Hi Guys,

I own a wonderful East German Zeiss Ercona folder, equiped with a Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 105mm f/3.5 T on a Tempor shutter.
Guess focusing may be a pain in the arse here and there, but when I look at the negative it produces, oh my, sharp as a razor the old "lady".

Cheers


André

I've got 4 Kodak folders staring at me from the bookcase.... perhaps this is just the right incentive to use a few of them!!

6x6 folders are my main use cameras - I've a dozen or more in various formats. My prefered format is 6x6, but I've also got a handful of 6x9s, a 9x12cm and a 118 roll film camera converted to use 120. Then there are all the other cameras...

This is a group I just have to join!

I own and use rollfilm folders in all formats from 35mm (24x34mm) to 6x9, and folding plate cameras from 4.5x6cm to 24x30cm!

My favorite camera is Kodak Retina IIIC and I bring it to any where I've been.

I recently acquired an Ansco Speedex Special with an Uncoupled Range Finder. This is different from the Speedex Special R, since this one has the solinar lens and compur shutter. Does anyone know where I can download or buy the manual for this camera?

I got the folder bug a little more than a month ago; now I have three (not counting a dozen or so kodak or no-name folders I have shoved in a box somewhere), a Zeiss Nettar 6x6, a Zeiss Ikon 6x9 with Tessar 105mm f/4.5 lens, and a Voightlander Perkeo II 6x6 that I am juuuust figuring out. The Nettar is my favorite of the three; when I press the lens release button the whole assembly pops open and settles into place without any interference from me. :munch:

I have a Balda Super Baldax 6x6 recently CLA'd by Jergen Kreckel (certo6)
It's a coupled rangefinder and as part of the CLA it needed a complete new shutter! Jergen replaced it with one that had the EV switch on it, that coupled the aperture and shutter speed together once flipped. Seems to work very well. The lens is not the legendary f2.8 Radionar or Ennit that some had, but the capable 80mm Baldanar F3.5 works very well indeed.

Maybe I started earlier than the rest of you, I don't know the make or model of my first folder but I'm holding it in my avatar That camera was bought in India and travelled from Calcutta to Cairo during WWII via the North West Frontier (Afgan border) Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Palstine (Israel) etc.

Now I shoot occasionally with a 9x12 Patent Etui, and a few other German 9x12's, as well as a 6x4.5 Ikonta but the lens is very poor contrast.


Of course the Pacemaker Crown Graphic is a folder, but I think Press cameras should have there own group

Stored away in the UK is a nice 6x9 Kodak Canada Autographic, and a couple of other folders.

Ian

Hi to all.
I have a Speedex Special 6X6 / UCRF / Solinar / SynchroCompur and an Agfa Record III 6X9 equipped the same as the Speedex. Also, an Ikonta 521/16, 6X6 / Tessar / CompurRapid ( up for sale on Monday). Oh, yes, and another Speedex, the same as the first, only this one is in pieces, in a box (for now). At least I have learned a fairly effective way to plug the pinholes in Agfa/Ansco plastic bellows. Thankfully, the ZI doesn't suffer from this malady.
Gerry

Gerry, please elaborate on your agfa/ansco bellows pinhole repair method. I too have the speedex with the solinar. I am in need of a rangfinder knob if you have a spare.

For Agfa/Ansco pinhole repair, I have used textile medium, mixed with a coloring agent to match bellows color. These should be available at a craft supply store. I apply to the inner surface of the leaking corners. I use a plastic handled water color brush, that I have bent (using a heat gun) the handle 90' so that I can maneuver it. Let the medium dry for 24 hrs between coats. Usually 3 coats are sufficient. On bad leaks, it may be a good idea to put a small spot on the exterior of the leaking corner. At least this has worked for me on a number of repairs. Not as good as replacement bellows, but a whole lot cheaper! Good luck. if you decide to give it a go.
Gerry

Glad to see a folder group starting up. I have a Super Ikonta A, an Ikonta A, a Super Ikonta C, a Nettar, an Agfa Super Solinette, a few Daiichi Zenobias, and some miscellaneous other folders. All get frequent use, are kept in camera bags ready to go, and have never been displayed. I use accessory shoe mounted rangefinders for those lacking a built-in rangefinder. Shoot mostly B&W for outdoor scenes and landscapes.

Well, I just purchased my first folder! It is a AGFA VENTURA 66V. I've always thought they had such a cool look to them and for the price ($10.20) I just thought I'd check it out! I'm sure it will probebly need help so I'll be asking questions. I guess I need to get some film ordered so I can try it out when it arrives.
Lori

Well, I got my Agfa Ventura 66V! It is so cute! It seems to be pretty clean. It has the cheaper Agnar lense that seems pretty clear. It has the problems that I was expecting so I've been working on patching bellows and have found instructions to clean and loosen the frozen focusing ring. It is stuck at 10 feet! I hope that I can get it up and running as I'd like to use it not just set it on a shelf! Here are some pictures and wish me luck in my repairs.

Good morning;

Nice to see at least a few familiar names here. Lori from Montana can also be found on a few other forums. Ian Grant is well known.

My own travel into the world of folders is a bit limited. At this time, I have only one; a Kodak Retina IIIc. This was one of the cameras that I recall from my childhood when relatives were taking photographs of the infrequent family gatherings. The other camera I recall from that time was the ubiquitous Argus C3. I have a couple of those now also. Perhaps eventually, all of us do get to achieve the goals of our youth if we live long enough.

While I am learning about folders from you people, I do have some experience with "folders" and with view cameras. There is a 4 by 5 Sinar F1 here now when I want to play with large format, and I also used a Graphlex Speed Graphic at work back in the 1960's. While we used the Technical Information Division most of the time to make our transparencies for masking the printed circuit boards we were making, I also made a few in our building for a quick check and testing of the circuit to see how it actually worked in the form we wanted.

Hopefully I will find that much of the information I have from the years of other 35 mm cameras will transfer over to this venerable folder.

Enjoy;

Ralph Javins, Latte Land, Washington

I just acquired a Bessa I with Vaskar F4,5 (triplet) I'm amazed by the quality.
My newest camera
I would like a Zeiss Ikonta C with tessar soon....
Regards
Mark

I have a gorgeous Agfa Record III that was built to my desires by Jergen Kreckel. It's got an Agfa Solinar 105 f4.5 with a Synchro-Compur shutter, and an uncoupled rangefinder. The inside bellows is a beautiful Burgundy and the exterior leather is blue.
I shoot it now and then, and it produces nice 6x9 negatives. The only thing I have trouble with is in order to advance to the next frame I have to turn...and turn...and turn the winder knob. But other than that it's a great camera--and they certainly don't make finely crafted cameras like this any more.

Hi everybody,
I have owned a Zeiss Nettar with Novar 4.5 and a Daichii Zenobia, but both have been sold. My current love is a Voigtlander Perkeo II that I bought on the bay, and that certo6 overhauled. What a great lens on such a small body (I am kind of Color Skopar addict, as I also have three 35mm Voigtlanders with that great lens). Glad to see a folder group here. I would someday like to get a Super Ikonta A with a coated Tessar.

My folders include a Semi-Leotax, Voigtlander Bessa II and Bessa RF. Actually there are a couple of more that don't get used. I recently had a beautiful little Olympus Chrome Six stolen from my car and would love to replace it if any out there have one that needs a new home. Bill Barber

Hmm - mayhaps I should be in here too. I have had a Voigtländer Perkeo II with Color-Skopar for almost two years now which I am quite pleased with and just this fall, an Ercona II with the Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar appeared here. I haven't done a lot with it yet, but wow -- even my bleary aging eyes can see those negatives!

Thought I should join as I have 25 folders and yes I use them all but not at the same time;-)
My favourites are the Zeiss Super Ikonta 531/16 with jena and opton lenses the sweet little 531 A with a jena and the IV with a carl zeiss
and my Zeiss Maxima´s 207/7 and 207/3 with crackin Jena lenses and not to forget the Mamiya 6 a little beauty.

Well, I finally broke down and acquired my first folder, two of them actually. A Kodak Tourist II and a Speedex Jr. Neither one functioned when they arrived, quick disassembly of the Kodak revealed a sewing pin jambing the shutter. Once removed, presto--working camera. Shot a roll of Adox CHS 25 Art and believe this is going to be a hoot. Unfortunatly, the Speedex isn't fairing as well. The bellows is dry-rotted and, even after disassembly and cleaning, shutter wont work. Maybe I just need to soak it a little longer. Anyone know where I can get a replacement bellows? Right now I'm awaiting the arrival of an Isolette Vario I won on that evil place.

Good morning, Rick;

Source for replacement bellows for just about anything ever made; www.custombellows.co.uk

These guys just went through a corporate change, and they have reorganized. Same people, same equipment, same patterns, drawings, and records. They made most of the original bellows for just about any camera you can name in the Occident. They have also received damaged and worn bellows for other cameras from which they made patterns. That is one of the reasons why I say they can make bellows for just about anything ever made.

Enjoy; Ralph, Latte Land, Washington

My Isolette finally showed up. The mutt that I bought it from lied and sent me a broken camera. He claimed it worked very well for him, I dont know how i could. The film advance knob is missing, and the shaft is rolling around loose inside the camera. Other than that, all else seems in good order, shutter appears to fire at all speeds and after a cleaning, I can see through the lens(noly sh1t it was filthy). Anyone have a donor knob or know where one can be had? I'm not certain, but I think its missing a spring as well, that goes on said shaft to keep it engaged with the film spool.
cheers
I opened a claim against the seller for this one, I got ripped off, and I'm waiting to see if PP wil get my money back for me.