Photo Equipment Sale In Harvard, MA

[Bill Hahn]

The Harvard Camera Store - where over the years I bought a bunch of stuff, including my darkroom chemicals and a used Pentax 6x7 - is going out of business. They are selling off their stock - "everything must go".

(They are located about two miles south of the Ayer rotary on route 111. From the rotary, take route 111 south to the first stop sign. At the stop sign, you'll see a three story building across the intersection, with an old town cemetery behind it. The camera store is located on the second floor.)

I bought some stuff today, including a lens (and lens cone) for an Omega DII. There is darkroom chemistry, papers, equipment, used cameras - including some folders and TLR's - used lenses for a variety of camera systems. Some camera bags, photographer's vests, and even a large Epson Archival Inkject printer that can make very large prints.

The owner took me upstairs and showed me a wonderful Graflex Master Studio 8x10 camera - on a wooden stand bigger than most church pulpits - with wooden 8x10 film holders.

They are open from 10am to 1pm weekdays and Saturdays...for how long I don't know....

I'm sad to see them go - they were there from my first hesitant startz in photography, they showed me how to load 120 film in a Pentax 6x7. I'll miss them....

 

[SuzanneR]

Thanks for the heads up, Bill! I may have to check it out this week! I've been wondering when this sale would happen. Last time I stopped by they were simply closed for good. (With a note about a sale in July!) I was bummed!!

BTW, we lost a few posts in this thread during the server change!

 

[Bill Hahn]

Geez, not only posts to this thread but several PM's I wrote last night apparently vaporized.

But I agree with the (now vanished) post of dfcardwell - YOU NEED THAT GRAFLEX MASTER STUDIO 8x10!! (Actually, the reason I think you need it is that if you get it there might be a chance that you would let me use it )

 

[naturephoto1]

Gee Bill,

That is very thoughtful. Maybe Suzanne can rent the use of the camera.

Rich

 

[SuzanneR]

well, as I mentioned yesterday... there is the problem of the "studio" for the 8x10 studio camera!!

we could go halves and make it available to the whole groups of NE Apuggers! Hey... include it Whitey's show!!

 

[Bill Hahn]

Maybe a plan...

Hey, I'm willing to "go halves" - er, wait; nobody established a price yet.

And Richard (or anybody else for that matter) is right to suspect my motives. But I would like to point out that "rent" falls within my definition of "letting me use it". (And hey, I did include a smiley and revealed my motive.)

All kidding aside, it is a beautiful camera. I don't even know if it's functional - I took a quick look before I would have committed an act of folly. In a fantasy world, a bunch of NE APUGers would split the purchase price and the camera would find a home at Whitey's school where we could all use it.....and none of use would fight about scheduling its use. etc. Like I said, a fantasy world....

well, as I mentioned yesterday... there is the problem of the "studio" for the 8x10 studio camera!!

we could go halves and make it available to the whole groups of NE Apuggers! Hey... include it Whitey's show!!

 

[papagene]

HMMMMM..... If so many of the NE-APUG'ers weren't from the other end of the state, I would suggest the VPC as a home. But...

gene

 

[PhotoPete]

8x10 camera timeshares?
I could be persuaded very easily...

 

[SuzanneR]

No reason we can't rotate from place to place!!

Hmmmmm..... camera timeshares....

Good idea Pete!!

 

[SuzanneR]

I stopped by the Harvard Camera store this morning. It really is sad to see a once thriving mom and pop camera store that provided equipment for the Lowell Sun, Fort Devens, local police and fire departments, and I'm sure countless students close up shop after over 40 years. Not only that, but the General Store downstairs is also closing. They were all the same business. They also had a framing shop upstairs which I didn't know about!! So, framing supplies are for sale, too. Hell, the whole building is on the market!

The 8x10 studio century camera looks to be in very good shape. Just a little dust, but it's sort of tucked away in a corner, and all the film holders are perched on the back, so I couldn't get a look through the ground glass. (OH, and it had a reducing back, I think to 5x7, too!) Maybe, Bill, if folks are interested, we could really give it a good looking over together, and do a little research on price.

Any interest in figuring out a good home for it?

 

[Bill Hahn]

I'm definitely interested, which ain't news. I wouldn't even mind travelling to the VPC to use it, if Gene is still interested in that. (I would expect to use it probably at most once or twice a year.)

 

[PhotoPete]

They were asking $550 for the century, but I suspect they will take significantly less. There is a very limited market for such a thing, and it's far too enourmous and heavy to move on ebay.

The glass on the 5x7 back is in good shape, but I didn't see any glass on the 8x10. The lens was surprisingly fast (4.5), but was branded by a Lexington, MA company I had never heard of (something Precision, I think). There were some glass plate holders and at least one 8x10 film holder. Bellows looked to be in decent shape, but I did not do a flashlight inspection.

Suzanne, the owner's wife remembers you, do you have contact info for her, now that the store is closed?

VPC is too far from Boston for me to be interested, should it take up residence there. I don't know how feasible it would be for it to move from owner to owner on a monthly (or quarterly) basis, given its size. Others who have moved such beasts (Whitey?) might know better. Are there any options for its housing in metro Boston?