Expert: David Silver - 6/2/2006

Question
I have four old cameras that I wish to sell and would like to get an idea of their value.  They are:
1)Kodak Vigilant Six 20 - made in Canada
2)Paxette from Braun Nornberg
3)Agfa Compur - German.  Do you know how to close this?  I opened the accordian front and can't find the catch that will release it.
4)Baby Brownie Special

Thank you for any information you might be able to provide!

June

Answer
Hello June,

I'm afraid you don't have any real treasures there, but let's look at each of them...

The Vigilant Six-20 is a very common amateur's folding bellows camera, made by Eastman Kodak 1939 to 1949, for 2 1/4 x 3 1/4 inch exposures on #620 roll film.  Top value today for a truly excellent example is only about $25.

The were MANY different versions of the Paxette, a series of 35mm cameras, made by Braun of Germany from 1951 to 1967.  Values are all over the place, from $25 for the most common ones to $125 for their better versions, so you really need to tell me more about this camera so I can determine the exact model.

Compur is the name of a shutter, not a camera.  Agfa is the manufacturer.  Goodness knows which model you have, since Agfa made dozens and dozens of different folding bellows cameras over four decades, and most of them were available with the Compur shutter!  Well, since this is the second camera I need to know more about, perhaps you could send me a picture.  If you can, send a single simple JPEG image showing the Agfa and the Paxette sitting side by side to my personal e-mail address <silver@well.com> and I'll get right back to you with proper identifications and values.

Finally, the Baby Brownie Special.  An EXTREMELY common plastic snapshot camera, made by Eastman Kodak 1939 to 1954, for 1 5/8 x 1 5/8 inch exposures on #127 roll film.  Literally millions of these were sold.  A perfect example would bring about $10.

Best wishes,

David Silver