimal designs, including the Agfa Karat name and AGC logo. Overall well finished, attractive and a decent weight in the hand.

On top of the camera you have a handful of controls. The viewfinder is somewhat small, but manageable with glasses. Initially, you need to extend the bellows of this camera before your able to take a picture. This is done by pressing a button on the left side above the film counter, as well as a lever to the left of the lens. You must then pull out the lens until you can push the lever back in and the lens is stable. To collapse the lens you move the lever back and push in the lens until it clicks. You are able to wind the camera whether it is in either mode, but it cannot take a picture unless fully extended. To the right of the winding knob is the shutter release button and cable socket, as well as the shutter ‘time’ setting switch. To the left of the viewfinder is the frame counter which can be manually set by pressing down and turning.

The aperture scale and the release button and tab

The shutter does not have a separate cocking lever, it is slow enough to be automatic. The shutter speeds range from bulb, time, 1/25, 1/50, 1/100 and 1/125th. To activate the Time setting, you must set the camera to bulb and once you press the shutter button down you slide the T switch on the top of the camera inward. The lens is an Agfa Optar 4.5 that goes from f/4.5 to f/32 with a self timer below the aperture. This version of the Agfa Karat is a scale focus camera, going from the meter increments of 1, 1.2, 1.5, 2, 3, 5, 10 and infinity. The frame counter only goes to 12 and there is no rewind knob. This is because these cameras use the proprietary Agfa Karat film cassette, later renamed the Rapid Cassette. This is a format that uses two cartridges that take standard 35mm film and pushes the film from one cartridge into another via the sprockets.

THE SPECS AND FEATURES

The Karat Film Cartridges, later known as Rapid Cartridges

Shutter Speeds - B, T, 25, 50, 100, 125

Aperture - 4.5 to 32

Meter Type - None

Shutter - Prontor, metal leaf shutter

Lens - 55mm Agfa Oppar, 4 elements

  • Scale focus meter increments 1, 1.2, 1.5, 2, 3, 5, 10, infinity

Flash Option - No flash contacts or shoe

Batteries - None

Film Type - Rapid Cartridges

Other Notable Features - older larger style tripod socket

The Experience

Agfa Karat 36 vs Agfa Karat 4.5

I was looking for an original Rapid Cartridge Karat for a fair bit of time. I had a few cassettes on hand but didn’t have a camera to go with them. I toyed with a few Agfa 2.8 cameras that did not work but was unable to get a copy working. I knew that Agfa produced a few Karat cameras before the 2.8 and 36, but never looked into it. I found an untested example for a reasonable price and jumped on it.

With this camera. and like many Agfa cameras today, the focus was jammed beyond even moving slightly. This was the true test of what I learned from toying with previous Agfa Karat cameras. The main problem I have run across is the front lens element and the one behind sticking together. I first boiled the lens to free up the grease and unfortunately, no luck. In the oven at 250 degrees, the same result. I tried 450 and still got nowhere. Left the lens in naphtha and still did not get the lens to budge. What ended up working amazingly is soaking the elements in contact cleaner overnight. Possibly it was a mixture of all the previous attempts, but I was able to screw everything apart easily the next day. I cleaned everything up and greased the threads, and finally had a working Agfa Karat.

The early Agfa Karat cameras use a proprietary cartridge system, later renamed Rapid Cartridges. They are smaller 35mm cartridges that have no spool. The film is pushed via the sprocket holes to another cartridge for storage, meaning rewinding is not needed. You need two rapid cartridges to have a the camera work, and you can use mostly any rapid cartridge as well as the ones tabbed for ASA/ISO sensing BUT not the Agfa Memo cartridges. These were a fair bit bigger and will not fit inside any Karat or Rapid designated camera. To reload a rapid cartridge is easy, only needing a specified size of regular 35mm film pushed into it. Once you invest in a few Rapid Cartridges, you will find the cameras are fun to mess around with and there are quite a few made from many different manufacturers.

The very important locking tab

Being one of the initial Agfa Karat cameras that were produced before the Karat 2.8 or 36, it’s a viewfinder only Scale Focus camera. There is no shoe to place a rangefinder on as well, so it is all up to your estimation. This tends to trip me up for the first couple of frames but eventually, I get into the swing of remembering to set the focus first. The main thing I cannot stress enough is to make sure the bellows are fully extended by pressing the tab in. If improperly extended, you will be able to press the button down, but the shutter will not engage, rendering a blank frame on an already short 12 exposure roll! Once use to the few quirks this camera had, it was quite a joy to use. I always find myself favoring a shorter 24 exposure roll in the field, and 12 was great for forcing you to think about your limited shots. 

The trials of getting a working Agfa Karat were years in the making, and I can undoubtedly say it was worth it. I really ended up liking the feel of the early Karat camera, and I was pleased to see that the Karat 4.5 performed better then I could have hoped. The later Karat cameras may have faster lenses and the ability to use regular 35mm cartridges, but that does not mean to pass up an older model. They have an incredibly solid feel and are built like a tank. Truly a camera worthy of any fan of Agfa and German engineering. I don’t find the limited pictures you can take a drawback at all, and neither should you. Give an older Agfa Karat a try, you will be surprised at the result.