Two Beautiful Hand-Crank Cameras, ca. 1910 – CinemaGear

While I was struggling this week with a strange shutter noise on the Fox camera, I helped a private collector from back East to transfer these two amazing cameras to another private collector here in Los Angeles. The first camera is a 1910 Debrie Le Parvo Special, which is unique in that the camera housing is constructed from Bakelite. This camera is a wonderful example of the very early Parvo cameras. The second camera in this collection is an Askania of all metal construction. It is similar in design to the Parvo, and was fun to play with. Note that both cameras have four position turrets, a very unusual and rare feature from these makers. As for the Fox camera, I have fully assembled it on its Freehead and tripod, and powered it up for the first time. It is presently making a concerning shutter rubbing noise, so I will take a closer look at that next week.