Sell or not: Chamonix/ Wista

John Wiegerink said:

Very nice camera indeed. I'm curious to know just how small/compact you can make these cameras for backpacking and hiking? I'd like to see it at its smallest.

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It also depends a little bit on which rail you use. My A-S 6x9 has the 300mm folding rail. That rail folds in half which makes it 150mm/6in. Its drawback is that without an extension, its limited to 300mm. My A-S 4x5 uses the telescoping railwhich is two 150mm rails on a 300mm base rail. In that case I move both standards onto one of the upper rails, and slide it off the base rail. So its also 6 inches long, but I still have the 300mm base rail with the other 150mm upper rail that I have to stash somewhere. That setup can extend out to a total of about 450mm. The F-Field in the video above also has a smaller front standard. It uses the 110mm front instead of the 141mm front. I have the parts to turn my 6x9 into a 4x5 F-Field, but I don't really do that much at all.

abruzzi said:

It also depends a little bit on which rail you use. My A-S 6x9 has the 300mm folding rail. That rail folds in half which makes it 150mm/6in. Its drawback is that without an extension, its limited to 300mm. My A-S 4x5 uses the telescoping railwhich is two 150mm rails on a 300mm base rail. In that case I move both standards onto one of the upper rails, and slide it off the base rail. So its also 6 inches long, but I still have the 300mm base rail with the other 150mm upper rail that I have to stash somewhere. That setup can extend out to a total of about 450mm. The F-Field in the video above also has a smaller front standard. It uses the 110mm front instead of the 141mm front. I have the parts to turn my 6x9 into a 4x5 F-Field, but I don't really do that much at all.

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Thanks for that info. I guess what I was really asking was can it be as compact as my 4X5 Chamonix N2 or say something like a Tachihara 4X5 field camera when folded?

John Wiegerink said:

Thanks for that info. I guess what I was really asking was can it be as compact as my 4X5 Chamonix N2 or say something like a Tachihara 4X5 field camera when folded?

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The N2 looks like a non-folding camer so I suspect that the compact size is pretty similar. One big difference is the Chamonix has a full width bed, while the A-S only has a rail. I place mine in a bag upside down. That way the extra size of the rail sits above everything else in the bag. According to Arca, the F-Classic (141 front) is:

Dimensions: H = 11 in / 28 cm, W = 7.5 in / 19 cm, L = 5.9 in / 15 cm

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The A-S F-Field is actually a little bigger:

Dimensions: H = 11.8 in / 30 cm, W = 7.5 in / 19 cm, L = 6.7 in / 17 cm

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The size difference is a little misleading. That extra 2cm on the height is because the F-Classic is measured on a single sliding rail part, whereas the F-Field has the folding rail, so when folded over, it adds 2cm to the overall height. Length is 2cm longer because the F-Classic only includes the single 15cm sliding rail in the measurment, but the F-Field has a 2cm knob that is used to screw the two halves together.



The Chamonix lists:

The folded size of 45N2 is 200mm x 182mm x 90mm.

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So the Chamonix seems smaller. On both the numbers for length mask how much space the two standards take when smushed up against each other. I suspect both are pretty close. The A-S can focus a 47mm lens so the standards can get pretty close. the Chamonix lists 52mm so its pretty close.

Darryl Roberts said:

I decided to consolidate my Sinar F2 and Chamonix and get an Arca Swiss F Classic C, 2.4kg. 85mm front rise, $4k

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Don't put the Chamonix up for sale just yet. Its value is likely to increase soon: