P3D Lupa stereo Polaroid camera: experiences?

[Dogbreath <hopi@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi.

Just spent the afternoon repairing an unusual camera called a Lupa. Ever
used one? I'd never heard of such a thing - I just stumbled on it in a
surplus shop. The shutter was broken, so it was cheap. I took it home and
disassembled it. The shutter was revealed to be a simple sliding plate with
two holes in it. It does have an adjustable aperture but the shutter speed
as well as focus distance are fixed. The shutter speed isn't marked, but my
rough calculations place it at a 60th. The focus distance is about 55", so
perhaps it was designed as a portrait camera. But I have to wonder who
would use such a camera? I mean, it seems to be a commercial/institutional
tool, like a passport camera. No camera this specialized could have been
intended for the consumer marker, I don't think. The seperation of the
lenses is slightly less than a Realist, and the lenses are a single-element
design (at least they're coated glass!). I have discovered that sheets of
100ASA 4x5 Polaroid can be properly exposed indoors with the aperture wide
open (f8) and with the help of a Vivitar 283 set to manual and aimed at the
ceiling. Oh, I should mention that the camera itself has no means of
processing the film - it's only desinged to accept a 545 Polaroid
processor. Of course, it could also accept a standard 4x5 film holder if
you were interested in medium format stereo (my principal motivation for
buying it). It's fun to free-view a stereo pair only seconds after you take
it. However, when you consider that each sheet of film will cost almost $2,
it kinda takes some the thrill out of it. It could be fun at parties, but
only if everyone there could free-view (I have no stereopticon). Would love
to hear from any of you out there who own and use this interesting camera.

Thanks for your time.

DB