The Univex Mercury is a half-frame viewfinder camera with a rotary shutter. It was introduced in 1938.
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| Mercury II, with flash, image by Ken Osborn |
Specifications Mercury I[]
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| Mercury I, model CC, image by Paola Marinangeli |
- Type: viewfinder camera
- Manufacturer: Universal Camera Corp. USA
- Year of launch: 1938 (Model CC-1500 launched in 1939)
- Film: Univex #200-series film, for 65 half size (18×24mm) exposures
- Construction: Aluminum alloy
- Viewfinder: Galilean type optical finder
- Available Lenses: Tricor f/2.7 35mm, Tricor f/3.5 35mm, Hexar f/2.0 35mm, others: 75mm, 125mm
- Shutter: Rotary metal focal plane shutter with speeds T,B,1/20 - 1/1000sec (1/20 - 1/1500 on Model CC-1500) plus F hot synch
- Dimensions: 138×88×60mm
- Weight: 530g
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A rewind button, rewind knob, and a permanent take-up spool were added necessities for the standard 35mm film.
Other differences between the Mercury I and II include a redesigned film counter dial, enlarged shutter wind and shutter speed knobs, elimination of neck cord lugs, and a synthetic covering in place of the leather on the Mercury I. The Mercury II was also cast from an aluminum/magnesium alloy which did not retain its luster like the aluminum alloy of the Mercury I.
Specifications Mercury II[]
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| Mercury II, with rangefinder (device), image by John Bosko |
- Type: viewfinder camera
- Manufacturer: Universal Camera Corp. USA
- Year of launch: 1945
- Film: 35mm film, for 65 half size (18×24mm) exposures
- Construction: Aluminum/magnesium alloy
- Viewfinder: Galilean type optical finder
- Available Lenses: Tricor f/2.7 35mm (coated), Tricor f/3.5 35mm (non coated), Hexar f/2.0, others: 75mm, 125mm
- Shutter: Rotary metal focal plane shutter with speeds T,B,1/20 - 1/1000sec plus F hot synch
- Dimensions: 145×95×60mm
- Weight: 600g
Bibliography[]
- Repinski, Cynthia A. The UniveX Story. Centennial Photo Service, 1991. ISBN 0931838177.
Links[]
- Articles about UniveX Mercury, by Dana Kennedy, at Old Cameras From My Collection
- Mercury at The Classic Camera
- Mercury II in the Living Image Camera Museum
- Pages of the camera collection by Sylvain Halgand:
- Mercury CC in the Virtual Camera Museum at www.virtualcameramuseum.com
- Reloading Mercury I cameras, an article of the Subclub website
- Cameras from the swing era, including the Mercury, at www.jitterbuzz.com
- English manual for the Mercury (.pdf format) and for the Mercury II at butkus.org's orphan camera site
- Univex Mercury: The American Way, review and design notes in Rick Oleson's website
- Universal Camera Corp. patents