Ricoh's Singlex TLS — mechanical TTL match-needle SLR, M42 mount, 1968.
The Ricoh Singlex TLS is a 35mm film SLR made by Ricoh and released in 1968 as a through-the-lens metering development of the Singlex line. It used the M42 screw mount and gave the photographer access to the broad universal screw-mount lens range. It was a mid-range enthusiast camera.
It is a single-lens reflex for 35mm film using the M42 screw thread. The Singlex TLS uses a metal focal-plane shutter with a top speed of 1/1000 second plus Bulb, and through-the-lens CdS metering worked in a match-needle style for manual exposure. The shutter is mechanically timed and fires without a battery, and the cell powers only the meter.
The Singlex TLS suits general, student, street and landscape use for those who want a dependable mechanical SLR with TTL metering and the wide M42 lens pool. It is a substantial camera that rewards deliberate manual shooting. Its strengths are build quality and lens compatibility; its limits are weight and the simple match-needle metering.
For used buyers, inspect the foam light seals and mirror-damper foam, which perish with age. Test the mechanical shutter through its speeds for capping or slow-speed faults, confirm advance and rewind feel right, and check the meter needle. The meter assumed 1.35V mercury cells (PX625/625 type), so adjust exposure with modern batteries; the mechanical shutter works with a dead cell. M42 lenses screw on directly and adapt widely to modern bodies.