Local finds and inharentance

Store located at: 16716 East 14th Street, San Leandro, CA 94578-2404 (510) 276-8591‎

So we have aquired a new slot machine. It’s a bally’s 5 cent machine that you can bet 5 lines to up your odds of winning. So we now have a total of 7 machines. 6 slot machines and 1 pachinko machine. All we are missing is a juke box (which I am on the prowl for) and a pool table (which we have no room for)

Before we got the new nickel machine, we paid a visit to one of the 2 local slot machine / game room stores.  We didn’t find a slot machine that we wanted. I was chatting with the owner of which is maybe in his 50’s, and at one time was in the Bay Bomber’s Roller derby team.

Anyhow upon a conversation about different things that I collect, he brought out 2 boxes. It was a Polaroid Land Camera Model 95, the first commercially sold self developing camera system. These cameras were manufactured and sold between 1948 and 1953. The early first 300,000 cameras had a spring arm with a red marker located directly above the lens which was used to find the center of the photo scene or subject you wish to shoot.  The first 300,000 had the spring arm, all others after that had a solid metal arm. The kit i bought from him came with the flash gun, bulbs, light meter, old unopened roll film, 3d glasses, and the original boxes for all.

I went back the following week, and took a more detailed look around. I bought a bunch of 78 rpm record albums. I got some super old ones with Benny Goodman, Nak King Cole, and Jimmy Durante. While browsing around, I seen this really odd looking camera. Almost looked like a spy camera.

The Whittaker Micro 16 is smaller than a pack of cigarettes at 71 x 51 x 23.5 mm (2 ¾” x 1″ x 2″) yet this all metal subminiature is heavy at 238g (8 3/8oz). Made in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California by the Wm. R. Whittaker Co. Ltd from 1947 into the ’50’s. The firm was owned by William and Robert Whittaker and had been a maker of aircraft parts. The camera was designed to fit into a cigarette wrapper and profit from the mystique of the Kodak-X matchbox camera. Hundreds where sold it police departments and detective bureaus throughout the United States.

The Whittaker Micro 16 was a subminiature camera for 16mm film cartridges. It was sized like a deck of cards. .It was made by Wm. R. Whittaker, Ltd. in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California since 1946. It had a built-in reflecting type viewfinder. An optional sports finder was available. Detectives liked that camera since it could be hidden in an empty cigarette wrapper.

They also made accessories for the Whittaker Micro 16 camera such as a flash, carrying case, and film frame viewer:

My Grandfather gave me his old 8mm Movie camera made by Yashika. Alot of our old home movies were filmed using this camera. This is my second movie camera. The other I bought on ebay some time back, which you can view the article here:

1950’s Kodak Movie Camera (Ebay Find)

Here is the Movie Camera that my grandfather gave me:

Here a the photos from above plus more detailed shots:

Located at: 16716 East 14th Street, San Leandro, CA 94578-2404 (510) 276-8591‎

If you have any old cameras and would like to get rid of them or sell them please contact me at Skrach@VividlyVintage.com

Photographers are still using these old medium format cameras. You just can’t get the patina that these cameras give the photos without using a program to make the photos look vintage. If you need any info on any older cameras please email me. I may be able to help you with using the camera, and or finding film, parts etc.

I am always looking for old cameras. I am on the hunt for movie cameras made by DeVry. Yes the same devry that is a tech school. When DeVry first started the company was making cameras. They were the first to make a movie camera with sound intregrated. If you know of any cameras please email me also.

Thanks for reading,