Ricoh Singlex TLS Camera & Hanimar 35mm f3.5 Lens

August 18, 2023

Ricoh Singlex TLS Camera & Hanimar 35mm f3.5 Lens

Lovely camera that I purchased from an Antique Warehouse in Bendigo. It was in excellent condition. It came with a Hanimar 35mm f3.5. Hanimar was one of the lenses distributed by Hanimex, produced by unspecified manufacturers. It was released in 1983. Luckily, I had an expired roll of Fuji Superia 100 spare in my bag.

This lens was a little intriguing though. It had an extra control ring on it that I had never seen on a lens before. This control ring has 2 arrows pointing in opposite directions and at the end of one arrow the letter 'O' and the other has the letter 'C'.

I found that this is called a 'Preset Lens' meaning, the aperture diaphragm manually stops down when adjusted and then a separate dial is used to quickly open, and then close, the aperture when a brighter view is required for focusing or composition. Apparently it was a common configuration before automatic diaphragms became popular.

So, the idea is to choose the settings you'll be using for your photo. Turn the ring toward the 'O' til it stops. The aperture is now wide open for you to focus and compose the photo. Once that is done, turn the ring in the direction of the 'C' which will return the aperture to the correct setting for the photo. There was a few times I forgot to close the aperture after focussing and I expected a few photos to be overexposed but was pleasantly surprised to find that only a few required a slight adjustment in the scanning process.

The lens mount on the Ricoh is M42 so, I can also use it on my Practika LTL3. I always try and purchase cameras and lenses that I can interchange.

The lens is in good condition and the glass is as clear as a bell! Because I wear multifocal glasses, I did find focussing a little difficult but seemed to have got it right after taking my time.

The camera was introduced by Ricoh in June 1967. It has a vertically travelling metal shutter and features through the lens metering. It has a needle exposure meter seen through the viewfinder which can be turned on or off by a switch on the camera body. ISO ranges from 25 to 1000 and shutter speed is Bulb and 1 second - 1/1000 second. Originally it took a Mercury battery but there are modern day equivalents that can also be used. A very solidly built camera with a sweet shutter sound!