Corfield Periflex!

[laptoprob]

Well, not really a rangefinder, OK.
It is kinda cool though. Very nice design and higly original.
Focusing is done with a periscope mirror. The black thing parked on the left on top is an extra mirror piece to enable looking into the periscope horizontally.

 

[laptoprob]

Help!

Help!

The lens mount is 39mm Leica thread. Leica lenses will fit! And focus properly.
The bad news is my newly built shutter speed tester (the computer soundcard one) revealed the shutter is too slow. Strangely enough progressively slow. 1/30 is 1/35 in reality, 1/60 is 1/45, 1/125 is 1/70, 1/250 is 1/90, 1/500 is 1/130 and 1/1000 is 1/150. These times are consistent: every time about the same.
This could well be a lube thing, does anyone know about these cameras?
The shutter system looks very Leica-like. Horizontal cloth shutter, shutter distance dial like the Leica screwmounts.
Curiously enough the shutter is cocked separately of the advance!

Any information is very welcome.

 

[Evgeny S]

Rob, if you've built so known "$5 shutter speed tester" take into account that it's VERY difficult to measure the short speeds (shorter than 1/100) properly. This tester gives good results only on slow speeds. So probably your Corfield shutter works better than it showed 🙂

 

[Azinko]

Interesting,....It must be nearly 40 years since I last saw and used one of these.

This was a British made and designed cameras which was really intended for technical use with osciloscopes and microscopes etc. It's inspiration were the many leica cameras used by the Royal Air Force during the research work on early radar both during and just after WWII. Such was the need for scope cameras that the UK War Dept had caused the leica production to be removed from Wetzlar at the end of WWII to be set up in the Uk as the 'Reid' camera production by the aeronaughtics company, 'Reid & Sigrist'. However, these were expensive and always in short supply so various companies and individuals attempted to fill the gap. The 'Periflex' is one of those. It was not very nice to use as the basic crudeness compared to Reid or leica was intrusive. Also, the front shutter button lets it down in my opinion, at least for it's intended purpose with technical equipement in a recording camera mode.

This camera was/is interesting and of original design not used by any other company/designer, but was essentially a failure although there was an improved, more 'upmarket' version with which the Corfield company hoped to entice amateur photographers. Unfortunately, these never had the 'feel' of presicion German/British cameras.

 

[laptoprob]

tester accuracy

tester accuracy

Rob, if you've built so known "$5 shutter speed tester" take into account that it's VERY difficult to measure the short speeds (shorter than 1/100) properly. This tester gives good results only on slow speeds. So probably your Corfield shutter works better than it showed 🙂

Well, that may be but when I was testing my Leica IIf against other cameras to figure out how to read the graphs produced by the tester I could figure out shutter speeds up to 250 or 500. 1000 is really pushing it, that depends on shutter and light source I think.
So I really am not convinced about my Corfields shutter accuracy. I think it must be thickened lube slowing the speed action down. Only the slightly faster timing at 1/30 is curious...

Thanks for your info, Azinko!

 

[reagan]

First one I've seen. Certainly very interesting and definately unique. Congrats on the acquisition and best of luck on making it a shooter again!

 

[Branestawm]

Congratulations on your purchase, these are interesting cameras with a character all of there own. K.G. Corfield made two basic designs of the Periflex and You have the early version which ran from about 1953 and was replaced around five years later by a more complex machine with slow speeds and a periscope which moves into place as the camera is wound on and springs up when the shutter is released. Focusing and viewing are by closely spaced eyepieces similar to many vintage rf's. As people have noted the focusing on these cameras is a little slow, a bit like using an early slr without auto aperture control but it does allow for close-up work and long lenses. I have 3a fitted with a 45mm f1.9 Lumax which will focus to nine inches. Corfield marketed a full range of lenses from 28mm to 400mm(!) and although sometimes described as a Leica copy it is full of origonal features:

Sprocketless film advance which simplifies the design but leads to irregular frame spacing.

Glass film pressure plate which is held in place by a foam rubber pad

The film counter runs in reverse and shows the number of frames left on the film

On the later cameras the front component of the finder is removable and can be interchanged with ones of other focal lengths to suit the lens in use thus eliminating the need for a separate finder

The brightwork is polished (and soft) aluminium rather than chrome.

Incedentally Ken Corfield is, I believe, still active and is the proprieter of Gandolfi who have been making large format field cameras for well over a century.

Paul

 

[laptoprob]

Thank you Paul.
I am still puzzled about the lens on mine: a 45mm/3,5. According to the internet sources this was not the lens originally made for the first generation of Periflexes but for the later 3rd gen I think. It does focus properly though, downto very close.
I have to do some testshots to confirm my suspicion of the shutter times.
I did Rick Oleson's TV test and it confirms my cheap computer-sound shutter tester: too little difference between the shutter times.

Thanks!

 

[Azinko]

Just found this interesting site with history and info on all the various wonderful Corfield products etc.....

http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/CorfieldCameras/corfield.htm#menu

 

[laptoprob]

Yes, that is one of the very few sites with info. I recently got an everready-case for the Periflex, but it is too high. Made for the later generations of Periflex. Anyone interested?
Brown leather ofcourse, with the silly 'made in germany' on the bottom!

 

[pesphoto]

very cool looking, Have fun with that one!