Speed graphic questions

BetterSense · Sep 2, 2009

I just got a speed graphic, and I have a couple of questions. I don't think the rangefinder works so I'll probably take it off. The FP shutter seems to work fine.

First of all I have no lensboard. What kind of lensboards fit this camera, and can I make one?

Second, I found backward tilt, rise, and shift, but no swing, fall, or forward tilt. Can I flip the front around to get forward tilt?

There is a little lever on the right side below the FP shutter tripper lever. What's it do?

The normal shutter's cable seems like it would be too stiff to operate even if I did have a lens. Is it ok to oil it?

werra · Sep 2, 2009

BetterSense said:
First of all I have no lensboard. What kind of lensboards fit this camera, and can I make one?

Absolutely.
From plywood for example, cut 2 squares, fitting to outer and inner hole of the front std, drill ca 5cm hole to acommodate retaining ring and some space around it in the centre of smaller square, glue them together, drill appropriate hole for the shutter to front layer, paint the whole thing mat black and there you are.

Jon Shiu · Sep 2, 2009

Hi, there's a great site called www.graflex.org that has a lot of info on these cameras. You can identify which model you have there.

Jon

Vaughn · Sep 2, 2009

I can answer #2 -- drop the front of the camera, then use the rise/fall and the lens rear tilt to duplicate front lens tilt.

Lensboard -- a little tough to make as there is a thin ridge that forms a light seal, but one might be able to make a mat-board lensboard to use until you can find a real one.

Vaughn

djacobox372 · Sep 2, 2009

Buy a lens board off ebay, they're pretty inexpensive

As for that extra lever... I'm not sure what you're talking about. On the right side you should have a focal plane shutter winder, a focal plane shutter switch, and the shutter release lever--anything else isn't stock.

I think you may be talking about the shutter release button, which can be linked to the front shutter or the focal plane shutter by the selection switch above/behind it.

Fotoguy20d · Sep 2, 2009

The little lever you're referring to, way down on the bottom, is to flip the shutter tension from low to high - you'll see in the little window that the shutter speed changes.

werra is referring to a lens board for an anniversary graphic. that won't work for a pacemaker model, which is what you have since the anny doesn't have front tilt.

Dan

werra · Sep 2, 2009

Fotoguy20d said:
werra is referring to a lens board for an anniversary graphic. that won't work for a pacemaker model, which is what you have since the anny doesn't have front tilt.

Yeap, took a quick look at my Anny while describing. But have made such a board for the Super as well. How different is Pacemaker?

BetterSense · Sep 2, 2009

I can answer #2 -- drop the front of the camera, then use the rise/fall and the lens rear tilt to duplicate front lens tilt.

I don't think the front of my camera will drop. Rear tilt seems like a pretty improbable movement.

Edit: No, my bed can drop just fine, so I can have some front tilt it looks like. Also, the little lever does indeed change the FP shutter speeds.

Fotoguy20d · Sep 2, 2009

Be very careful with dropping the bed - I've seen too many Graphics with ruined rear rails where someone either dropped the bed or tried to close the camera without properly racking the bed all the way back. If you feel more than a little resistance when lifting the bed back up or when closing it, something's wrong.

As for the lensboard, the one for a Pacemaker and the one for an Anny are very different. Dimensions are slightly different but also, the Pacemaker has a thin sheetmetal board with a light trap groove on the front standard to match, and it has rounded corners. There is an adpter made for the Anny and GV which will allow you to mount a 4x5 Pacemaker board.

BetterSense · Sep 2, 2009

I don't know exactly what I have I guess. My lensboard would have slightly rounded corners if i had one, and the front standard has kind of a rolled-over edge inside that looks like it would go into a groove of the lensboard.

EASmithV · Sep 2, 2009

BetterSense said:
I just got a speed graphic, and I have a couple of questions. I don't think the rangefinder works so I'll probably take it off. The FP shutter seems to work fine.

First of all I have no lensboard. What kind of lensboards fit this camera, and can I make one?

Second, I found backward tilt, rise, and shift, but no swing, fall, or forward tilt. Can I flip the front around to get forward tilt?

There is a little lever on the right side below the FP shutter tripper lever. What's it do?

The normal shutter's cable seems like it would be too stiff to operate even if I did have a lens. Is it ok to oil it?

Congratulations, it will soon become one of your favorites!

Search around for the service manuals, you can find the way to fix the rangefinder. It's not hard.

I often take a single piece of cardboard, paint the back black, and make it slightly larger than the hole in the front standard. It is held in by the lensboard sliders, and actually works. Not pretty, but it works, and if done right does not leak light.. You can also get lensboards off of ebay, depending on the model you have.

The lensboards, have no groove in them they held in strictly by the sliders on the front.

As said before, dropping the front allows you to do the other movements you desire.

That little lever engages a governor that changes the shutter speeds. Look in the little window with the speed in it (if it's a Pacemaker) and push the lever, and you will see a mask slide over to display a different set of numbers. This allows you to change between the high and low speeds (1/500 vs 1/1000)

bdial · Sep 2, 2009

SK Grimes (an APUG sponsor) sells Speed Graphic boards. From what I've seen their price is about what most successful bidders end up paying on ebay and you don't have to go through the hassle of bidding and waiting for an auction to end.

BetterSense · Sep 3, 2009

Search around for the service manuals, you can find the way to fix the rangefinder. It's not hard.

I already removed it. Saved 230grams/.6lb! I have an accessory rangefinder I figure I can use if I need to.

I see that there's some kind of distance markings on the rails and the front standard, but I don't know how they are calibrated yet or how to interpret them. Maybe I'm used to distance scales being drawn around a circle.

I had to google how to get the dang thing open.

Anscojohn · Sep 3, 2009

BetterSense said:
I already removed it. Saved 230grams/.6lb! I have an accessory rangefinder I figure I can use if I need to.

I see that there's some kind of distance markings on the rails and the front standard, but I don't know how they are calibrated yet or how to interpret them. Maybe I'm used to distance scales being drawn around a circle.

I had to google how to get the dang thing open.

******
Depending, the vernier focus scales work slightly differently. Check the graflex web site to see how yours works.

BetterSense · Sep 3, 2009

Great! I made a lensboard out of cardboard that looks like it will work fine. I loaded up my single film holder with some Foma 200 just now. I might have time to make my first proper 4x5 negatives tomorrow. I'm using my enlarger lens but the subjects I want to shoot right now are all closeups anyway.

BradS · Sep 3, 2009

BetterSense said:
I already removed it. Saved 230grams/.6lb!

Ouch!

Do yourself and the next owner a favor and put all of the parts in a zip lock bag and save them!

Or send them to me! I'll pay you for 'em!

Please do not loose this stuff...nobody's making it any more!

brian d · Sep 3, 2009

Ouch!

Do yourself and the next owner a favor and put all of the parts in a zip lock bag and save them!

What he said

BetterSense · Sep 3, 2009

Oh, I did put it all in a ziplock bag, I didn't throw it away. I figured someone on here or eBay might want it.

Ian Grant · Sep 3, 2009

You can renovate the Rangefinder, I keep meaning to do mine it just needs the half silvered glass replacing. The Kalart Rangefinders can be adjust to suit various lenses, if it's a Meyer it's dedicated to one focal length. The manual for calibrating etc can be downloaded.

When I bought my first Graphic it had a 135mm Tessar I just assumed the rangefinder was faulty, but by chance checked it last year and found that it's accurate with the 150mm modern coated Tessar I'm now using.

Ian

BetterSense · Sep 3, 2009

Mine didn't even seem to be doing anything. How are you supposed to use it; do you look down into it from above or into the hole visible from behind?

Ian Grant · Sep 3, 2009

Into the hole on the back, but the mirror's age so it may not function,I know a US APUG member replaced the glass in his last year and it worked perfectly after.

Ian

removed account4 · Sep 3, 2009

BetterSense said:
Mine didn't even seem to be doing anything. How are you supposed to use it; do you look down into it from above or into the hole visible from behind?

you look in the hole on the back
and you should see a split image in the center
when it is "focused" the 2 images are 1 ..

from time to time equinoxphotographic.com has lensboards
i often times just use a piece of matboard ... until i find a board
and then realize the matboard works ok too so i don't replace it ..

have fun!

john

Ian Grant · Sep 3, 2009

Heavystar (US seller) on Ebay has new lens boards at good prices, he sells them individually or in three, I bought some a couple off him, he's still listing them.

Ian

Fotoguy20d · Sep 3, 2009

BetterSense said:
Mine didn't even seem to be doing anything. How are you supposed to use it; do you look down into it from above or into the hole visible from behind?

If you have a hole on top, put a piece of black electrical tape over it. That hole is for a focuspot - a nightime focusing assist that shines a little beam onto the splitter and projects two dots of light onto your target. When they line up, you're in focus.

outwest · Sep 3, 2009

With a Dremel tool, it is relatively easy to add front tilt to a Pacemaker. The instructions were in View Camera magazine and, as I remember, it took me less than an hour.

Speed graphic questions

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