Smelly Bellowies

[djklmnop]

Ok, got used Cambo Legend off ebay and it looks like the thing has been in storage for quite a while. It had a horrible "storage" smell to it. I doubt it was mildew or fungus since there was no mildew stain - maybe I'm wrong. I ripped apart all of the foam on the casing and poured baking soda all over the wood and let it sit in the sun. The bellows is kinda smelly too so I had spread baking soda all over the surface of the bellows and stuck a pouch of baking soda inside the bellows as well.

Am I doing the right thing to remove the bacterias and smell? Tonight I dusted off all the baking soda from the bellows and it is smelling a lot better. I plan on spraying the case down tomorrow to get rid of all the baking soda and allow it to sit in the sun until its bone dry. I hope I'm not damaging the case or bellows in any way by doing this. What should I apply to coat the bellows now that I've got it all cleaned up?

Andy

 

[Aggie]

If they are leather use saddle soap.

 

[jimgalli]

SUN!! You've got sun? I haven't seen the sun in quite a while. And I'm in Nevada for crying out loud.

 

[rbarker]

Although baking soda is great for absorbing odors, it may not cure what was actually causing the odor - probably fungus or bacteria. So, you might need to clean the surfaces with something that will kill that, and then treat the bellows with something else like saddlesoap, depending on the bellows material.

 

[djklmnop]

I had wiped it down with fungicide, so I think they're free of it now.. But the smell is going away nicely.. a small hint of smell, but not so revolting anymore. I'm sure it'll go away with time. At least I can shoot now without worrying about the stink. But I'm not really sure if the bellows is actually leather, if anyone else here has a Cambo/Calumet can fill me in? Thanks.

 

[Mongo]

I do not have a Legend series Cambo, but I do have two Cambo SC-series cameras (an 8x10 and a 4x5). Neither has leather bellows. The 8x10 bellows are a synthetic leather-like material and the 4x5 looks more like fabric than leather. I purchased the Calumet equivalent of the Cambo SC 4x5 for my nephew (he's studying photography at school), and that camera came with a bellows made of the same leather-like material as my Cambo 8x10.

I would be surprised if any Cambo came with real leather bellows...but I only have these three examples to study and none of them are Legends.

You can probably get a definitive answer directly from Calumet; they seem more than willing to support users of Cambo and Calumet cameras. Their customer support has always been helpful and responsive to me.

 

[Zan]

Just soak the entire camera in a bucket of really hot, soapy dishwater... Enjoy!

 

[djklmnop]

I hate you, Zan

 

[Zan]

Seriously tho, you need 3 things: Bleach, kerosene, and some matches... boy, that would do the trick.

 

[Mongo]

Just soak the entire camera in a bucket of really hot, soapy dishwater... Enjoy!

That'd probably work if the camera was a Walker Titan. Now wouldn't that make a great picture?