Another Primo JR

[belgiumreporter]

Every now and then, when i come across a nice TLR, i can't resist buying it. When i first saw the Primo Junior i didn't know what it was, the Primo brand didn't ring any bells.

After a little research things became interesting, apparently it was made by Topcon in 1958 as the first Japanese Rolleiflex baby copy,beating the Yashica 44 by a month or so.

The primo is very well build as good as the Rollei i dare say. While the Rollei has 2.8 viewing and 3.5 taking lens and the Yashica has 60mm 3.5 taking and viewing lenses, the primo has a 60mm 2.8 toko viewing and a 60mm 2.8 Topcor taking lens.

Yashica had a proto type 44 with 2.8 lenses and cranck wind but it never came into production, leaving the primo probably as the only 4x4TLR with 2.8 lenses.Next to the Yashica the primo feels more solidly build, has a brighter and bigger viewfinder,closer focussing wider shutterspeed range and a coupled shutter-diafragm LV mechanism.

Maybe its 1959 list price of 59$ wich was double that of the Yashica 44 could explain why there are not as much Primo's around. Still the Rolleiflex Baby was 133.65$ back then and they seem to have been sold well.

The Primo JR:



The Primo JR with it's big "uncle":



The Primo JR with it's "nephew"

[frankbarrett]

This camera was also marketed (at least in the US) as the Sawyers Mark IV. While in high school, I bought one new for about $80 in late 1958 at Sears, Roebuck. Used it for years through college and onward and still have it. An excellent, sturdy camera; never had any trouble with it over thousands of rolls of film.