Bill McBride wrote a series of articles about the various models of Cirkut cameras for Graflex History Quarterly and the International Association of Panoramic Photographers newsletter. Below is the link to an issue with an article that includes No. 16 Cirkut history--and photos!
I'm excited to see what our friend does with his recently acquired No. 16. It is a beast. A No. 10 kit weighs about 50 pounds, which is plenty for me. The No. 16 set up is 90 pounds! Everything about it seems like it will be an order of magnitude or two more challenging than a No. 10. Scanning? Perhaps with a large DIY lightbox. Printing? My 10x72 contact printing frame is heavy and awkward. Trays? Same. I can't imagine handling a printing frame that much larger than my 10x72. Perhaps a custom contact printing table, that can serve dual purpose as a lightbox for scanning is the way to go. Oh, and development. The only other people I know of in recent times who used/use one are Ron Klein (
@panoramic) and Jamie Young (
@jamie young).
From McBride's article:
Because the No. 16 Cirkut was listed in catalogs from 1905 through 1924, it would appear that many were made, but it was bulky to handle, and it was an expensive camera to purchase for the average photographer. Just how many No. 16 Cirkuts were manufactured is not known, but from information that exists, the total production of the No. 16 Cirkuts, which includes the fan and governor speed control types, is approximately one hundred cameras. There were about 43 fan-type and 57 governor-type No. 16 Cirkuts constructed. Nearly a third of them have survived today.
And of course, of that estimated third that 'surived' a much smaller portion is probably in working order with all the necessary gears and tripod head.
