This is my Canon Canonflex RM (Ser. No. 178254). The built in selenium light meter is above and to the left of the lens.
The Bayonet Lug Ring is the same for all Canonflex cameras and for all of Canon’s film SLR’s to follow. That does not mean that all FL and FD lenses will work on this camera.
On the RM and the RP the self timer uses the more traditional lever on the front that also indicates time left on the timer.
Notice the eyepiece is square. Other Canonflexes have round eyepieces. This square format will be used on all canon SLR’s going forward.
Canonflex RM
The most common of the Canonflex cameras, with a production run
of about 72,000, is the Canonflex
RM. This camera is unique
amongst the Canonflexes in that
it has a built in selenium light meter.
These are notable because they are
basically a photo cell and they provide
their own power. They are not as sensitive as later types of meters but they don’t need a battery.
The Canonflex RM was introduced in 1962 and was the last of the “Flex” cameras. In this model Canon moved the film advance lever to the top right hand corner of the camera body doing away with the bottom wind system which was never popular. However this was still a weird device. There was a thumb tab that stuck out of the back in the upper right corner which one pushed to the right to advance the film. It was still awkward and not as smooth as the advance found on the F and later series cameras. Not only that but the slot for the lever to move in allowed dust and moisture to enter into the mechanism under the top deck.
The shutter speeds topped out at 1/1000th. There was a film speed reminder in ASA and DIN on top of the large shutter speed dial. There was an exposure counter through a window on the top deck which reset to “0” when the back was opened. No shutter lock was provided.
The standard lens was still the R 50mm f/1.8 but by the time the RM came along there was a reasonable selection of lenses for the amateur photographer. Professionals would have found the selection a little thin.
This line of cameras was replaced by the first of the F Series, the Canon FX, which was launched in 1964 with the new FL breech-lock lens mount system.
An now for a camera story! I found this camera on E-bay. I communicated with the seller via e-mail who, as it turned out, lived only a few miles from my home. His name was Brian and he too had been a Canon collector but was now selling his collection. (My kind of guy!)
Anyway, he got the camera to me and I was thrilled with it. Clean, pretty, a joy to hold. This is a solid heavy camera
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This is the camera I received from Brian (all of these pictures are) with the new top plate. Like Brian, I think I will not install it because it is interesting as it is.
that feels really well built. It is a shadow of things to come in the “F” Series. This one I intend to actually use.
And in the package he included a second lens, a 50mm f/1.8 R Series lens for the Canonflex as a gift but it was obvious it had been hit on the front edge heavily. The glass is clear and excellent but the front of the lens barrel had been damaged and the iris no longer work. Worse, it is stuck at about f/11 making focus very difficult. I have since repaired this lens which I have described here.
In the E-bay ad for the camera Brian told about its history. I’ll let him tell it again in his own words:
“This is an interesting package … I always enjoyed cameras with a story, and this RM has a somewhat interesting twist in its early life. During a demo, brand new out of the box at the dealer’s counter, a potential customer dropped this camera in the store! It wasn’t a hard landing onto the carpeted floor, but it dented the top cover (see photos). The dealer ordered a new OEM Canon replacement top and while waiting for it to arrive put the camera way and then after a few months forgot completely about it, and when the top arrived (apparently many months later) it was tossed into a drawer and never installed. Then, some number of years later, upon rediscovery of the camera and replacement top in a back drawer of the storeroom, the dealer sold the camera and the new top to friend of mine (a fellow collector who knew the store manager at the time), and who then used the camera for a couple of years as was (the dent has absolutely no effect whatsoever on the functionality of the camera). Then I bought the camera, about 25 years ago from my friend, and I never changed out the top either because it was a nice display piece with an interesting story (as I said, I like cameras with a bit of a story to them). ………..
By the way, the serial number of the camera is 178254 (with the final ‘Passed’ sticker in place) and the serial number of the new top is 192072 (without the ‘Passed’ sticker installed because of course, no camera was never assembled, inspected and ‘passed’ with that top in place).
You can imagine the process of somebody having to pull that new top out of the factory assembly line to fill the order for the store, and you can see by the serial number difference how long it took for that process to actually take place and for the top to be sent to the dealer … no wonder they forgot all about it by the time the new top finally arrived! Certainly an interesting story to this RM … and because of it I enjoyed the camera the way you see it in my photos, with the original dent in place and new cover sitting off to one side behind it on display … it was always a great conversation piece. “
This is my Bell & Howell Canonflex RM (Ser. No. 106210). It is identical to the Canon version of the RM, except for the name on the front of the prism housing.
So you may be asking yourself, “what’s with Bell & Howell”? Well, that’s a marketing question. When Canon was ready to market their first camera they had no sales channels. They were not the large company they are today and they had very little clout in the market place. In fact, probably none. So Precision Optical entered into a marketing agreement with Omiya Shashin Yohin Co. Ltd.. “Hansa” was one of their trademarks. And so the camera came out as the Hansa Canon.
Fast forward to the late 1950’s. Canon had no distribution channels in the United States. When first introduced in the US Canon had a distribution agreement with Scopus, Inc.. Later in the 60’s Canon was distributed by Bell & Howell and made cameras that sold under their brand name. Later Canon developed its own distribution channels which allowed it to achieve much higher sales volumes. But, when your the new kid on the block, you need a hand up.
Oh, there’s one more thing, to quote Steve Jobs. Look at that lens in the ad. Classic double gaussian! You remember, we discussed this type of lens in the article on the Nifty Fifty. Hey, this web site is just full of information!!!
The Canonflex RM was available in a black finish but good examples are rare today. (Photo purloined from E-bay)
The Black Canonflex RM
The Canonflex RM was available in an all black finish, as was the RP. Not many were produced and I am not aware of any certain produced numbers or serial number ranges. However, they are rare today, especially in good condition.
Be aware that there are many “repainted” cameras that can be mistaken as factory issued black versions. Remember, original copies were painted black on the bare brass of the top and bottom plates while repaints were painted black over the chrome metalic finish. Also, original versions also had black hardware such as the self timer lever.
Black versions were issued with an R 50mm lens with a black Locking Ring. These lenses too are rare today.
This photo of an offering on Ebay appears to be of an original factory issued Black Canonflex RM with lens.
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