The Second World War disrupted civilian camera design and production for several years. Perhaps Argus was a bit quicker in resuming sales to the civilian market. This gave it a head start over a major domestic competitor, the Univex Mercury II. This competitor looked even less like a good camera than the C3, but was a better camera in quality and reliability. Its focal plane shutter was far more accurate, and the build quality was better with metal castings for the body. Unfortunately, its rotary focal plane shutter precluded the inclusion of a rangefinder. The Mercury was a half-frame camera, getting twice the pictures on each roll of film. As Kodachrome became popular, deviating from the well established 24x36mm format of most 35mm cameras must have cost many sales. Univex started producing a traditional 35mm camera, but by then Argus dominated the market. Eventually better (but more expensive) cameras from Leitz and other makers trickled into America. I owned, but never used, an Argus C3 and did use a Mercury II for a few years. My two Mercury IIs and a prewar Mercury still appear to be in fine working condition. My Argus C3 is not.
