[pure-silver] Re: Old film holders
- From: joe mcguckin <joe@xxxxxxx>
- To: pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 01:59:01 -0800
Thanks for the info.
What are the little metal hooks for ?
Joe McGuckin
ViaNet Communications
joe@xxxxxxx
650-207-0372 cell
650-213-1302 office
650-969-2124 fax
On Nov 14, 2007, at 1:41 AM, Richard Knoppow wrote:
----- Original Message ----- From: "joe mcguckin" <joe@xxxxxxx>
To: "Pure-Silver Free" <pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 12:13 AM
Subject: [pure-silver] Old film holders
Someone gave me a bunch (30+) of old 4x5 film holders. They're
pretty dusty and a few are pretty grungy.
Are these worth cleaning up and reusing? Is there any limitation
on the life of old plastic and metal film holders?
Thanks,
Joe
It depends partly on the make and type of holders and just how old
they are. The best of the old ones are the Riteway holders, made by
Graflex. These were probably the most accurate when new and seem to
hold up without warping or other problems. All holders should be
checked. The distance to the septum should be measured using a depth
micrometer. A test fixture can be made from a sheet of sheet metal
thick enough to prevent its warping with a few holes drilled in it
for the micrometer probe. Measure the thickness of the fixture and
subtract that from the measurement.
I generally measure with film in the holder. Measurements should
be made near each corner and at the center to detect warping.
To check the light trap remove the dark slide and open the loading
gate at the other end of the holder. Look at the slit for the
darkslide while shining a flashlight at it from the outside end. You
should see no light.
Check for warping of the entire holder by placing each edge
against a straight edge. The fixture for testing the location of the
film plane should indicate if the holder is warped in the thickness
dimension.
Loading gates or doors often come off the tape used to hold them.
There is a light trap at the loading end consisting of a rebate on
the door, the tape is not used as a light trap. Calumet has the
identical tape as used in manufacture but fabric tape works well as
does gaffer tape.
For cleaning I suggest using a vacuum and a brush. Vacuum out the
light trap.
Clean the rest with a damp cloth. Use a damp cloth on the dark
slides.
Persistent dust can be picked off using sticky tape, I usually use
masking tape. You can also make sure there is no dust in the light
trap by running a bit of masking tape through it.
ANSI Standards for film plane placement in sheet film cameras.
Size Location Tolerance + or -
4x5 0.197 0.007
5x7 0.228 0.010
8x10 0.260 0.016
Dimensions in inches.
Film thickness is 0.007 The above does not include
film thickness.
Smaller formats than 4x5 are the same as for 4x5.
I have over a hundred 4x5 holders. The good ones are mostly
Riteway although some others checked out OK. I have had trouble with
both Lisco and Fidelity Deluxe holders and with many very old wooden
holders. Here the best also seem to be those made by Graflex or
Folmer & Schwing but all should be carefully checked.
Generally the paint is not important but Krylon Ultra-Flat-Black
can be used on the interiors and any decent semi-gloss on the bodies.
Dark slides which are stiff to get in usually respond to a little
hand soap on the edges. Just rub it on the bar of soap. If you have
a cake of paraffin wax that,s even better.
Note that there are three types of dark slides found. Riteway and
some other holders have a code on the unexposed side (silver or
white side) of five bumps for IR opaque material and three bumps for
slides which are NOT safe for IR. The bumps also indicate unexposed
film by feel.
The third kind of slide are made of metal. These, of course, are
IR opaque.
The placement of dark slides with the silver side out for
unexposed and the black side for exposed film has been standard for
probably a century.
---
Richard Knoppow
Los Angeles, CA, USA
dickburk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
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