[LargeFormat] Bellows Repair

[tripspud]

Hi Richard,

        I wish I knew who did the bellows replacement on my modified
Seneca 5x7.  It's really nice work.  FWIW, the mod was done in
Steve Grimes' shop, but I picked up the camera off the eBay.

      It might be worth checking Steve Grimes' shop.  Though he
is sadly no longer with us, his shop is continuing to operate.

Cheers,

Rich Lahrson
Berkeley, California
tripspud@transbay.net

Richard Knoppow wrote:

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "philip lambert" <philip.lambert@ntlworld.com>
> To: <largeformat@f32.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, June 10, 2003 12:26 PM
> Subject: Re: [LargeFormat] Bellows Repair
>
> > Could a bellows that has split at the outside corner of a
> fold be repaired
> > by cutting out the entire section all round and glueing
> the adjacent ends
> > together. I mean joining folds  together that were
> formerlt next but one to
> > each other, so not quite the same size, as the bellows
> taper towards the
> > lens standard. PL
> >
> >
>    I think you might have better luck by patching the split
> with plastic and a good contact cement.
>    I've never had much success using acrillic paint or any
> of the other suggested cures for bellows pinholes. The
> material does block the pinhole but does not withstand
> flexing of the bellows.
>    I've also found that leather bellows continue to develop
> new holes once they have started to dry out or rot.
>   Dick Sullivan likes to use a material called Elastoseal,
> evidently sold as a patch for wet suits. I've never tried
> it. I've also seen reports of good results using a similar
> material sold for sealing roofs.
>   I've had to replace bellows on two cameras. One is a
> Calumet C-1 (the Green thing). The bellows were orinal issue
> obtained from Calumet. The other is my 8x10 Agfa/Ansco. The
> leather bellows which was light tight when I got the camera
> began to disintegrate as soon is I began to use it. The new
> bellows were made by Flexible Products in Florida. I do NOT
> recommend them. While they were friendly and prompt the
> workmanship left much to be desired. Nonethess, the bellows
> are servicable and I use the camera frequently.
>   There are a number of companies offering bellows. I have a
> list of them if anyone is interested. The best from all
> reports is English bellows, also the only one who will make
> genuine leather bellows. I don't recomment leather. Its OK
> for being authentic or for looks, but synthetic bellows are
> far more rugged and long lasting.
>   Its possible to make your own bellows but finding
> materials may be difficult and its tedious. If you have ever
> built a flying model airplane successfully you can build a
> bellows.
> ---
> Richard Knoppow
> Los Angeles, CA, USA
> dickburk@ix.netcom.com