Bentzin Primar plate camera with Compur shutter and Carl Zeiss Tessar lens
This is a compact plate camera. Bentzin was producing cameras as early as 1889! It is hard to estimate how old this one exactly is, but we think it must be from the twenties.
Unbelievably, the shutter still works and the speeds seem accurate. The number is 2238897.
The lens itself is thus in good condition. The glass is clear and scratch free. The folding mechanism works reasonably well. The bellows are not completely light proof. They are not torn but they do show heavy wear on some corners. It has also been mended in an ugly way on a couple of occasions.
The leather camera covering is also in bad shape. Broken on several places. A poor attempt has been made by the previous owner to stick it together with modern black tape… What a shame!
All and all we would still like to recommend this working Bentzin Primar for it’s rareness and its (almost) antique status.
