Anybody using a brownie hawkeye?

[michr]

Thanks michr, I just recently found another one that I'm going to paint, I have a few ideas for the color scheme. Re-spooling in the camera will work in one direction but when you go to put it back onto a 620 spool in the proper direction the tail end of the film may not spool on correctly. Since the tail is not attached to the backing paper it will curl away from the pool and get jammed up in the camera. I have done this by hand, you have to keep everything tight and feel for the tail so you can make sure it gets onto the spool correctly. If you don't keep everything tight you will get to the end of the film that's attached to the paper and find that you have some slack.

That sounds similar to what happens to me when I try to respool using the Brownie. I'm probably better off just use the camera in the dark as a rig to do the respooling, so that I can take care of the loose film end. My biggest objections to respooling by hand have to do with how much handling of the film I have to do and the potential for scratches or for dropping it on the floor.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I found respooling a pain. I just wind it on to the 620 spool in the camera and make sure I save the spool when I develop the roll.

 

[bvy]

I found respooling a pain. I just wind it on to the 620 spool in the camera and make sure I save the spool when I develop the roll.

This is what I do too, if I understand. Just load the film normally, and reclaim the metal spool when I go to develop it. Mine will take a plastic feeder spool, but not a plastic take up.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I found respooling a pain. I just wind it on to the 620 spool in the camera and make sure I save the spool when I develop the roll.

This is what I do too, if I understand. Just load the film normally, and reclaim the metal spool when I go to develop it. Mine will take a plastic feeder spool, but not a plastic take up.

Metal spools will work too. That is what I have. Also I was given two very expired Verichrome Pan rolls so I will have two spares.

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I don't use mine because of the requirement of 620 film. I know some claim that 120 works fine, but every time I've tried it the camera jams up about halfway through a roll. If I'm going to the trouble to respool onto a 620 reel, I have better cameras to use. The only thing I'd really want to try with the Brownie is reversing the lens, which gives a unique effect.
https://www.lomography.com/magazine...phic-techniques-with-americas-favorite-camera

You can use 120 film HOWEVER YOU MUST USE A 620 TAKE UP SPOOL.This is one of only a small number of cameras that allows one to do this. I never have any problems doing this.

 

[michr]

You can use 120 film HOWEVER YOU MUST USE A 620 TAKE UP SPOOL.This is one of only a small number of cameras that allows one to do this. I never have any problems doing this.

I'll double-check my work, but I believe I was using a 620 spool on the take-up side simply to respool onto 620.

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I'll double-check my work, but I believe I was using a 620 spool on the take-up side simply to respool onto 620.

No need need to respool just put the 120 spool in the supply side and use an empty 620 spool on the take up side. Trying to respool 120 onto 620 spools is a PITA. If I had to so this I would never use the Hawkeye. There is ample room to fir the larger 120 spool.

 

[BAC1967]

No need need to respool just put the 120 spool in the supply side and use an empty 620 spool on the take up side. Trying to respool 120 onto 620 spools is a PITA. If I had to so this I would never use the Hawkeye. There is ample room to fir the larger 120 spool.

Like I said before, if it has the metal winding knob a 120 spool fits perfect. Kodak realized people were using 120 film in this camera so when the next model came out with the plastic winding knob they added a metal tab that prevents a 120 spool from fitting. All you need to do is bend that tab with a pair of pliers to make it fit. I think I just bent it back and forth a few times until it broke off. I don’t know why they made 120 and 620 to be different films or why they cared if people used 120 or 620 in that camera. Probably a marketing thing between professional and amature film.

 

[DWThomas]

I don’t know why they made 120 and 620 to be different films or why they cared if people used 120 or 620 in that camera. Probably a marketing thing between professional and amature film.

I believe it was a move so films from other manufacturers, particularly overseas, wouldn't work in Kodak products. I guess if we look at the current state of affairs there is a bit of a lesson from that!

 

[MattKing]

Kodak were the first makers of 120 film and 120 cameras. Other manufacturers adopted the size and began making both film and cameras in that size as well. Some customers inevitably started using non-Kodak 120 film in cameras, both Kodak and non-Kodak.
By introducing film on the smaller 620 spool and introducing Kodak cameras that used it:
1) slightly (very slightly) more compact cameras could be offered by Kodak, and
2) customers were encouraged to buy Kodak cameras that required that they also buy Kodak film.
I believe there are some non-Kodak cameras that were later manufactured to take 620 film. I don't know if anyone other than Kodak ever made 620 film.

 

[AgX]

There was european, non-Kodak type 620 too.

 

[michr]

No need need to respool just put the 120 spool in the supply side and use an empty 620 spool on the take up side. Trying to respool 120 onto 620 spools is a PITA. If I had to so this I would never use the Hawkeye. There is ample room to fir the larger 120 spool.

I appreciate the advice and if I ever decide to use the Hawkeye to take photos, I'll keep it in mind. I'm more interested these days in using the Medalist or maybe the Kodak B31, both of which require respooling onto 620 and the last I used the Hawkeye (unsuccessfully) was for that purpose.

 

[Saganich]

I haven't found the need to re-spool with my non-flash version. The 120 spool fits in the top but I use 620 spool for take-up. It's tight and I wind close to first frame with the back on but not latched so there is a couple millimeters between the back and the front body. This creates some room for the first couple spool revolutions. No trouble with light and no trouble on the take-up side. I've heard if you remove the metal pressure thingy on the top spool there should be no such trouble at all. I'm not sure if this works with the flash versions.

 

[puderse]

I only shoot box and old folder Kodaks that take 120 film, but I'm trying to amass a stack of colored 120/620 Kodaks. I once found a stash of NOS Kodak replacement bellows and trying to make them last till the day before I die. Only put them on very deserving cameras.

 

[Ste_S]

I don't use mine because of the requirement of 620 film. I know some claim that 120 works fine, but every time I've tried it the camera jams up about halfway through a roll. If I'm going to the trouble to respool onto a 620 reel, I have better cameras to use. The only thing I'd really want to try with the Brownie is reversing the lens, which gives a unique effect.
https://www.lomography.com/magazine...phic-techniques-with-americas-favorite-camera

I'm the same. I have a Brownie Flash III and rather than going through re-spooling 120 film to fit, I'd rather just use one of my better 120 cameras.

 

[bluechromis]

I have a Hawkeye Brownie flash that I have flipped the lens. It has been a jolly experience using it. I have used Ilford FP4, Fomapan 200 and other types of film and have never had to re-spool. I just use 120 film and an empty 620 take up reel. It is true that some types of film like Ilford FP4 (125) the spool is very tight in holder and more friction generated when advancing the film. But it still worked. I could envision a roll could be too tight and I would have to clip off the outer edge to make it fit. But with my camera I don't see the necessity to re-spool. I would like to do the mods to add a tripod socket, strobe connection and cable release adapter. I heard that one person used one of the Kodak push on Series filter adapters and screwed a thread step up ring to that to made a way attach threaded filters.

https://flic.kr/p/VXKPAq

 

[John51]

I'm on the lookout for another Hawkeye as my 8 yo granddaughter snaffled mine. Love at first sight.

As said in post #33, it will take 120 on the supply side but a tab might need to be removed.

For lab processing, unwind the film loosely in your hand, then wind it onto a 120 spool. The tape end of the film will be wound first, so easy enough.

For a tripod mount, I'm thinking of gluing a tripod QR plate to the bottom.

 

[KinoGrafx]

Hi-

If anyone ever looks at this thread again, one cause I’ve found for the tightening (and sometimes jamming) that happens when using 120 film in the bhf, is that the center cross-holes in some 120 spools are too big for the hawkeye’s little spindles on the supply side, so they snag on the spindles when they rotate. A small piece of plastic straw cut and placed into the holes of the 120 spool (to effectively make the holes smaller) works to remedy this.