Building 4x5 camera

Primary Wood Option

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k_jupiter

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steven_e007 said:
After a bit of research the wood recommended as most workable for not too silly money was sapele. .
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I was gonna vote for that but it wasn't on the list... *L*

What the heck is sapele?

tim in san jose where exotic woods are burned for charcoal
 

Steve Smith

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k_jupiter said:
What the heck is sapele?
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It's what a lot of things which initially look like they might be made from mahogany are actually made from.

In England it's very common to find interior household doors veneered with Sapele.


Steve.
 

Ian Grant

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Steve Smith said:
It's what a lot of things which initially look like they might be made from mahogany are actually made from.
In England it's very common to find interior household doors veneered with Sapele.
Steve.
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I had a large set of picture frames made in the mid 90's and the section was cut from Sapele, as you say it's quite common here. I'm looking at what wood I need to renovate a whole plate cameran and need something that will match existing parts. I'm not sure that sapele is quite hard enough for the more delicate front standard I need, oak works well but has a marked grain.

Ian
 

Steve Smith

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Ian, what size pieces do you need? I have some old bits of what I think is mahogany from a 1940s loudspeaker cabinet. About 9mm or 3/8" thick.


Steve.
 

Ian Grant

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Haven't planned what I'll do yet Steve. I bought a lens panel knowing (from the photos) it was actually a camera base, I wanted the brass tripod ring - turned out to be the base and complete focus rack for a whole plate camera, with some brass-work.

Ian
 

Mustafa Umut Sarac

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Keeping some woods stable is difficult , My bass guitarist friend travelled the all guitar shops and tried 90s Fender Jazz Basses new , all sounded excellent with rotten necks. All guitar shops were complaining about the quality of maple of Fender.
Wooden instruments lost their interest to moisture only after 100 years when all wood turn to crystalline.

Thats why all major violin makers preferred the old wood collected even from Swiss hundreds of years of age wood buildings.
Try to buy wood from a instrument maker who collects them from grand father to father and son.
Maple,Oak,Mahogany is heavy weight woods and I can give you a tip to stop rotting.

First take a piece from your collection , saw it long two pieces and turn one piece to 180 degrees and glue these two piececes again.
If one piece rot to one side , other piece stops it with reverse force.
Other tip is to saw the wood to two pieces and place a third or more other pieces to the gap
 
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matthew001

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Cut lensboard today to test the wood - Baltic Birch. I'm going to test a few different woods at 1/8" -- Birds Eye Maple Lensboard .
 

Old-N-Feeble

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May I suggest you stabilize the birds eye maple with a backing of thin plywood? The plywood should be smaller to make a step for the light seal. Better yet, you could use birds eye veneer on marine plywood.
 
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matthew001

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Old-N-Feeble said:
May I suggest you stabilize the birds eye maple with a backing of thin plywood? The plywood should be smaller to make a step for the light seal. Better yet, you could use birds eye veneer on marine plywood.
Click to expand...

That's what I was thinking - laying 1/8" not only for stability but for a light baffle.

Front:
Back:
 

Old-N-Feeble

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I've made many lens boards with an outside "pretty" layer of wood sandwiched with an inside "stabilizing" layer of plywood glued together under flat pressure. I've never had a problem. Still... with birds eye maple I'd think about veneer over two layers of plywood (making a baffle). Doing it the "right way" with joints is best... but very costly.
 

steven_e007

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k_jupiter said:
I was gonna vote for that but it wasn't on the list... *L*

What the heck is sapele?

tim in san jose where exotic woods are burned for charcoal
Click to expand...

I did find this gem on wikipedia (so it must be true!):

The American car maker Cadillac also uses sapele wood for interior wood trim on its vehicles.

Sapele is what was once called an 'African Mahogany' - although I haven't seen that name used for a while. A quick google and it only now seems to be used for species of "khaya", which I've not come across. Years ago I could go to any stockists and buy mahogany and teak. Now these woods are quite hard to find (over here in the UK) and only really available from specialist suppliers at very high prices. There are severe export restrictions on mahogany.

A quick google of a UK wood stockist and I see you can buy sapele, iroko, obeche, idigbo, utile, keruing, meranti, balau, wenge. (No... I haven't a clue what most of them are, either...)

I think part of this is due to the attempt to grow new species in a sustainable way rather than cut down established rain forests - but I'm also sure part of it is due to various trade organisations stopping importers passing off a species of wood as something else to make it more saleable. Over here we have the trade descriptions act and trading standards - in the US I know you have The Federal Trade commission. I suspect these organisations get involved with how importers and suppliers describe woods. Ask for 'mahogany' now and you should only get one of the Swietenia species. I think maybe 30 or more years ago, when things were less well regulated, you might have got any number of things.
 
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Steve Smith

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Old-N-Feeble

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k_jupiter said:
I just cut down a MDF tree the other day. Boy are they tough on chain saw blades.
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You should have waited for the next long rain and just pushed it over to let it dissolve into the soil.
 

k_jupiter

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M.A.Longmore said:
.
I Don't Normally Laugh Out Loud.
But that was pretty frigging funny !

Ron
.
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It was funny but then again, I live in Silicon Valley and rain is often in short supply. I guess I could have used a garden hose.

tim in san jose
 

Old-N-Feeble

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k_jupiter said:
It was funny but then again, I live in Silicon Valley and rain is often in short supply. I guess I could have used a garden hose.
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I would've just let my old pug pee on it a couple times... some very caustic stuff, that.
 
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matthew001

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I'm wondering if anyone has some ideas to attach the custom plate holder to the camera? I want to make the ground glass a removeable part. Esentially, the same thing as the plate holder to ensure the gg is at the same distance as the film plane. I was thinking of some kind of latch or lock - similar to the way you put a hasselblad back on the body (bottom first than latch at the top). Anyone have any sources for this kind of hardware.
 

steven_e007

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Bit of a late reply, but...

I have a Trixale whole plate camera with a very simple attachment method for the film holders and screen.
The screen and holders have a lip about 1/8" thick and 1/8" wide down each side. On the camera back there are to screws with large heads on the left and a turnbuckle on the right. The plate holders or screen sit in a slight recess in the camera back to hold them in place and also to provide a light trap. Very simple and it works.

... or have you sorted it out already?
 
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