The Ansco Craftsman camera kit was manufactured by Ansco of Binghamton, New York in circa 1951. It was camera building kit targeted for young boys, assembled with simple hand tools, a hammer, pliers and screwdriver. The camera body was made of wood and cardboard and covered with a water resistant plastic cover. The face plate, rear door, and parts of the film insert were made of metal. It took eight exposures 2 1/4 x 3 1/4 inches (6 x 9cm) in size on standard no. 120 roll film. The camera featured a fixed focus meniscus lens and an instantaneous rotary shutter. It provided two view finders for taking landscape or portrait photographs. The Ansco Craftsman camera kit was originally priced at $3.50 complete.

In about 1952 Ansco began selling fully assembled craftsman cameras.

Also note that in 1926 Ansco sold a No. 2A Craftsman box camera marketed as a high quality box camera. The front face was covered in leather without a faceplate.

Photo Courtesy of John Kratz - © Some Rights Reserved

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Historic Camera Value and Rating - Estimating Overall Worth (about)

# 2980
2015-07-07 08:23:29