Ica Teddy (146)

Photos by JM text by JM. From the collection of JM. Last update 2014-09-24 par Sylvain Halgand.

Manufactured or assembled in Germany from (Circa) 1914 to (Circa) 1922.
Index of rarity in France: Infrequent (among non-specialized garage sales)
Inventory number: 4078

See the complete technical specifications

Chronology of cameras Ica

Ica AG (International Camera Aktien Gesellschaft) was established in 1909 through the merger of the companies Huttig, Krugener, Wuensche, and Carl Zeiss Palmos, with Zulauf joining in 1911.

Several years were required to finalize this merger, during which production relied on the expertise of each of the founding companies. From this period, you can find some original models, but also often copies from one or another of the previous brands bearing the name Ica, sometimes even not listed in an Ica catalog and without a specific model code.

It was from 1912 that the situation stabilized, and the various camera models began to follow a certain coherence until 1926, when Ica ceased to exist. It was absorbed, along with others, into Zeiss Ikon.

Ica offered a wide range of non-stereo view cameras, which can be classified as follows:

Cameras with a single-extension vertical bellows: Niklas, Alpha, Lola, Teddy, Corrida, Icar (Ikarus), Sirene, Volta, Victrix, and two models with automatically extending bellows upon opening: Atom and Cupido.
Cameras with double-extension vertical bellows: Delta, Hekla, Reicka, Orix, Trix, Minimal, Toska, Trona, Maximar, Nelson, and Ideal.
Cameras with horizontal bellows, exclusively in the 13 x 18 format: Ingo, Jul, and Triplex; the last two have triple extensions.
Square format cameras: Favorit, Tropica, Juwell, and Universal Palmos.
Travel cameras: Amateur, Elegant, Kosmopolit, Hochtourist, and Perfekt. Also, there are studio cameras, with the largest format being 80 x 100 cm.

Finally, there are less common early Ica cameras, such as Minimum Ideal, Superba-Reicka, Reicka-Quer, and Superba-Ideal. Additionally, there are cameras from that same period that lack identification numbers, can be found in multiple categories, and are not listed in catalogs.

__________

This Ica Teddy 146, as shown in its belt, is a solid 9 x 12cm folding plate camera with single extension rail. The housing is made of wood with an aluminum bed. It is close to the model Ica Hekla 168, but with a different focusing system. Although the single rail is fixed, the lens/shutter block is attached to a small central strip which itself is movable and the lug of which moves on a 1.5 cm distance, thereby positioning the bellows. It is with the thumb or index finger, placed on a large knurled button, that we activate the lever along a distance scale located on the bed.
The lens is a Helios Ica 13 cm with a 8 aperture The shutter is a Derval type Ica Automat with pneumatic brake. Also, without cocking, it offers all the slow speeds from the second, but rises to 1/100 sec only.

The identification of this camera is easy because of its belt with a simple fixing system: a screw with a washer. Several Ica models were equipped with it. The Lola, the Sirene, the Teddy and the Volta.

A dealer plate "R. Spörri, Optiker Biel." attached to the body allows to suppose that this unit was sold in Switzerland (Bienne)

Interesting links or bibliography :

Add a link or element of bibliography, a picture taken with this camera, a picture of box or an ads about this camera

Your photos taken with the same camera: