TLR Users

[Jeff Kubach]

Thanks Dennis, I think I'm going to try that.

Jeff

 

[Rolleiflexible]

I am not sure about whether you can
run 220 film through a 120 Rolleiflex.
220 film lacks the paper backing of
120 film and the lack of the backing
might affect frame spacing. Or might
not. Sanders

 

[dpurdy]

There is no adjustment for the pressure plate or for the spacing. When you get a 120/220 switch it only resets the counter. So you go from 120 film to 220 film anytime with no adjustment. I learned the trick of guesstimating the spacing with my 12/24 camera. If you accidentally bump the switch half way and don't check it and start up a new 220 or 120 roll, the camera will run the film right through and never stop at frame one. So once you have done that and finished with your loud rude swearing about it you can shoot some frames without the help of a counter. Dennis

 

[dpurdy]

OK so I ran test to see if you can shoot 220 film with the Rolleiflex set for 120 film. And you can. I put my 2.8F on a tripod and focused on some lace curtains and left the camera set for 120 though I put in a roll of 220 TXP. The auto sensor felt the film just fine and stopped on frame one. I exposed through frame 12 and watched how far I had to turn the lever when advancing film. From frame 1 to frame 12 the lever had to go slightly less and less with each advancement. At frame 1 the lever went all the way around to 9 oclock but by frame 12 the lever was only going back to about 7 oclock. After frame 12 I just kept winding the lever to 7 oclock (and then reversed it back to the top to cock the shutter) and I went through 12 more exposures without adjusting the advance lever distance.

I processed the film and I got 23 and a half frames. Had I adjusted the advance of the lever to be less and less by just a little I would have gotten all 24. But I didn't adjust it and the gap between frame 23 and frame 24 is nearly an inch on the film.

So my conclusion is that you can indeed shoot 220 film in your 120 Rolleiflex if can keep track of the exposures and either make a slight adjustment in the distance you crank the lever, or be happy to get 23 exposures instead of 24 by always turning the crank to 7 oclock.

This has been a challange to describe in words, I hope I made it understandable.
Dennis
I should add that I made the exsoures at f4.5 and they are all sharp all the same all the way through.

 

[ts103706@ohio.edu]

It took me a while, but for whatever reason, I was finally able to upload a couple scans from a roll of Fuji 800z I shot one summer night. The scans were pretty disappointing. They cost me $12.00 for 5 low resolution scans that had dust and seemed like something I could have done at home. The 5x5 proofs look much better.

 

[Toffle]

very cool, Dennis. Though I'm not generally a 220 shooter, I occasionally pick up some odd films here and there so it's good to know that I can use it in my Rollei.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[haris]

Hello. I use Yashica MAT (not 124), with broken lightmeter, but who needs it anyhow . I really like that camera.

 

[Toffle]

Welcome here, Haris. Lightmeters are a luxury... like dishwashers. They make our life easier, but don't always do the job the way we want them to. It doesn't take that much to learn to do the job without them. And in the end you know where the credit or blame lies.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[bill h]

Hello all. Glad to discover this group and glad that it is TLR and not just one brand... though I shoot Rolleis, I also enjoy my Minolta Autocord, which has a pretty good lightmeter. I will be printing today, and, Dennis, I'll be using your tea-toning technique for at least some of the time. Hope Earl Grey will work. --bill h

 

[dpurdy]

Hey Bill. That tea tone gets addictive. I have shown a lot of people stacks of prints with tea tones ones mixed in and they get a good repsonse. It is a beautiful warm color. And it makes your stop bath smell good.
Dennis
Toffle, I don't see why any Rollei that doesn't have the old frame windows in the back door wouldn't work.

 

[haris]

Thanks, Tom

 

[Toffle]

Rollei CLA in Canada?

Over the past year, I have heard a few discussions about the possibility of Rollei service in Canada. My beloved 3.5f has been in need of CLA since the day I bought her. I suspect there was a botched adjustment/repair sometime in her past, but I just couldn't bear to be without her. I waited until Labour Day, and with a busy period of my life starting up, I dropped her off at Windsor Photo Outfitters for some TLC. This is the kind of shop where the proprietors have become friends over the years, and they are always interested and encouraging of my efforts in the film world. They optimistically offered a two-week turnaround. I expected longer, so we will have to see. For owner/tech Adrian Harte, this is a labour of love, so I am willing to share his optimism. Just thought I'd let you know what I'm up to, and I'll keep you posted regarding any developments.

Cheers, Tom

By the way, they can be found at http://photooutfitters.ca

 

[Toffle]

If anyone is interested, there's a Bay I infrarot filter up for auction this week on ebay. I'd bid on it myself, except I need Bay II.

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Rolleiflex-filter-Infrarot-deep-red_W0QQitemZ230288342235QQihZ013QQcategoryZ30043QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


Cheers,
Tom

 

[Toffle]

I posted this in the medium format forums, but I thought maybe I should put it here too... in case anyone knows.

I've been looking for a bay II Rollei Infrarot filter (lens) for some time now, with no luck whatsoever. Now I see an auction for a Bay I filter, (see my post below) and I'm thinking this could be my only opportunity to pick one up.

My question is, is there a Bay I to Bay II adapter available? I don't know how much smaller Bay I is, but I'm wondering if there would be significant vignetting if it is too small.

Any opinions?

 

[Ken22485]

Somehow I happened to stumble into the groups here.

My first TLR is a Graflex 22 that I picked up in a thrift store for a few bucks. I had never shot MF before I had this camera (unless you count my parents old Brownie Hawkeye when I was a kid) and I was really impressed with the detail and tonality of the photos.

A few years later, I picked up a Yashica 124 (not the G) in excellent+ condition for the princely sum of $25 at another thrift shop. I had a CLA done on it and it's a great camera. Since I got the Yashica, I haven't shot the Graflex... (I need to remedy that...)

I have a question about the Yashica. The last roll of film I shot in it came out unexposed, except for a roughly circular area in the center of the frame. I used flash for these photos, and I'm pretty sure the synch was set to "X."

I'm thinking that the synch had shifted to "M" without me realizing it, or that I have a problem with the synch function. All photos on the roll were shot with flash, so I don't know how non-flash photos would have turned out. I'll be shooting another roll with both flash and no flash pictures as a quick test to check things out.

If anyone has any ideas, or suggestions, I'd certainly appreciate it.

Ken

 

[Ian Grant]

Ken test the flash sync with no film in the camera. With the camera back open trigger the shutter and see if you can see the flash as the shutter fires. Also without the flash check the shutter speeds to make sure the shutters opening properly.

Ian

 

[mjs]

My Rollei New Standard came back from Mark Hansen in Portland yesterday; it's like having a new camera! Mark did a great job cleaning and adjusting things and installing a new mirror. I can't wait to finally get to use it. It had been sitting in a fellow's garage for probably forty years or more when I got it at an estate auction back in July; now it's been reborn. Then I found a Bay I lens cap on Ebay today, pretty cheap, so I can keep the glass safe. Now I need to find a Bay I yellow filter to help with contrast on that old lens...

I bought a couple of rolls of Plus-X a while back, just waiting for this camera. I'll see if I can manage a few frames at my oldest daughter's birthday party tomorrow night.

Mike

 

[Krockmitaine]

Hello everyone,
Just recently I jumped the TLR bandwagon with the addition of mhv's Yashica D so I guess I can join the group now

Marc

 

[haris]

Ken, put a rubber band over flash sync lever and time delay shutter lever in a way that rubber band press flash and time levers toward eachother, thus prevent accidently moving either flash lever or time lever. That is what I do with my Yashica MAT.

 

[Rolleiflexible]

Mike, the New Standard is a cool model.
I recently bought an odd Rolleiflex based
on a New Standard body and shutter --
the serial number places it as an Automat
built just after the war. But the shutter
and body are clearly New Standard vintage
and the lens is even older, an f/4.5 Tessar.
I read that F+H made some cameras like
this after the war from parts then on hand
at the factory. I've not yet run any film
through it but I love the way the shutter
uses levers in place of dials for setting
shutter and aperture.

Sanders

 

[mjs]

My New Standard is a very fun camera; I've run two rolls of film through it but haven't developed them yet. I'm hoping to get a couple of hours to at least get that done this week, but it isn't looking good. I've wasted frames on each roll because of not knowing the camera's peculiarities; I can handle using a red window, I can handle using a semi-automatic counter but the New Standard's hybrid has fooled me a couple of times. You really have to remember what you did last 'cause it isn't telling! Unless I really screwed something up, though, I ought to have at least a few frames to show in the next week or so.

Mike

 

[Rolleiflexible]

Mike, the red window on the New Standard is simple.
It is open only when the camera back is unlatched.
You use it to get the film to the starting point, with
"1" showing in the window. Then you slide the latch
shut; the window closes; and the camera's automatic
counter does the rest. It's not unlike a Rolleicord --
both cameras have automatic frame counters but both
rely on the user to position the film at the outset.

 

[mjs]

The thing with the New Standard is that it isn't an Automat -- it has no idea where the film is. So I roll the film so the '1' is in the red window, close the window, and start walking around the local art fair. After a while I see some shapes that interest me and pick up the camera -- did I cock the shutter or not? Can't remember. I absently turn the winding crank. 1 frame out the window. Oops! Well. The right thing to do is reverse to cock the shutter, right? So what do I do? I turn the crank again. Another frame shot but this time I reverse and the shutter's cocked. Great. Two frames lost but I'm takin' pictures with my new Rollei! Whoopie! Hey, wait a minute -- the frame counter says '2'. It didn't count those two wasted frames, which means that when it gets to '10', not '12', it's out of film (but doesn't know it. *Sigh*)

It's all right -- I'm getting used to it. I may get time to develop films tonight, or maybe not: it depends on how long we spend at my parent's house tonight, helping them with some things. But I'm still excited!

Mike

 

[Mark Antony]

Excuse my ignorance, but I've often wondered what is the difference operationally between say a new Standard and a later say Mid 50's Rolleicord?
mjs your Standard sounds similar to a early 50's cord I once had the only difference is the wind handle rather than a knob?

 

[mjs]

Hello, Mark. I'm not very well educated on Rollei cameras; I learned a little bit about mine from the repairman and looking for a manual on the web, but there are many, many models of Rolleiflex and Rolleicord cameras and about most of them I know nothing. I'm a photographer, not a collector, so (at the rist of offending Rollei fans everywhere,) I have little interest in cameras I don't actually own and use. Wish I could help but... there are some decent web sites but after having looked over a bunch of them, the level of detail is startlingly low. Presumably there's a book (or books) with the requisite information but I don't have one and don't know what it would be. Undoubtedly someone here more versed in Rollei lore than I will chime in at some point.

Mike