THE SILETTE was introduced around 1953 and
was a very successful line of cameras for Agfa. There were nearly 40 models
and variations over the 12 years it was in production.. Some collectors
specialise in them with the aim of getting an example of every variant
but I’m content with a few representatives of the range.
The first two of mine, which are the same, are basic models from what I call Agfa’s silver paint era when, possibly because of the shortage of chromium in post-war Germany, the bright parts of their bottom of the range models look as if they’re finished in lacquered silver enamel, but it’s probably anodising. I got the second one as spares for the first, and then got both working.
They’ve got quite simple Vario shutters with speeds of 1/25, 1/50 and 1/200 sec, and 45mm f/3.5 Color-Agnar lenses. Some people rate this lens as an indifferent performer, and from the one film on which I’ve used an Agnar I found it a little soft at the corners on full aperture, but it sharpened up when it was stopped down. It’s a triplet design, but not as good as Agfa’s Apotar. Also similar, with an Agnar lens, is the next Silette, though this moves upmarket a bit with a four-speed Pronto shutter with delayed action, and a brightline viewfinder. And the brightwork’s finished in satin chromium, not ‘silver paint’.
The fourth Silette, the first of two Super Silettes, is one that I bought for my daughter Emma many years ago. She used it for years, and then passed it back to me when I fixed up a Pentax SV for her. It’s fitted with a Prontor SVS shutter running from 1 to 1/300 sec plus B, and a 45mm f/3.5 Apotar lens (an old Rietzschel name, but not the same lens). Agfa's Apotar is a triplet, but its performance is far ahead of the Agnar, and many other triplet designs. Indeed, when it first came into the UK the photo mags raved about its performance. They rated it better than many of the cheaper four-glass Tessar-layout lenses. Certainly, Emma got some superb pictures with it.
The fifth one, another Super Silette, is a gem.
I was fortunate in picking it up very cheaply from a junk box at a camera
fair as a ‘spares or repair’ job because the wind-on lever
was jammed. It’s got a 1 to 1/500 sec Synchro-Compur shutter which,
now I’ve cleaned it, works really sweetly. The lens is Agfa’s
f/2 50mm Solagon, a six-glass Gauss design that’s a really good
performer. The lever was jammed because its long flat-coil return spring
had broken and unwound, which jammed everything under the top plate. For
the moment I’ve taken the spring right out and it works OK provided
you remember to pull the lever back manually. Somewhere in one of my junk
boxes up in the attic I’ve got some pocket watch mainsprings, so
one day I may dig them out and see if I can modify one to fit. Either
that or I might come across a junk Super Silette sold for spares and use
it as a parts donor, though the chances are that if I find one I'll probably
try to fix that one as well.
Since writing the above I've got a sixth Silette, a Silette Brightline. Agfa brought out the Brightline model in 1959 with an all-enveloping top plate which, to my mind, made it look top-heavy.
Obviously other people thought so too because a year later Agfa redesigned
it and reverted to the older style of stepped-down top plate, a much better
balanced look. I was browsing eBay when I spotted one with about 15 minutes
to go. No-one had shown any interest despite the very modest suggested
starting bid. I hadn't got a Brightline model, so with five minutes to
go I bid the starting bid and, rather to my surprise, I won it. It's the
better of the two Brightline models, with an f/2.8 Color Apotar in a nine-speed
Prontor SVS shutter (the other model had a Color Agnar in a four-speed
shutter), and it really is in nice condition.
Silettes weren't cheap in their day but now they fetch very little. First every amateur photographer wanted an SLR, now they want digital. There are hundreds of Silettes lurking in drawers and backs of cupboards, and occasionally they come to light at car boot sales or flea markets, and even in charity shops. Many of them by now will need a shutter clean, but very little else goes wrong with them. A representative collection can be put together very cheaply. To see a lot more models (33 of them in all) have a look at http://www.chromeagecamera.com/index.html
 |
| Upmarket from the basic model was this one
with a four-speed Pronto shutter and the better Apotar lens. |
The first two of mine, which are the same, are basic models from what I call Agfa’s silver paint era when, possibly because of the shortage of chromium in post-war Germany, the bright parts of their bottom of the range models look as if they’re finished in lacquered silver enamel, but it’s probably anodising. I got the second one as spares for the first, and then got both working.
They’ve got quite simple Vario shutters with speeds of 1/25, 1/50 and 1/200 sec, and 45mm f/3.5 Color-Agnar lenses. Some people rate this lens as an indifferent performer, and from the one film on which I’ve used an Agnar I found it a little soft at the corners on full aperture, but it sharpened up when it was stopped down. It’s a triplet design, but not as good as Agfa’s Apotar. Also similar, with an Agnar lens, is the next Silette, though this moves upmarket a bit with a four-speed Pronto shutter with delayed action, and a brightline viewfinder. And the brightwork’s finished in satin chromium, not ‘silver paint’.
The fourth Silette, the first of two Super Silettes, is one that I bought for my daughter Emma many years ago. She used it for years, and then passed it back to me when I fixed up a Pentax SV for her. It’s fitted with a Prontor SVS shutter running from 1 to 1/300 sec plus B, and a 45mm f/3.5 Apotar lens (an old Rietzschel name, but not the same lens). Agfa's Apotar is a triplet, but its performance is far ahead of the Agnar, and many other triplet designs. Indeed, when it first came into the UK the photo mags raved about its performance. They rated it better than many of the cheaper four-glass Tessar-layout lenses. Certainly, Emma got some superb pictures with it.
The fifth one, another Super Silette, is a gem.
 |
| This Super Silette with its Solagon lens in a Synchro Compur shutter was the ultimate expression of the traditionally syled Silettes |
Since writing the above I've got a sixth Silette, a Silette Brightline. Agfa brought out the Brightline model in 1959 with an all-enveloping top plate which, to my mind, made it look top-heavy.
 |
| The second Brightline model reverted to the traditional stepped-down top plate. |
Silettes weren't cheap in their day but now they fetch very little. First every amateur photographer wanted an SLR, now they want digital. There are hundreds of Silettes lurking in drawers and backs of cupboards, and occasionally they come to light at car boot sales or flea markets, and even in charity shops. Many of them by now will need a shutter clean, but very little else goes wrong with them. A representative collection can be put together very cheaply. To see a lot more models (33 of them in all) have a look at http://www.chromeagecamera.com/index.html