Plaubel & Co. was founded in 1902 by Hugo Schrader, and during the first 10 years the company manufactured and distributed mostly lenses. The first Plaubel camera came around 1910, the "Baby Makina" followed by the Makina model I in 1931. The Makina series of cameras were to be a very long-lived range of high quality folding strut cameras that were distributed in different versions until 1960. The last model was released in 1953. All the "real" german Plaubel models had leaf shutters, strut folding collapsible bellows, and rangefinders.

The Makina's were extremely popular medium format press cameras, and in addition to the very high quality and finish they had superb and fast lenses as f.e. the famous Anticomar 1:2,9  100mm. In 1936 Hugo Schraders son, Götz Schrader, designed the Makina II S, which were the first Plaubel model that had behind-the-lens shutter, which made it easier and more simple to change lenses. The production of the II S was resumed after the II World War, and a flash sync. socket was added. In 1949 the II S was finally replaced by the model III and the IIIR in 1953, which were to be the last "real" Plaubel model. In 1978 the Plaubel company was sold to a japanese corporation that manufactured medium format cameras under the Plaubel name. Götz Schrader died in 1997. 

Yet another of those superbly made German cameras, that really feels like a "machine". There isn't any camera quite like the Makina, and for once a camera that seems almost to big for my hands. As you can see from the photos, the II S has got a beautiful chrome frontplate with engravings, and apart from the rangefinder it offers 2 different viewfinder options. I haven't actually tried it, but I think it will be easier to handle if mounted with a handgrip on the right side. When folded it is in fact rather compact, and even more compact if it hadn't been for the removable rollfilm back. It might not be one of the fastest medium format folder cameras, but it is certainly on of the nicer ones, and its got a perculiar aura of "prototype" or "handbuilt" about it, if you know what I mean. The lens on my II S i somewhat of a mystery to me though. I can't find any litterature about this f4,5 Plaubel-Reflex, and there isn't even an engraving on the lens indicating the focal length. Can anyone elaborate on this ?