Have a care with leather. There is some research on leather
by the Forest Service which suggests that no treatment will stop
or forstal rotting. Best to wipe it down with a damp cloth and
otherwise leave it alone. Being thin suggests a synthetic.
Sometimes odor is a clue, real leather tends to have some odor
but you may have to put your nose right on it. Synthetics will
last forever if not mechanically abused.
Pin holes can be checked for using a small lamp, a single LED
works fine and does not generate heat. Open and stretch the
bellows out. Remove the lens board and back (if possible), put
the lamp inside and move it around. Do this in a dark room. If
there are pinholes you will see them. I have never found a
permanent fix for pin holes. They can be plugged temporarily but
only a new bellows is a real fix.
I don't know what the index and hole are for, a photo might
help. You can send it to me personally, I don't think this list
takes attachments (should know since I am a co-administrator).
I never shot enough sheet film to need a container other than
the holders. Actually, I have accumulated a lot of holders.
Printing paper used to come in light tight bags and it seem to me
that sheet film does too. That would work pretty well. You can
use a changing bag for moving the film. BTW, a good changing bag
is very useful. Its worth having more than one.
Sounds like you did OK with this thing. If you have enough
holders to just leave the film in them just do that.
On 4/9/2019 9:57 PM, mark@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
Well the camera arrived today. My first impressions are positive. First, and my biggest concern is that it does not appear to be the original bellows. That is the good thing. The bad news is that I am not sure what material is used in its construction. I think its leather, but its so thin I am not totally sure. What would be the indicator.=============================================================================================================
IF its leather, it probably should be conditioned. My first two options, and there may be others, would be either mink oil or neetsfoot oil, both of which I think I have on hand. The concern is too much of a good thing can be just as bad as none at times. What's the best way to apply and remove excess on something that is pleated? Have no idea how fragile this stuff might be, but it doesn't seem like it will fall apart in my hand. If its something else I need, then its not a problem.
I am going to check for pinhole leaks tomorrow night. My first plan is to take a bore scope with a light on the end of a camera. Not only will I be able to see the light, if any goes through the bellows, the camera on the end, should give me a good look at the insides.. If there is a better way, please respond.
The extra lens board I bought for the wrong size shutter has an interesting possibility I had in the back of my mind. By covering it with a piece of paper, cardboard or maybe even very thin plywood or sheet metal, I could turn that lensboard into a pin hole camera. Anyone ever done that?
For the record, the lensboard does have an indexing notch. That should be easy enough to handle, but there is a circle in it that appears to be a part of some sort of light trap around the lens mechanism. If I used flat sheet metal, would it still work without damaging the camera? I actually could probably machine the circle in the metal IF its important, but it would be a genuine pain in the posterior. Unless its needed and worth the effort, I would pass.
As far as overall impression of the camera, those that said it was heavy, they were right. It's a bit heavier than expected, but definitely workable. Seems to be built like a tank. In the age of constant advancement, its also nice to see something that is as old as I am that still functions much as it did decades ago. What I am also in marvel of is guys that used these to cover press assignments.
Last thing is a bit of a hassle for a while. Once a sheet of film is exposed, I used to always just put it back in the box from which it came till I was ready to process it. Trouble is I have too many holders and too few boxes. Is there something else that is both light tight, ideally light and simple to use that will work? Ideally it would be cheap too, but cheap and Large format don't go hand in hand very often.Embarassed
Id be interested to know what year and more about the camera I actually got. A serial number may be on here somewhere, but I haven't found it yet.
Thanks again for any help
Mark 73
