Asaflex TW-200 Twins

Photos by Bernard Faure text by Sylvain Halgand. From the collection of Bernard Faure. Last update 2023-12-22 par Michel Rochevalier.

Manufactured or assembled in China from (Circa) 1988 to (Before) 1989.
Index of rarity in France: Infrequent (among non-specialized garage sales)
Inventory number: 14198

See the complete technical specifications

Chronology of cameras Asaflex

The brand Asaflex was registered on March 15, 1977, and renewed in February 1987, by the Compagnie de Diffusion Internationale et Commerciale (S.A). It was re-registered in February 1988, again for photographic equipment.
Subsequently, the "Gorthex Group" (located at 140 rue de la Pompe, 75016 Paris) simultaneously filed for the trademarks Asaflex and Gorthex on January 23, 1997.

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This camera is part of a series of models available under various brands, but presumably manufactured by Haking.
The model was introduced by Hanimex in June 1988 at the PMA in Chicago. Its uniqueness lies in being bifocal. The focal length changes by rotating a plate that supports both lenses (or the front part of the lens). The viewfinder has frames to aid in framing. By turning the plate, a plastic lug located on the edge comes into position in the corner of the viewfinder. If the lug is visible, then the telephoto is selected. Otherwise, there is no lug.
If the viewfinder is accurate, the "wide" lens seems to be a 34mm, and the "tele" a 43mm, meaning it is not a telephoto lens at all but just the normal one in the pair. The aperture values announced by distributors vary widely and are probably, for many, fanciful.
The combination of a normal lens and a wide-angle lens on a twin-lens camera is unusual, perhaps unique.
On some models, one of the two holes is blocked, and the other is empty, turning this round piece into a simple lens cap for protection.
The overall quality is poor. The plastic is coated with paint that wears off quickly. The film movement and flash control are entirely manual.

Some models:

Model	Lens

Haking TL 168	Bifocal	TL = Twin Lens
Hanimex 35 DL		DL = Dual Lens available in different colors
Asaflex TW-200		TW = Twins
Miranda TL 200		TL = Twin Lens
Luxon 35 TWF		TWF = Twin Focal
Kin Son 35 DL		DL = Dual Lens
Graflex Image III	Single focal

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