Spartus 35

Spartus 35 Overview

The Spartus 35 is the direct successor to the original Spartus 35F. After Herold bought out Spartus in 1951, it decided to update the 35 (which was modeled after the Argus A), creating the design you see above which was probably based loosely on the Kodak Pony.

The 35 features an unnamed lens with a minimum focus distance of four feet. Focus is tuned by rotating the dial immediately surrounding the front element with distance scale measured in feet as a guide. The aperture is controlled by rotating the small metal disc at six o’clock on the lens barrel; choices are BRIGHT (f/16), HAZY (f/11), CLOUDY (f/8), and DULL (f/5.6). There are only two shutter speeds available: T (Time) and I (instant, about 1/60 seconds). Choosing speeds is done via a switch at five o’clock on the lens barrel while the shutter lever itself is located at 10.

A winding knob for advancing film can be found on the user’s far right-hand side of the top plate. In the middle are two holes for an external flash unit just above the viewfinder window. Next to the viewfinder is a frame counter and on the far left is the film rewind knob which can only be used when the small silver button in the bottom right corner of the camera back is held down. Above the film rewind button is a breech lock for the film door. The only thing of note on the bottom is a tripod socket.

I got this Spartus 35 through an eBay auction for about $10 and now it has a proud place on the Chicago shelf of my display cabinet. I like the no-nonsense styling with subtle brown tones to set it apart from the sea of black and silver cameras and the heavy industrial look of the focus knob.