Good morning, SINAR Users;

This weekend the USPS guys delivered a box containing a Nikor Products Company Stainless Steel 4 by 5 Sheet Film Developing Tank, and it is complete with the retaining band for holding the sheet film in the slots. I have been looking for one of these to use with the SINAR F and F1 for two and one-half years.

I just had to tell someone, and I could not think of any other group who would appreciate this nice equipment find more than the people on this LF forum.

I am enjoying! Ralph, Latte Land, Washington

Good morning;

Time to do something with the SINAR again. As an indication of my willingness to do whatever is necessary to really get to know the thing, I just bought a copy of Professor Leslie Stroebel's 7th Edition VIEW CAMERA TECHNIQUE book. It is time to see if I can do more than just decide exposure value, focus, compose and time, and "press the button." It was not until I bought the SINAR view camera that I realized just how much had been decided for me by the regular camera makers that really greatly simplified photography. Now it is time to learn the rest of the other things that were not covered earlier.

Enjoy; Ralph, Latte Land, Washington

Good morning, Ralph;
how are things developing? Able to do more than "... just decide exposure value, focus, compose and time, and "press the button."?
/Bertil

Hi Ralph,

How do you like the Nikor, I found two of these things at a local junk store for $20 bucks, two tanks w/lids and one reel. Sometimes you just get lucky, but I haven't tried it out yet.

Need to do that soon, would appreciate any tips/suggestions/warnings anyone cares to share.

JD

Good morning, JD;

Getting used to loading it was a test. I found that sacrificing a few sheets of 4 by 5 film to use for practicing out in the light was a help for me. Then getting used to correctly fitting the flat retaining strip around the "reel" also took a couple of tries. As mentioned, doing it with the practice film out in the light was useful practice for me before putting everything into the changing bag and loading it for real for the first time with chemicals. Once you have the initial practice runs done, then it is easier than loading a 120 roll film onto a Nikor stainless steel reel.

And, I am suitably impressed and jealous that you were able to find two (2) of them for $20.00.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington

Hi Ralph,

Thanks for the tips...my tank(s) didn't come with the retaining band, but I think a rubber band should serve.

Where are you in Washington? Our son lives in Gig Harbor and we try to get up there at least once a year.

Maybe we could get together for a shoot next time we're up there.

JD

Good morning, JD;

Yes, Latte Land does have some nice places to live, and Gig Harbor is certainly is one of those. For me it is worth the drive down there to have a dinner at one of the waterfront restaurants while seated at a table looking out over the bay and marina. There are also some friends who live down there, and they provide the needed excuse to go there.

Perhaps I should try to just take a photograph of the band for you, and measure it. I am sure that a piece of stainless steel thin strip can be found that could be formed into a replacement band.

Actually I am northeast of Latte Land proper out in Snohomish County. And, certainly, trying to have an APUG member gathering here is something to contemplate. We have done things like this before when Matt and Gail King have come down from British Columbia. Nikon John and Fred are also here, along with several others, so we can indeed generate a reasonable sized group to discuss ancient technology such as activated silver bromide crystals, Ancient Modulation, a very old voice encoding scheme used in radios many years ago, and now limited mainly to commercial broadcast signals on, of all things, "the AM broadcast band." And there are computers that still use the Control Program for Microprocessors for their Operating System (CP/M) which had a reputation for going for days at a time without locking up and presenting us with "the blue screen of death," and many other elements of older technology.

I will find a way to provide an alternate means of contact with you when your trip up to the Puget Sound Area is approaching.

Enjoy;

Ralph
Latte Land, Washington