Vintage Argus C3 35mm Rangefinder Brick Camera

The Argus C3 camera was the first 35mm camera I ever had.My father gave me his camera when I was about 10 yeard old and I used it for many years, including honors photography courses in Chicago. Although the camera was a rangefinder and was faitly primitive in many regards, I learned so much about photography when I used it. I learbed about fstops, film speed, and how to use a light meter (which you had to buy separately). Of course, I really wanted a Nikon, which I got when I was in my eary 20s. Since then, I have had many other cameras.I don’t remember what happened to my old Argus but I began to miss my old friend for the past year or so. My dad, who was 95-years old was growing more fragile by the day and I spent many hours sharing some of the thousands of photos I have taken over the years.He died in January and I decided to get another Argus. My “new” camera arrived in almost mint conditioh. It came with a case, primitive lens cap and instruction manual. The price was fair and delivery was quick. I had forgotten how much it had weighed but is still felt good in my hands. Thanks!

Opened the box and to my pleasant surprise I got a cream colored one. Start testing to see if it worked and had no issues other than the shutter getting stuck once. After breaking it in a little bit, its been running smooth ever since. I will note some cosmetic damage, mainly peeling of the leather (or whatever the material is), but that can simply be tacked back down. Also needed some cleaning with some isopropyl alc and a qtip. Good condition considering its older than my great grandmother (god rest her soul)

The seller was helpful with both the camera and information. He helped me select the right one for me and even sent pictures of my specific purchase before shipping. I recommend the camera as it is a great starter camera for film and the seller for sending it clean and working as promised.

Classic, Common, Mediocre and Cheap. They call it the brick because that's how it is shaped and how much it weights. The lens is OK, the shutter is simple and durable but seldom very accurate, and it is a camera designed for slow black and white film. As with any old camera, everything can get very stiff with age. Not, it's not very comfortable to carry around and the viewfinders are usually so dirty it's hard to use the rangefinder and frame your shot. These were made in the millions and you should never pay more than a few bucks for one. That said, there are three versions-- The original C that does not have the gear to couple the rangefinder to the lens, the C2 that is coupled but has different knobs and the most common, the C3. The C sometimes had a dual range shutter. A C model can be worth several hundred dollars, especially with the very rare box. The C3 Matchmatic has tan leather and is often touted as the "harry potter" camera (used in the films). It should always come with a working add-on meter and is worth a little more than a regular C3 but is still very common. A special "Golden Shield" version was done for a drug store chain and is the rarest of the C3's, and worth up to a few hundred.If you really want an early 35mm camera that is actually good for photograpy, get a Kodak Retina 2 or 3 series camera. These can usually be found for under a hundred, have excellent coated lenses that work well with color or b&w film, fold up compactly for easy carrying, and are excellent, German-made camers.

Nice gift for a camera collector

I was shocked when I opened the box and saw that my camera was tan. That was a wonderful surprise! I used sewing machine lubricant to loosen the gears and everything now works splendidly!

I was excitedly waiting to receive this vintage camera. I received it yesterday and was very disappointed. First the packaging was terrible. It was poorly packed. Wen I received it the box looked like it was falling apart in a flimsy box. Next when I open the flimsy box I was even more disappointed to see this camera. The casing was terrible threads were coming apart. No strap no snap. Really I understand vintage but to me this just looks like junk. It will be returned ASAP.

It didn't really take long for the package to get to me. The camera works and takes decent quality photos. Always make sure to read up on the person you are buying from as well as the product itself