PBase

'thanks' to a recent death in the family im now the proud owner of 2 instamatic 100's, an instamatic 104, a 66x instamatic and a no1 pocket. there's also a gnome pixie and a coronet cub. all of them look to be in pretty good condition [save for a bit of dust].

whats the best way to tell if theyre still functional [for taking pictures] and since im only planning on keeping one, which would be the best to keep [providing it works]?

cheers

It is pretty difficult to find the 126 cartridges that go into the instamatics. It has to be mail ordered and will be a little pricey for a mediocre quality picture.

The gnome pixie I think takes 120 film which can be purchased at most camera stores. It has the potential to give you great big negatives that can be fun. This is probably the most interesting of your cameras since the Gnome company is one of the very few Welsh cameras.

The coronet will be hard to get film for also it used F828 film... again it will be a custom mail order.

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Your best camera is probably the Coronet with the Gnome being next on the list.

Take the cameras to a local camera shop they can show you how they work and tell you if they basically work or not. You can then clean the lens and run a roll of film through them. Unfortunately none of them are worth repairing you can pick up any of them for under $15.

http://www.filmforclassics.com has some funny films and developing.

http://www.frugalphotographer.com/cat126.htm shows how to get and process 126 film.