Odd round threaded lens board - what does it fit or do?

Kodachromeguy · Apr 24, 2020

Hi Everyone, I have been looking for a 75mm Fujinon lens for 4x5". I saw an offering on the 'Bay from a Japanese vendor for a 75mm ƒ/8 Fujinon mounted on a round lens board with threads on the outer perimeter. Into what did this odd board mount? Did some brand of studio camera accept these threaded boards? Thanks!

AgX · Apr 24, 2020

Maybe for some enlarger.

jimjm · Apr 25, 2020

Possibly it's an adapter for a lensboard that was already drilled with a much larger hole size and had a flange attached. Many large barrel lenses are attached this way, rather than having a retaining ring on the back.
Your lens looks like it already has the correct retaining ring, so you could remove the adapter and just use a lensboard drilled to the correct, smaller size.

John Koehrer · Apr 25, 2020

^^^What he said. The ring is the one right at the lens board withe the square notch on top.
It unscrews and the lens comes out of the board.
The rear group simply unscrews from the assembly.

Kodachromeguy · Apr 25, 2020

Hi Gents, I know about the threaded retaining ring for the lens. What I want to know is the purpose of the purpose of the large-diameter threaded lens board. What did it fit? Jimjim above may be right that it screwed into some mounting flange on a larger lens board, but that seems to be an expensive way to get a fit.

Jim Jones · Apr 26, 2020

Using a large screw-in lens cap as a lens board adaptor is a practical way to adapt several lenses to several enlargers or cameras.

Dan Fromm · Apr 26, 2020

I have what I think are two of the same boards. They are threaded female M90x1 at the rear, are made of light alloy.

One came from Italy, the other from France. The dished one had a 135/6.8 Beryl, the flat one an 85/6.8 Beryl. The lenses are in barrel, what Boyer called a re-entrant mount that they used for lenses sold as enlarging lenses. So I believe that my boards are for an enlarger.

I posted links to images of them on the US LF forum years ago, asked whether anyone recognized them. No responses. See https://1drv.ms/u/s!AggQfcczvHGN9w7B0k02MHLnKM2_?e=glfx1U and https://1drv.ms/u/s!AggQfcczvHGN9w9H6-BsrfOGh2j-?e=bAns9j

Mamiya_Repair · Apr 27, 2020

I believe what you have is a lens mounted on a board to fit a photographic printer. I have several of them with L39 threads to fit enlarging lenses. As the photo shows, they fit a brass mount with flanges that fits into the printer. The diameter of the threads is around 65mm.

Bob S · Apr 27, 2020

Dan Fromm said:
I have what I think are two of the same boards. They are threaded female M90x1 at the rear, are made of light alloy.

One came from Italy, the other from France. The dished one had a 135/6.8 Beryl, the flat one an 85/6.8 Beryl. The lenses are in barrel, what Boyer called a re-entrant mount that they used for lenses sold as enlarging lenses. So I believe that my boards are for an enlarger.

I posted links to images of them on the US LF forum years ago, asked whether anyone recognized them. No responses. See https://1drv.ms/u/s!AggQfcczvHGN9w7B0k02MHLnKM2_?e=glfx1U and https://1drv.ms/u/s!AggQfcczvHGN9w9H6-BsrfOGh2j-?e=bAns9j

I think that the Italian camera was the Fatif. Not very popular in the USA although Pan Pacific in LA imported a few before he went to jail.

Kodachromeguy · Apr 27, 2020

I just saw another option: a 4x5 wide-angle camera. This one from an ePrey listing appears to be a well-made custom camera. No focus? Several folks mentioned enlargers, but why would someone use a wide-angle lens with shutter in an enlarger? Enlarger lenses are designed to be flat field and close-focus, like process lenses. However, we will never know. Cheers to all.

Huub · Apr 28, 2020

It could also be the top part of a tophat lensboard. Why someone would put a 75mm on a tophat escapes me as these are used in situations where you need more bellowsdraw then the camera provides.

Besk · May 3, 2020

Jim Jones said:
Using a large screw-in lens cap as a lens board adaptor is a practical way to adapt several lenses to several enlargers or cameras.

Yes. That is what I do. Made from metal lens caps. I use both 52mm & 67mm caps for Crown Graphic, Busch Pressman, & Sinars.

Odd round threaded lens board - what does it fit or do?

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