Is this a Rodenstock Clarovid?

[hsandler]

I have an oddball folding 120 rangefinder that I found in a flea market. It appears to be nearly identical to a Rodenstock Clarovid (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myR7W00wvfs) or Welta Solida (http://camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Welta_Solida).

The mechanics are identical to the Clarovid (coupled rangefinder with separate viewing window. The lens is a Rodenstock Ysar f3.9 in a Compur shutter.

The differences from the Clarovids that I have seen online are:

-leatherette does not have "Rodenstock" embossed on the front handgrip; it does have the embossed box that normally encloses the printing. The leatherette is in remarkably good shape for its age; perhaps it was replaced at some point? But in that case, surprising that it has the embossed box.
-back has only a single red window for 6x9 frame spacing. The Clarovids I have seen online have two windows, one for 6x4.5 with an insertable mask.

Some photos of my camera are here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/hsandler/albums/72157653847996822

The Welta Solida, from what I've seen online, had "Welta" embossed on the front and did not have an Ysar lens.

Do any experts on German folder history have any information? Perhaps Welta made another version of the camera for a third party vendor?

 

[hanskerensky]

Yes, that is a Clarovid.

Have a look here :
http://www.collection-appareils.fr/x/html/camera-1916-Rodenstock_Clarovid.html

The focus distance scale is straight, not curved like on a Welta Solida.

I have a Clarovid II which is in many respects the same :


Rodenstock Clarovid II (01) by Hans Kerensky, on Flickr

 

[hsandler]

Thanks Hans. Mine has the straight focus scale. The collections-appareils site describes the Clarovid as dual-format, but mine only has a single red window, and does not have "Rodenstock" embossed on it, so I thought perhaps there was a budget model sold by some party other than Rodenstock that is not catalogued.

 

[hanskerensky]

Thanks Hans. Mine has the straight focus scale. The collections-appareils site describes the Clarovid as dual-format, but mine only has a single red window, and does not have "Rodenstock" embossed on it, so I thought perhaps there was a budget model sold by some party other than Rodenstock that is not catalogued.

Well, that is surely interesting !
Maybe indeed a budget model.

McKeowns price guide 2005/2006 describes the Clarovid on page 845.
He writes that the Rangefinder is Rodenstocks but the body is a Welta Solida.

He also writes, and this might be interesting, that this camera was also sold as the Schaja-Korrekt I by Photo-Schaja from Munich. Maybe your camera then ?

However, trying to find an image of an identified Schaja-Korrekt proves to be a very illusive undertaking :bang: