Camerapedia
Japanese Six (6×6)
Prewar and wartime models (edit)
folding
Adler Six | Bonny Six | Clover-Six | Condor Six | First Six | Gelto Six | Gotex | Green | Lyra Six | Super Makinet Six | Mamiya Six | Miyako Six | Mulber Six | Mulix | National Six | Neure Six | Oko Six | Olympus Six | Pilot Six | Romax | Ugein | Vester-Six | Victor Six | Weha Six
collapsible
Ehira Chrome Six | Minolta Six | Shinko Super | Weha Chrome Six
unknown
Freude Six | Heart Camera | Konter Six | Tsubasa Six
Postwar models ->
Japanese 6×6 TLR, pseudo TLR and medium format SLR ->
Japanese Semi (4.5×6) and older 6×9 ->

The Pilot Six (パイロットシックス) is a Japanese 6×6 folder, made by Tachibana Shōkai.[1] It was announced in 1940 and 1941 and sold from 1942.[2] It is said that the Adler Six is a rebadged version sold by Riken.[3]

Description[]

The Pilot Six is a horizontal folding camera, copied from the Ikonta B. It has a folding frame finder in the middle of the top plate, a body release on the right and a key at the top left to advance the film. There are strap lugs at both ends of the top plate. The back is hinged to the right.

Advertisements and other documents[]

The camera is not mentioned in the official list of set prices compiled in October 1940 and published in January 1941, presumably because it was not available yet.[4] It first appears in an advertisement in the December 1940 issue of Asahi Camera.[5] In the January 1941 issue of the same magazine, it is advertised as "available soon" (近日発売) with a choice of f/4.5 or f/3.5 lens.[6] In the advertisement in the September issue, it is presented as "long awaited" (待望), with two lens options (f/4.5 and f/3.5, both called Pilot Anastigmat) and three shutter options (T, B, 5–200; T, B, 1–300 and T, B, 1–300 with selftimer, all three called Pilot).[7] In the official price list dated November 1941, the camera appears as "Pilot Six I" and perhaps in other versions as well.[8]

In advertisements dated February 1942, the Pilot Six is listed in two versions, both with a Pilot shutter giving T, B, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 200 speeds:[9]

  • Pilot Anastigmat f/4.5 lens (¥92);
  • Pilot Anastigmat f/3.5 lens (¥109).

The Pilot Six is still mentioned in the "Kokusan shashinki no genjōchōsa" ("Inquiry into Japanese cameras"), listing the Japanese camera production as of April 1943, again in two versions with f/4.5 or f/3.5 lens and T, B, 5–200 speeds.[10] The two lenses have three elements and were made by Sugimoto, as well as the shutter called "Pilot Six I".[11]

Notes[]

  1. Made by Tachibana: advertisements published in Asahi Camera January and September 1941, reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.83, say that Tachibana was the maker and distributor of the Pilot cameras: "パイロツト写真用品製造発売元". This is also confirmed by the "Kokusan shashinki no genjōchōsa" ("Inquiry into Japanese cameras"), items 82–3.
  2. Dates : Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.339.
  3. Tanaka, p.9 of Kurashikku Kamera Senka no.14.
  4. "Kokusan shashinki no kōtei kakaku".
  5. Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.339.
  6. Advertisement reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.83.
  7. Advertisement reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.83.
  8. "Kamera no kōtei kakaku kanpō happyō", November 1941, type 4, section 3.
  9. Advertisement in Shashin Bunka reproduced in Kokusan kamera no rekishi, p.83; advertisement in Asahi Camera, visible in this page of Xylocopal's photolog.
  10. "Kokusan shashinki no genjōchōsa" ("Inquiry into Japanese cameras"), items 168–9.
  11. "Kokusan shashinki no genjōchōsa" ("Inquiry into Japanese cameras"), lens items Lb12 and Lc21, shutter item 18-U-8.

Bibliography[]

The Pilot Six is not listed in Sugiyama.

Links[]

In Japanese