Patch a LF bellows?

athanasius80

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• Jun 17, 2005

• #1

My 5x7 Korona has a replaced bellows thats worn holes in about 3 folds. Still seems light tight, just the outer covering is breached. What sorts of patches would work? I have some gutta resist glue, would that work? Thanks.

 

Dave Parker

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• Jun 17, 2005

• #2

I normally tape my corners with gaffers tape, which is a nice cloth based tape that leaves very little residue, most good quality photo shops carry it.

Dave

 

Nathan Smith

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• Jun 17, 2005

• #3

I just patched an old Kodak #2 folder with the Bostick and Sullivan patch kit. There's enough there to do several cameras and it looks good too. I was patching tiny pinholes you couldn't really see without shining a flashlight through, so I can't tell you how it works on the larger holes. It does come with some cloth for that purpose though, you paint some of the black goop on, put a layer of the thin cloth over it, and paint it again.

Check out (there was a url link here which no longer exists) for more ideas and opinions.

Nathan

 

Donald Qualls

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• Jun 19, 2005

• #4

I've patched a leather bellows with small pieces of thin leather, applied with rubber cement. They hold well, conform to the bellows shape after being compressed for a while in the folded camera, and can be removed by just peeling them off, if necessary, at a later date. Black leather, of course, and they are completely light tight.

 

johnjohnc

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• Jul 10, 2005

• #5

I have experimented repairing Bellows extensivley..... I made a hootch of neoprene rubber roof membrane, rubber cement, and black pigiment.... It failed after a few months......The best way I have found out side of replacement is to recover the entire bellows using a very thin material called nylon coated Taffeta.....It is a pain to do and by the time your thru you will have wished you would have bought a new bellows........ Life is to short........John Cremati

 

Robert Kennedy

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• Jul 10, 2005

• #6

Go with the B&S kit. It will last you well...forever...the stuff is like Spottone.

 

bobfowler

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• Jul 10, 2005

• #7

I'm a gaffer tape kinda guy for bellows patching. By the time the bellows for my 5X7 Eastman went to Western for replacement, it was about 50/50 leather/gaffer tape! (or at least it looked like it was...)