Uploaded March 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

---

Designed to use compact and affordable 17.5mm film, Hit-type cameras were first introduced in the late 1930s but became wildly popular both in Japan and North America in the immediate post-war period. Hundreds of different copies were made by dozens of manufacturers until the 1970s.

0:00 Intro
1:04 17.5mm film
1:36 Midget and Micro Cameras
2:08 Origins of the Tougodo Company
4:30 1930s Tougodo Products
5:14 WWII
6:13 Creation of the HIT
7:28 HIT and Mighty Breakdown
10:29 The HIT Craze
12:07 End of the HIT
13:17 Outro

Minox Video: youtu.be/_tt5i-uQX8E
Minox Accessories Video: youtu.be/fPLzWjTLQ8c
Pseudo TLR Cameras Video: youtu.be/Yy7IdUirDXc

SOURCES

camera-wiki.org/wiki/Hit-type_cameras
camera-wiki.org/wiki/Midget
camera-wiki.org/wiki/Baby_Minolta
camera-wiki.org/wiki/Mycro
submin.com/17.5mm/collection/index.htm
submin.com/17.5mm/collection/gemflex/index.htm
submin.com/17.5mm/collection/babyflex/index.htm
web.archive.org/web/20080516091517/http://www.ephotozine.com/article/Collecting-Hit-type-cameras
camera-wiki.org/wiki/Tougodo
cameracollector.net/hit-type-camera-list
camera-wiki.org/wiki/No-need-darkroom
submin.com/17.5mm/collection