Robot Royal 24 Yellow Rangefinder Patch

[ben_g]

Hi everyone, I recently bought a Robot Royal 24. Everything works great I adore the feel of the camera and the perfection of how it works. The rangefinder is clean and clear, however I noticed the focusing square is a yellow color. My M4 on the other hand has a colorless rangefinder which is very easy to focus. The M4's rangefinder square almost amplifies/illuminates the light inside it. Whereas the Royal's rangefinder is a bit dimmer, yellow, and harder for me to focus.

Is the yellow color of the rangefinder patch from age, or is this typical of the Robot Royals? I know the Leica M3 has a light gold plating on the rangefinder to aid focusing.

If it is typical is there anyway to amplify the rangefinder patch like on a M3 or M4? It seems there aren't many Robot Royals out there so any info would be great!

Thanks

 

[Film dino]

Yes, the rf patch is a yellow circle - not a sign of ageing

 

[ben_g]

I see, mines a rectangle not a circle. Good to know it's the right color though.

I guess since the M4 was designed in the very late 60's and the Royals were originally designed in the early 50's glass/mirror technology may not have been as advanced for creating a luminous rangefinder.

Other then the less luminous rangefinder i'd say the build quality is better then an M3/M4.

 

[Film dino]

Oops, I assumed the rangefinder patches on 24 & 36 would be the same. I don't know the viewfinder magnifications of either 24 or 36 Royal models; on my 36 its lower than 0.72 The rangefinder base seems quite long & in use focussing accuracy is good. Are you in North America? Can PM you contact details of a tech in NYC who specialises in Robot & other older European cameras.
Cheers, David

 

[Edward C. Zimmermann]

Yellow rangefinder patch

Yellow rangefinder patch

Robot used a yellow rangefinder patch. This was quite common. A round tinted patch demands good quality and "perfect" alignment in both horizontal and vertical. The Leica M2/M3 also used this technique.
If you look carefully you will notice that the window itself is tinted pale blue. The eye responds well to the contrast between blue and yellow. The phenomenon is called "simultaneous contrast". Blue and yellow creates an illusion of white and so the main window appears clearer. While its dimmer than the current gray/white fashion its typically easier to focus since the patch is "intensified". Since the viewfinders were set for a single focal length of view, auxiliary viewfinders for framing were anyway quite common.

The trend to neutral gray window with white patch was less a technical "improvement" than a cost rationalization (its much cheaper to manufacture).

Other then the less luminous rangefinder i'd say the build quality is better then an M3/M4.

The build quality is indeed better. These cameras were, however, also expensive.

 

[Edward C. Zimmermann]

Oops, I assumed the rangefinder patches on 24 & 36 would be the same.

Indeed--- and quite oddly--- they are not the same. My Royal 24 is square--- he window is made with the top plate--- while the Royal 35 is round--- made with a little round raised ring. The other most significant difference is: while all Royal 24/III models had burst modus many Royal 36 models were without it.

Example of a Robot Royal 24 (Scientific version with 10m magazine and auxiliary spring booster):

Robot III (precursor to Royal 24):

Robot Royal 18 (Scientific version):

Example of a Robot Royal 36 (this picture is of a scientific version, notice the shutter speed dial and the [mot] instead of [m] pc jack on the bottom right). Notice how the rangefinder window (on the left) has a raised ring instead of cut-out:

 

[ZeissFan]

One of the foibles of using only one camera is that you assume that all cameras will operate in the same manner.

It can then cause you to make unfair comparisons: "This camera isn't like my Nikon or Canon or Leica," which often then leads to the conclusion that "this camera isn't as good as my Nikon or Canon or Leica."

 

[ben_g]

Thanks for all the info. Indeed the viewfinder window has a bluish tint to it, and the rangefinder square is yellow. My 24 has the scientific notches in the shutter speed wheel and the burst mode, it actually hurts my finger a bit to turn it as the notches are sharp and the robot's tolerance are tight so turning it is also tight. I wonder what the notches were used for back then, was there something that attached to the shutter dial? I have my first roll in the camera now, really looking forward to seeing the shots I love the 24 by 24 frame.

 

[ben_g]

I wonder what the field of view in the Robot 24 equals. Is it equivalent to say a 28mm lens or a 40.

 

[Edward C. Zimmermann]

I wonder what the field of view in the Robot 24 equals. Is it equivalent to say a 28mm lens or a 40.

The standard view of a Robot 24 is for the 38 and 40mm. Its horizontal view is approx. what one gets with a 45mm in 24x36 (this is also what the viewfinder in the Royal 36 is set for).
From a distance of 100m a 24x36 camera using a 50mm objective can capture an image that is 48x72m large. A Robot 24 using a 40mm can capture 57.5x56.25m.

 

[Edward C. Zimmermann]

I wonder what the notches were used for back then, was there something that attached to the shutter dial?

Yes. Its for mounting hardware (KULI). The KULI also contains a magnetic shutter release. The combination camera+KULI+SAVIP (electric motor)+Magazine (there were several with capacity of 10m and upwards) ...

 

[Edward C. Zimmermann]

KULI

(picture found from Kevin's Cameras)

There are a number of inserts for the objectives. Most people remove the speed dial from the KULI (codename: VACAR) since one generally does not want to change the speed.
The magnetic release (code: VACUM) comes in a number of voltages: typically 12v and 24v.
There are also a number of plates for the KULI to mount on things: baseplate and angle bracket. They are not shown in the above picture!

The whole point of the KULI is to allow one to mount the camera on something--- like a wall--- and be able to trigger it remotely. There was a interval generator to do time lapse.. and there was even a motor to control the aperture according to light level..

[These days its a relatively obsolete piece of kit since most of the applications that once called for camera mounting have been replaced by digital technology, typically even IP--- in my company we have a number of remote IP cameras with motion and IR sensors constantly streaming their boring images to disks

]