Restored Meopta Mikroma

[photax]

Hi !

I finished another camera restoration today. This subminiatur Meopta Mikroma II ( 16mm ) made in Czechoslovakia about 1959 had been waiting since summer. It was a gift and came inoperable with removed leather. To get it working took only a short time, I had just to remount the lever-spring and clean the movable parts and replace some screws ( there is still one missing ). The new covering is snakeskin, which I got as a remnant from a furrier at some time. Picture 2 and 3 also shows a Mikroma Model 1 from the early 1950`s with original covering. This model has no release button, all functions are integrated in the slide-lever at the back of the camera. Special versions of this camera had also been used by the military and police forces in the Warsaw Pact countries.

MIK

[nikonbob]

MIK

Very nice job on the restoration, you are getting good at that. I don't have any Meopta cameras but I do have a Meopta rifle scope from the 1950s. It appears very well made. It goes great on the Brno rifles I have from the same time period. These Cech Mauser sporting rifles are as good as the German ones. I don't think Cech products are too well known over here but the few items I have from the 1950s seems to indicate excellent quality and worksmanship.

Bob

[Randy]

Very nice!

[mickeyobe]

An excellent restoration and a very handsome camera, MIK.

Mickey

[olroy2044]

Nice job, MIK. I've never seen or heard of this camera before. Very nice looking cameras! Roy

[Doug T.]

Hi MIK!
Great job on the restoration
The police issue cameras were black weren't they?
Do they use 16mm film?
Doug

[photax]

Thank you for your kind comments .

Meopta had been founded in 1933 under the name of Optotechna in Prerov, near Prague. During the occupation in WWII they had been forced by the German to produce military optical devices. The company name was changed to Meopta in 1946 and they had been the largest producer of film enlarger equipment till the 1970`s and they are still producing binoculars and spotting scopes.

Bob, I don’t know if they are still producing rifle scopes. Private gun ownership is banned over here. But I have heard that the Meopta Company has a factory for high precision optical devices somewhere in the USA.

Doug, you are right, the police Mikroma cameras are black, have mostly an additional viewer added and are very hard to find at very high prices. The film format of the Mikroma`s is 16mm, 10x10mm negative size.

The Mikroma also had been produced as a stereo camera. Here is a ca. 1960 model, I had the luck to find a close-up lens at a flea market two years ago.





Another stereo camera is the Meopta Stereo 35 from 1971, taking 12x13mm pictures, which could be mounted into cardboard reels ( the same system as View-Master ). The viewers from Meopta are also View-Master copies.



Here is a Meopta Milona with a Mirar 1:4.5/80 for 6x6 rollfilm from 1952



They also produced many different models of the Flexaret TLR camera from 1946 till the 1970`s. I have a few of these…



MIK

[PeterW]

You certainly find some desirable cameras, MIK, and the Vienna flea market prices seem good (read low).

I haven't been able to get out to any flea markets or car boot sales for a time as my electric buggy just can't get a grip in the snow.

John took me to a couple in his car, with an ordinary push wheelchair in the back, but his car's off the road at the moment with a blown head gasket.

Having it fixed in a garage would cost the earth. He can do it himself for about £60 and a couple of hours work, but it would mean working out in the open as our garage is full of junk. In the present temperatures of minus 4 to minus 6 degrees C, plus a nasty wind chill factor, his hands would be too numb to work after about ten minutes so he's wisely waiting till it gets a little warmer.

Oh well, C'est la Vie. We live near enough to the shops not to need a car to go shopping, and the house is nice and warm.

PeterW

[jeancamera]

Great Restauration Mik,

I am a new member of this group and I purchase a Mamiya RB67 today and the leather on one side of the camera is missing. I suspect the camera was repaired but the leather was never replaced. The camera is fully fonctional and I would like to find a fine thin leather to fix it.

I wonder were I could find such product?

Thank you for your help.

Jean
Montreal

[photax]

Hi Jean !

Welcome and thank you for your kind words Unfortunately I have no idea where to get Mamiya leathers. I alway use tailored old leather from disassembled cameras for my reastaurations. Maybe Ron, who is a world famous Mamiya collector could offer you some informations.

MIK

[herron]

Check out this link: www.cameraleather.com/others/

Not sure if they have the kit for the RB67, but they offer a lot. You could also look for generic coverings at Micro-Tools.

Good luck! ;D