Don't go overboard on cleaning or lubricating the front rise gears, if you do, the front standard won't stay up where you want it when you try to use front rise. Looks like you don't have the sliding tripod mount block, or maybe I just can't see it clearly. This helps when you are using a lens that places the center of the camera somewhere where the front and back tripod screws aren't. You have picked a fairly heavy camera to manage with arthritis in your hands. I say that because I also have a similar camera and some arthritis in my hands. I have the most difficulty with mine, in so far as the arthritis is concerned, in getting the camera mounted on a tripod without dropping it. Be careful about setting it up if there is wind, these cameras can catch a lot of wind particularly when the bellows is extended. Light leaks can occur around the lens board on some of these cameras. If you get light leaks, try taping all the way around the outside of the lens board with gaffer's tape, I ran into this but thought the leak was in the bellows, it wasn't. This is a great camera if you don't have to carry it too far, I usually set mine up within a few feet of my car. I bought some affordable lenses to start out with, a 240 convertible Schneider Symmar (something like a 35mm lens on a 35mm camera) and a 480 Nikkor process lens, a longer than normal lens for this format, and I rarely need much else, I sometimes use a 360 Nikkor. The last 2 lenses don't have shutters. I have never been able to manage an 8x10 shot in which I had everything in focus at less than f32 and often f64, so I end up with long exposure times and a working shutter isn't really that important (so a lens cap or Packard shutter can work fine). The front standard can be easily modified to permit front swing if you need that movement often. Your camera has front tilt which should come in handy at times, mine doesn't but if I have to I tild the camera a little and use the back tilt. Try setting the camera up in your front yard first to see if you have any light leaks before taking it out and trying some important work. If you got older wooden film holders with the camera, the chance that they are warped or have light leaks is farily high.
Good luck with this outfit.
Doug Webb
