Alsaphot Memox 3 |
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Manufactured or assembled in France from (Circa) 1950 to (Circa) 1957.
Index of rarity in France: Infrequent (among non-specialized garage sales)
Inventory number: 14522
See the complete technical specifications
Chronology of cameras Alsaphot
The Memox was introduced by SIAP. At that time, it was a 24 x 24 format camera. It's small, entirely metallic, and uniformly black. The film used was 35mm in a 135 cartridge; a receiving reel identical to the feed reel, which was supplied with the camera, allowed for cutting the film without waiting for it to finish. The advertising pitch was that it's sometimes too long to wait for an entire roll of film to be exposed before getting it developed. The lens was a Saphir Boyer 3.5/35mm mounted on a Gitzo shutter at 1/125 or an Atos-1 at 1/150.
Around 1951, production of the Memox camera was taken over by Alsaphot. It's known that the connections between Alsaphot and SIAP extended beyond just the Memox, as there's a D'Assas camera carrying the SIAP brand. It's possible that SIAP continued to manufacture some or all of the cameras under subcontract from Alsaphot. The first modification was adding a chrome-looking hood and baseplate to the camera. The format remained the same. The Atos shutter was replaced by a Compur shutter. Two Boyer lenses were available, and several catalogs defined these combinations as Type III and Type IV.
It wasn't until around 1953 that the camera switched to a 24 x 36 format. The 24 x 24 model was still available, but it's possible that it was just selling off remaining stock. The lenses remained the same.
The model disappeared from the market by the end of the 1950s.
Brand | Model | Years (c.) | Lens Boyer | Shutter | name in catalogs |
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SIAP | Memox 24 x 24 |
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1946-50 | Saphir 3.5/35 |
Atos-1 1/10 to 1/150, B | |
Memox 24 x 24 |
1946-50 | Saphir 3.5/35 |
Gitzo 1/25 to 1/150, B | |||
Alsaphot | Memox 24 x 24 |
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1950-57 | Topaz 3.5/35 |
Gitzo 1/25 to 1/200, B synchronized |
type III |
Memox 24 x 24 |
1950-57 | Saphir 3.5/35 |
Compur 1 to 1/300, B synchronized |
type IV | ||
Memox 3 | ![]() |
Topaz 3,5/35 |
Gitzo 1/25 à 1/200, B synchronisé |
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Memox 24 x 36 |
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1950-59 | Topaz 3.5/35 |
Gitzo 1/25 to 1/150, B synchronized |
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Memox 24 x 36 |
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1950-59 | Topaz 3.5/35 |
Gitzo 1/25 to 1/200, B synchronized |
type III |
|
Memox 24 x 36 |
1950-59 | Saphir 3.5/35 |
Compur 1/500 synchronized |
type IV |
The 24 x 24 mm format is found in the square window of the viewfinder. The round plate at the bottom of the front no longer mentions this format, and the name that appears is Memox 3.
The lens is a Boyer Topaz 3.5/35 mm. The shutter is a Gitzo. Therefore, this Memox 3 has the same characteristics as the standard Memox 24 x 24.
The reason for the name change, from Memox 24 x 24 to Memox 3, is unknown. It is likely a late change. The new name does not appear in the catalogs. In the Central-Photo catalog from 1956-57, Type III and Type IV are mentioned.
![Alsaphot Memox 3](../../alsaphot/images/Memox_3.jpg)
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