The "Graflex" Is 75 Today! Make that 78!

Probe Droid

Master Member
This day in 1940, Oscar Steiner, the chief engineer for the Folmer-Graflex Corp., Rochester, NY, filed his patent for "Photographic Flashlight Equipment." The "Graflex" is born.


Hug your Skywalker today!
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I'm declaring this National Graflex Day in his honor. On behalf of generations of Star Wars geeks the galaxy over, thanks Oscar.

When I saw Star Wars in 1977 I thought Luke's lightsaber was the coolest thing I'd ever seen, and 38 years later my opinion hasn't changed.

Here's my baby. The bubbles are wrong, the D-ring assembly is a travesty, and the grips are all over town, but I love it!
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Best $10 I ever spent!
 

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Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

75 years of age and has never looked better. :cool

If only everything aged so beautifully . :darnkids
 
Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

I'll second national graflex day, those patent drawings are fascinating.
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Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

Great post Probe Droid! I got my first Graflex flashgun after reading it's lightsaber connection in Steve Sansweet's "scouting the galaxy" column in the fan club magazine. Those were pre-internet days for me, and I called around to dozens of places before I finally got a Graflex sent to me for the tidy sum of 25 dollars.
 
Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

Yeah great post!
The graflex flash seems like a luxury of engineering now. Machined moving parts and metal? It would be Plastic and microchips now. I love vintage camera kit and the 3 cell will always be in my heart. I salute you Oscar!
 
Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

Yeah great post!
The graflex flash seems like a luxury of engineering now. Machined moving parts and metal? It would be Plastic and microchips now. I love vintage camera kit and the 3 cell will always be in my heart. I salute you Oscar!

Yeah, it would be plastic and purposely designed to last about 3 years.

Great post, Probe Droid.
 
Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

The motion has been seconded and carried. Henceforth, July 19th is National Graflex Day.

That was such a wonderful use of a found piece and a perfect example of how much of Star Wars just clicked perfectly into place. It looks like a practical piece of technology in a way that the "designed" lightsabers just don't. It's one of the most iconic examples of industrial design.
 
Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

It looks like a practical piece of technology in a way that the "designed" lightsabers just don't.

All the constructed lightsabers do.

Even the holyday-special saber looks more practical/functional than the designed stuff. :lol
 
Re: The "Graflex" Is 75 Today!

I agree, I think it is because it doesn't look like it could have been made just by putting some aluminium on a lathe and screwing bits on. The whole body's shape is influenced by the various other parts, which all goes back to the form being from the function. I think that is why the PT and some custom sabers do nothing for me, their designs aren't compromised enough by any function.
 
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