Kodak AG's metered 35mm viewfinder camera of 1959-66 — Reomar 45mm f/2.8, selenium meter
The Retinette IB was a rigid-bodied 35mm viewfinder camera made by Kodak AG in Germany, the arm behind the Retina and Retinette lines. Two versions exist: the Type 037 built from October 1959 to February 1963 and the Type 045 that followed until 1966. Sellers usually write the name as Retinette 1B.
The camera pairs a Rodenstock Reomar 45mm f/2.8 lens with a coupled Gossen selenium meter whose needle reads out in the bright-line viewfinder for match-needle exposure setting. The Type 037 uses a Pronto LK shutter with speeds of 1/15-1/500 plus B; the Type 045 gains a Prontor 500 LK shutter, a hot shoe and a depth-of-field scale. The film advance lever is unusually mounted on the baseplate, and the body weighs about 530g.
A step up from the meterless Retinettes, the coupled selenium cell makes it a self-contained walk-around film camera needing no battery at all. Scale focusing rewards care with distances, the Reomar performs well stopped down, and the bottom-mounted advance lever takes some getting used to.
The plastic bottom advance lever is a documented break point - confirm it is intact and winds smoothly. Selenium meters fade with age and are rarely economic to repair, so test that the needle responds to light; the camera still shoots happily with an external meter. Check shutter speeds fire cleanly, especially the slow end.