Grafmatic 23 usable on Horseman 6x9 VH(R)-985-980 ?

the Grafmatic 23 6 sheets holder is thicker than the regular 2 sheets holder. Can a Horseman VH/98x take it?

Yes. In addition, it can be clipped to the back of the camera like a roll film holder if desired after removing the ground glass back.

thank you! very useful.

I want to buy a Horseman 980, but when taking pictures with movements, focus must be done the ground glass. Swapping focusing panel and roll film holder for each photo is a bit tedious. The rotary back seems nice but sets the focusing plane 25mm back. The Adapt-a-Roll 620 for 2x3 seem to be very uncommon. So I think the Grafmatic 23 will be a good compromise for speed and portability. I plan to cut sheets from 120 rolls.

Roll film is thinner than sheet film. I very likely will cause problems. Best is to cut sheets from 4x5 film.

antonio_b said:

The Adapt-a-Roll 620 for 2x3 seem to be very uncommon.

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If you don't mind having 6x7 rather than 6x9, the 2x3 version of the Linhof Rapid Rollex (*not* Super Rollex) can be used with Horseman 2x3 cameras. I've used one with my VH and VH-R.

Bob Eskridge said:

Roll film is thinner than sheet film. I very likely will cause problems. Best is to cut sheets from 4x5 film.

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thank again. I'll keep note of that

Oren Grad said:

If you don't mind having 6x7 rather than 6x9, the 2x3 version of the Linhof Rapid Rollex (*not* Super Rollex) can be used with Horseman 2x3 cameras. I've used one with my VH and VH-R.

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yes I could do with 6x7 in some cases. Actually I am planning to buy two 6x9 roll holders and one 6x7. Until now I have been using mostly 6x6 with SLR MF and i like the square, so I will want to keep using it with the Horseman since the 6x7 is almost square. Only 6x9 I have been using is the Moskva-5.
in my documentation homework i read about the Linhof Rapid, and despite the name alone repelling me because the prices I had a look online at different places (ebay and few others) but like the Adapt-a-Roll, no luck in 2x3 by now, only few 4x5 models.

There are a couple of options for 6x9 sheet film. Otherwise, I'd just use a 120 roll holder-- the later Horseman ones are quite nice, and not too unreasonably priced.

Removing the ground glass to fit the roll film can be a pain at times, but if you're using the horseman as a view camera, it's not really a big deal, just make sure you have a safe place to put it while it's off the camera.

I have an old Folmer Graflex Crown View that has the Graflex (not Graflok) back on it, so I have to remove the ground glass to use ANY kind of film holder. It's only slightly in convenient once you get used to it. I'd go with the roll film back, simply because there are more film types available in 120 than in 2x3 sheet film and you don't need to cut down from 4x5.

I do have one of the Horseman backs for my 2x3 Speed Graphic and think that it's a great way to go for any 2x3 camera that has a Graflok back.

Zathras said:

Removing the ground glass to fit the roll film can be a pain at times, but if you're using the horseman as a view camera, it's not really a big deal, just make sure you have a safe place to put it while it's off the camera.

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as many medium format users I guess, the motivation for me comes from the frustration of lacking movements when shooting architecture or in fact many things in cramped urban settings, which means basically most old cores of any european town.
Typically I walk with a shoulder bag with, these days, a Bronica S2, couple backs, couple lenses, often a light carbon tripod. The idea is to carry instead a Horseman when I suspect I will have some architecture to shoot sometime in the day, but not only. I thing bulk and weight will be similar, but i will just need more time for the frames requiring movement and that's what I'll try to optimize. So I will just have to see how it goes with and without Grafmatic.

anyway, I looked online, and only ebay had six listings, all fixed price around 100usd and one low starting auction, for these 2x3 Grafmatic. The 4x5 are many.
It was a while I didn't buy by auction. There were only two bids at 30 or 40 usd in that short-term auction duration. I did an ambush buy: jumped in the last 40s before ending with a 90usd bid, after 20s the 90 was outbid so I injected a 120, the other guy increased but not enough, I had a 150 ready to go, but didn't need, won at 107usd. Add 30usd for shipment and 40usd for norwegian vat, haha, so 177usd. But it is 2x Grafmatic 23 and one 2-sheets holder:




and still have not bought the camera+back+lenses combo... but at least have secured these Grafmatic 23. They will arrive after the camera anyway, as stuff from USA seem to need three to four weeks to arrive, but from Japan one week ...