The Meyer Megoflex
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The Restored Megoflex on a Leica II
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In 1932-3 the lens maker Hugo Meyer of Görlitz introduced a strange accessory for several types of 35mm camera, converting them to a twin-lens reflex. They were sold in small numbers for several years, and do now turn up for sale from time to time.
Serial numbers seem to start low (I have seen serial numbers from 1xx to 14xx) and I guess that somewhere in the region of 2000 may have been made overall. As well as these low numbers, I have seen a picture of just one with a different layout of the engraved maker’s details and a 6-digit serial number – a strange anomaly. If you know more, please tell me! In 1933 the UK price was £5 15s 0d, as advertised by Meyer’s UK agent, A.O. Roth. By the 1936 BJA it had vanished from their catalogue. The commonest fittings seem to be for screw-mount Leica, and each model of Leica needed a different version of Megoflex, marked with a I, II, etc. They were also made for Contax , Krauss Peggy, Nagel Pupille (?), and perhaps other quality cameras of the period. They can only be used with the standard 45mm or 50mm lens. Looking at other examples than the one for Leica II described here, there is quite a bit of detailed variation especially on the arrangements for attaching the Megoflex to the camera. Not surprising, as it has to be adapted to the exact position of the shoe, and of the front of the lens, and often the need to avoid various other features on the top and front of the camera body. The principle is just like the top half of a TLR, with a lens, mirror, ground-glass screen, hood and magnifier, with an additional mirror which can be flipped to 45° above the screen for eye-level viewing. A roller below the front of the device touches the front rim of the camera’s lens, so as the camera focus is adjusted, the Megoflex’s lens moves too and follows the camera lens in and out, thus focusing the image in the ground-glass screen.
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Megoflex as received, with failing paintwork, a missing lever and unable to lock onto the camera.
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As for my example, for Leica II, when I got it was badly worn externally with a good deal of paint loss, had a missing hinge pin and lever on the left, and was dirty and sticky. It needed a thorough overhaul.
After a general clean, the first problem was the attachment to the camera’s shoe. Unlike most accessories the Megoflex can’t be slid into the shoe from the back, because of the lever and roller sticking downwards at the front. Instead, it is dropped vertically onto the shoe and locked in place by rotating a catch. In this case, the height of the catch was mis-set so that it would not engage with the shoe of the camera. Its height adjustment is achieved by a screw with a strange non-standard 5.7mm x 60tpi thread, which was set at the wrong height. This should have just been a simple operation of undoing the locking screw and rotating the collar, but the collar was very stiff and tight despite use of penetrating oil. It came off in the end using great force! I got a set of thread chasers from Tracy Tools. Thread chasers aren’t much used, as most threads are standardised these days, but there was no chance of a tap and die for this one. I mounted the screw with its integral T-shaped end (the catch) in the lathe using the 4-jaw chuck, and used the 60tpi chaser hand-held at very low speed - which did a brilliant job of cleaning and slightly recutting the male thread. I then had to make an insert for the locking lever/pin on the collar, which was loose and broken just at the end – it now screws in (M2.2). |
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One part was completely missing and had to be made from scratch, the external arm that controls the mirror above the ground-glass screen. Fortunately I had a dimensioned sketch (below) so I was able to reproduce it; I thought the drawing came from Rick Oleson’s website, but I can’t now find it there. It is a brass lever with a tiny knob, and at the other end a little shaft that also acts as the hinge pin for the mirror’s movement. This should be a screw, but in my case the internal thread seems to be stripped, so I made the new shaft a snug fit and used a drop of Loctite to hold it in – it can be pulled out later with a bit of force if further service is needed.
The new mirror lever and its 45° stop
Note the "II" marking denoting a Megoflex for Leica II
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Then there was the paintwork. The base casting was stripped down to metal with paint stripper and resprayed. The lens barrel was resprayed over the original, and the hood was left as-is except for polishing the top of the hood with Autosol to brighten it up.
The result doesn’t look new, as you would expect. In particular I did as little as possible to the various flaps of the hood, and didn’t attempt to dismantle it, so it it is still slightly awry. However, it locks smoothly onto the camera, focuses correctly, and folds and unfolds reasonably smoothly.
The result doesn’t look new, as you would expect. In particular I did as little as possible to the various flaps of the hood, and didn’t attempt to dismantle it, so it it is still slightly awry. However, it locks smoothly onto the camera, focuses correctly, and folds and unfolds reasonably smoothly.
Now it is working, how good an accessory is it? It is easy and quick to attach and remove. It functions as both viewfinder and rangefinder, so we can consider how it does at both jobs. The first, and positive, thing to say is that as the camera has separate windows for the two functions, the Megoflex allows all to be done in one view. As a viewfinder the coverage is approximately correct, though as with any TLR, flipped L-R. The focusing is also in agreement with the markings on the lens, so the device is functional. Whether it is really more convenient will be a matter of personal preference. Used as a waist-level finder you are looking at a bigger image than the camera’s viewfinder, but the Leica finder, though small, is bright and sharp, the Megoflex less so. The eye-level view through the Megoflex is less convincing – a little less sharp than the direct screen view, and not terribly bright. For focusing I find the Leica’s built-in rangefinder quicker and more definite.
With the Megoflex mounted you can’t use the camera’s own finders, as both are obscured.
Overall, although the Megoflex is a well-made and functional item, I prefer the Leica’s built-in facilities. I expect most users, if they tried it out in a shop, would reach the same conclusion. I believe that the reason the Megoflex is uncommon was that few were sold, because it didn’t offer the user much of a benefit.
With the Megoflex mounted you can’t use the camera’s own finders, as both are obscured.
Overall, although the Megoflex is a well-made and functional item, I prefer the Leica’s built-in facilities. I expect most users, if they tried it out in a shop, would reach the same conclusion. I believe that the reason the Megoflex is uncommon was that few were sold, because it didn’t offer the user much of a benefit.