Mamiya RZ67 350mm APO lens support bracket

[Akzidenz]

Hello,

I bought a 350mm APO lens for the Mamiya RZ76 without the lens holder. It was a very good price so I took the decision to look for this accessory afterward but I really don't understand how to spot the good support bracket.

There is the product description on B&H where of course, the item is no longer available, and there is two products on eBay but not quite the same design. My question is : do you know if this is possible to pick one of those holder for the 350mm APO lens ?

DEDICATED PRODUCT for reference :

ZOOM HOLDER

UNKNOWN HOLDER

Thank you !

Alan

 

[prado333]

Maybe your support is for the 100-200mm mamiya rz zoom lens . Of course it is not for the 350mm

 

[Akzidenz]

Hi Prado,

Actually I didn't get any support yet, but I struggle to find the good one and ask if there is any compatibility between the different models ?
There is also a RSS tool to achieve this but very expensive, and i'm still trying to find if accessories of Arca-Swiss can be used to support the lens but without success.

Thank you

 

[EdSawyer]

The zoom holder and the unknown holder in the pictures above are the same one. For the 100-200 zoom lens. It's not going to work for the 350 apo, though parts of it are the same, so if you are handy with fabrication you could make it work. It would need the long main support extended and a slightly higher riser block for the roller/curved piece, but otherwise it would be pretty straightforward. I have the 350Apo and the holder, it's a good combo. You can use the 350apo without the holder, even handheld, it's a little unwieldy but not that bad. Just support the lens with one hand and it will work out fine. I've shot it plenty this way when I can't be bothered to set up the holder. The way to make this work is to use the L-grip, so that you can hold and fire the shutter with one hand and support the lens and focus with the other. It's not the easiest thing in the world but it is doable.

 

[Akzidenz]

Hi EdSawyer,

thank you for this informative reply. I’ll buy and modify the zoom holder!

best regards

Alan

 

[abruzzi]

There are also generic adjustable support brackets out there. The trick would be to see if they have enough adjustment to match your camera. Since you don’t have the original. Measure from the tripod mount to the place on the lens you want the support to contact, and the distance up from the bracket to the lens. With those two measurements, you should be able to see if any of the generic brackets can fit.

One example of a generic bracket:

https://support.neewer.com/product/...ball-head-dslr-camera-photography-compatible/

 

[mshchem]

Hi EdSawyer,

thank you for this informative reply. I’ll buy and modify the zoom holder!

best regards

Alan

The zoom bracket is got all the right parts. It's how you assemble. The extra rods aren't used.

 

[M Carter]

In a pinch, you can always use a cheap cinema rails setup. You'd need to add a lens support, but it would work. And bonus, a cheap matte box could go on there as well, giving you 2 rotating 100mm square filter holders.

 

[Dennis-B]

You might want to contact Hejnar. They make custom, and have, off-the shelf support brackets.

http://www.hejnarphotostore.com/

 

[Akzidenz]

Thank you all for this very appreciated help !

I will send here the result of my quest if I reach a good and affordable solution.

Alan

 

[Ian C]

When the winder is attached to the camera, the base of the lens support is lowered by the height of the winder. The “extra rods” seen in the clear plastic bag in the second photo of post #1 are placed vertically between the front of the base and the front support which raises the cradle and rollers to compensate for the height of the winder.

As noted in post #4, trying to use the shorter lens support intended for the zoom lens won’t work with the 350 APO.

Each of these lens supports is designed so that the tripod socket on the bottom of the base is located at approximately the balance point of the camera and lens combination. That’s true of both models, long and short. Using the short support for a long lens—if it could be mounted—would likely give a “nose-heavy” combination.

The critical problem is: The support cradle that carries the rollers is designed to fit the smaller-diameter front section of the lens barrel (measures 79.86 mm diameter). By examining the photo of the short support alongside the millimeter scale in the 3rd photo of post #1, it appears that the rollers are about 100 mm forward of the large knurled attachment screw on the bracket (which fits the camera’s tripod socket).

I mounted my 350 APO with its dedicated lens support on an RZ67 body. With the lens fully retracted, the larger diameter rear barrel, aperture preset ring and so forth, are already farther forward than the cradle and rollers of the short support. In the retracted position, the forward edge of the preset ring is 152 mm forward of the camera’s tripod socket. The resulting interference between the rear portion of the barrel and the preset ring with the cradle and rollers of the short lens support makes mounting the 350 APO lens impossible.

In order to use the components of the short lens-support kit to properly support the 350 APO throughout its focusing range, you’d have to design and fabricate a custom base about the same length as that of the long unit. And the tripod socket on the bottom of the main beam should be positioned at the same place as the socket on the long support for proper balance (75 mm forward of the knurled mounting screw). You’d also have to allow for the 46 mm travel of the lens from its retracted to its extended positions.

The main beam is aluminum alloy and measures 10 mm x 30 mm x 223 mm. It would required significant machining to accept the various parts of the short support kit.

Waiting until you can find the appropriate kit is the best course. If you keep checking eBay, eventually the correct support may be offered for sale.

 

[Akzidenz]

The main beam is aluminum alloy and measures 10 mm x 30 mm x 223 mm. It would required significant machining to accept the various parts of the short support kit.
.

I will get the one axis macro table from Arca Swiss (with a longer rail):

Than add this simple angle connector at one end :

Then I can securely couple this table with the lens holder, either the one from RSS, neewer or HejnarPhotoStore. The later is the most promising because of the variety of length and wheels diameters : http://www.hejnarphotostore.com/category-s/154.htm

The big advantage of this solution is that the rail base follows the Arca-Swiss standard, so I can use this tool conveniently.

I'll try this combination and give my results here.