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New To Me Century Graphic Special. Help.

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Cholentpot said:
Here it is. I'm almost afraid to ask what a CLA goes for on these old lenses.
Click to expand...
The CLA is for the shutter, the mechanical thing the lens cells are screwed into. The shutter make is not visible.

btaylor said:
I still have the Baby Speed with a nice 101mm Ektar and picked up a Century body for the Grafloc back. One of these days I’ll put them together.
Click to expand...
That will be quite an accomplishment as the Graflok back on the Century is part of the molded Bakelite body, not a separate part that is removable. Only the focus panel is removable.
 
btaylor said:
One of my very first “good” cameras was a Baby Speed Graphic I bought with paper route money when I was about 12. Learned all about sheet film, holders, rangefinders, sportsfinders, focal plane vs leaf shutters, etc with it. The spring back was always a disappointment because I couldn’t use roll film with it (and couldn’t afford a Grafloc back much less a roll film holder!). Your 101mm lens is probably right for your rangefinder, so if you make sure it is calibrated at the film plane, that will take care of focusing (Kalarts are not hard to adjust). Then use the optical or sportsfinder to compose and you are good to go. I have a 2x3 focusing panel for a Grafloc back from a Graflex XL I no longer own if your eBay purchase doesn’t work out. I think I have a roll holder or two as well. I still have the Baby Speed with a nice 101mm Ektar and picked up a Century body for the Grafloc back. One of these days I’ll put them together. Have fun! (Btw, that is a Galvin 2x3 monorail linked to above. I had one and it worked pretty well with a roll film back)
Click to expand...

I just almost as much on the back as I did on the camera. If it doesn't work out I may take you up on this stuff, and I can always use more than one roll holder.
 
shutterfinger said:
That will be quite an accomplishment as the Graflok back on the Century is part of the molded Bakelite body, not a separate part that is removable. Only the focus panel is removable.
Click to expand...
Sorry to confuse- put the Ektar on the Century and calibrate the Kalart. Each body has its features.
 
Now I'm on a lookout for a lens board drilled for Copal 1. ebay has failed me as of now...
 
Dan Fromm said:
!@#$ Look around where I directed you. He has Copal #1 boards too.
Click to expand...

Call me crazy but I can't seem to find it. Granted I'm not an Etsy user so I might be missing something slapping me in the face.

And now I see an option to message seller. Great.
 
Dan Fromm said:
!@#$ Look around where I directed you. He has Copal #1 boards too.
Click to expand...

And as a follow up !#@$ Dan. I did message this guy last night and he told me he does not do Copal 1 in the lensboard size I need.
 
Oh, dear. I just checked. I was mistaken. Apologies.
 
Dan Fromm said:
Oh, dear. I just checked. I was mistaken. Apologies.
Click to expand...

No worries.

My GG came in, got the lens mounted, even snapped my first photo. I need a better tripod.

Any recommendations for a nice sold secondhand affordable tripod? Also might need a loupe but I'm not sure yet.
 
No solid ideas re tripods, I've been out of that market for too long.

I have a Star D imitation Tiltall that I retired in favor of a Bogen/Manfrotto 3021/055 (old style) with 3047/029 (I think I got the Manfrotto numbers right, could be mistaken) when I took up movies and needed a fluid head. Tiltalls' heads are fixed. The 3021/055 got wobbly in torsion as it aged. Retired in favor of a Berlebach 8023G, later supplemented with a Ries Model C. Pre-WW II but still good and at the price ($30) I couldn't pass it by . The Berlebach and Ries have 229 heads and 338 ball levelers; the two are heavier than the tripods. I like the combination but they're hard to recommend because of weight. Cost is a factor too.

I visited B&H when I was having the cosmic tripod blues 'cos the 3021 was too loose to work well with my 700/8 Questar, played with all of their display models. Most were a bit wobbly in torsion. The problem is that the tubular legs' locks have short bearing surfaces. My wooden tripods have much longer bearing surfaces between the leg sections.

You won't be using really long lenses with your Century so torsional vibration -- the platform moves around its vertical axis -- shouldn't affect it. The Tiltall and the all-metal Star D copy will do for you and have integrated heads. Otherwise a Manfrotto tripod (current 055) with a 3025/526 head would do.
 
It's not second-hand, but the SLIK AL523 is a pretty solid tripod for a reasonable price. It's new enough that there aren't many reviews of it, though. I ordered the "leg only" version, as I already had a good ball head. Not too much to say, except it's solidly built, and has flip-locks (which I still prefer to twist-locks), and I have no reason to doubt it's claimed load capacity (~14 pounds).
 
Dan Fromm said:
No solid ideas re tripods, I've been out of that market for too long.

I have a Star D imitation Tiltall that I retired in favor of a Bogen/Manfrotto 3021/055 (old style) with 3047/029 (I think I got the Manfrotto numbers right, could be mistaken) when I took up movies and needed a fluid head. Tiltalls' heads are fixed. The 3021/055 got wobbly in torsion as it aged. Retired in favor of a Berlebach 8023G, later supplemented with a Ries Model C. Pre-WW II but still good and at the price ($30) I couldn't pass it by . The Berlebach and Ries have 229 heads and 338 ball levelers; the two are heavier than the tripods. I like the combination but they're hard to recommend because of weight. Cost is a factor too.

I visited B&H when I was having the cosmic tripod blues 'cos the 3021 was too loose to work well with my 700/8 Questar, played with all of their display models. Most were a bit wobbly in torsion. The problem is that the tubular legs' locks have short bearing surfaces. My wooden tripods have much longer bearing surfaces between the leg sections.

You won't be using really long lenses with your Century so torsional vibration -- the platform moves around its vertical axis -- shouldn't affect it. The Tiltall and the all-metal Star D copy will do for you and have integrated heads. Otherwise a Manfrotto tripod (current 055) with a 3025/526 head would do.
Click to expand...

I have an old Star D copy. I'm going to take it for a test.

I seem to have struck out on the Copal 1 sized board. Found someone on Ebay but they won't do it. I think I'll have to find a local shoppe that'll do something like this for me.
 
... how about a Copal 0 board and a file?

Or a Copal 0 board and a shop. Last time I had some like that done the shop charged $35 to machine a bigger hole and mount a shutter.
 
Cholentpot said:
I have an old Star D copy. I'm going to take it for a test.

I seem to have struck out on the Copal 1 sized board. Found someone on Ebay but they won't do it. I think I'll have to find a local shoppe that'll do something like this for me.
Click to expand...
skgrimes should have them. Not as inexpensive as you'd like, though.
 
BrianShaw said:
... how about a Copal 0 board and a file?

Or a Copal 0 board and a shop. Last time I had some like that done the shop charged $35 to machine a bigger hole and mount a shutter.
Click to expand...

This is where I'm heading. Three local places I've been to could not fabricate it. I see a board on the ebay for $15 or so with a 0. File and sandpaper look like the way to go.
 
Get a piece of 1/4 inch thick Baltic Birch Plywood, black acrylic, or ABS plastic.
Cut to just fit into the lens board opening
With the focus panel removed mark the throat of the bellows opening onto the board blank
Trim the outer edge to the throat marking to 1/8 inch thick or to just sit into the camera with the lens board lock in the locked position
Cut the desired hole size fr the shutter you want to mount.
Trim down the mount ring area as needed to obtain at least 3 threads on the shutter with the ring attached.
The lip is not necessary as long as the outer edges are the same thickness and smooth. The thickness of the board extending int the throat of the bellows helps ensure no light leaks.
 
shutterfinger said:
Get a piece of 1/4 inch thick Baltic Birch Plywood, black acrylic, or ABS plastic.
Cut to just fit into the lens board opening
With the focus panel removed mark the throat of the bellows opening onto the board blank
Trim the outer edge to the throat marking to 1/8 inch thick or to just sit into the camera with the lens board lock in the locked position
Cut the desired hole size fr the shutter you want to mount.
Trim down the mount ring area as needed to obtain at least 3 threads on the shutter with the ring attached.
The lip is not necessary as long as the outer edges are the same thickness and smooth. The thickness of the board extending int the throat of the bellows helps ensure no light leaks.
Click to expand...

Ordered a used board that's drilled for copal 0 and going to order this drill bit.

https://www.amazon.com/Tungsten-Carbide-Cutter-Stainless-Aluminum/dp/B07L84SN1L

Do you foresee any issues?
 
Its pretty hard to drill out a bigger hole because the center bit can not center itself. When you do it, clamp a piece of wood or metal on the back side so the bit has something to work off of.
 
Using a Dremel with a sanding drum one can mark the new hole size then enlarge the existing hole. Time consuming.
Cholentpot said:
rdered a used board that's drilled for copal 0 and going to order this drill bit.
Click to expand...
Just provinding another way/source. Roberts camera has a opal 0 listed on ebay for $15 also.

Careful that monster bit doesn't destroy the board. Use a drill press not a hand drill.
From SKGrimes website:
Copal 0 lens board hole 34.6mm; Copal 1 mount hole 41.6mm; difference 7mm diameter, 3.5mm radius.
The teeth on that bit look larger than 3.5mm.
 
Last edited:
I want to second shutterfinger---use a drill press and not a hand drill. And secure the material down properly. The Dremel is a good idea, too. I had to hand grind an interior steel column to get another column to fit into it properly. Took a long time, but it worked and there was less of a chance of ruining the materials, tools, or myself in the process. A hand file will take time, too, but it does work.

I've only used a lathe to drill lensboards, including one someone tried to hand drill that was...hmm, how to describe it...ovalicious. That's the word. And I got it for free.
 
I foresee troubles...

I say again... file. Go all the way and buy a 10-inch. Won’t cost much; won’t take long, and you won’t wreck the board as fast as you might with power tool!
 
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