Took the RB67 out for a spin...

cepwin · Mar 10, 2013

Thanks to everyone's help yesterday I was able to run a roll of film through the RB67. I took it for a spin around my neighborhood. Got comments (cool camera) from the two neighbors I encountered I guess everyday they donn't see someone walking around with a six pound camera I'll post when I've developed the roll. I'm not sure if the multiple exposure interlock is working 100%..will have to test that more

Pigpopper · Mar 10, 2013

Looking forward to pics.

Jeff Kubach · Mar 10, 2013

I love my RB67. I have to use a tripod. I have small hands for a guy.

Jeff

Pfiltz · Mar 10, 2013

I just developed a roll today from mine...

tkamiya · Mar 10, 2013

Yay!

Just something to think about. If something ISN'T working well and you let the warranty period pass, repair on your dime will be VERY expensive. Potentially (and easily) way more than what you paid for the setup. Test well and send it back if it's not right....

mhcfires · Mar 10, 2013

Jeff Kubach said:
I love my RB67. I have to use a tripod. I have small hands for a guy.

Jeff

+1 I just can't use it handheld. It's one heckuva camera on a tripod.

cepwin · Mar 10, 2013

Thank you all for your responses! Yes, that's why I'm testing it..to verify that it works before the 14 day no questions asked. I did fix the issue I think with the stuck pin (which I worked around to use today) A little lighter fluid and it seems to have worked free (I fixed a similar stuck mechanism (in this case the shutter) with my Graflex.) I am giving time to dry and then I'll reassemble and verify that it worked. Meanwhile I'm going to try to make time to develop the roll tomorrow. I was handheld so we'll see if the pix are clear. It does seem to be a tripod oriented camera although even with my very small hands (I'm a 4'6" female) I didn't feel I was having any problems handing it. The trickiest bit is the lens I have (65mm wide angle) has an odd ring for the DoF setting. I did order a strap and lens cover so I feel able to then actually take it somewhere (I have a few ideas around town.)

tkamiya · Mar 10, 2013

What kind of lens do you have?

If you have a "C" lens, that DOF thingy doesn't do anything. It's just for you to look at, and visually see what the DOF is. It does not change anything in lens what-so-ever. If you have a K/L lens, that's a floating element adjustment. You'd rotate it to match the distance for optimum performance.

I have a small hands also. Although it makes it heavier, I find left hand bracket really helps.

Good luck with your new camera.

cepwin · Mar 10, 2013

Thank you!
I'd have to double check if it's K/L or C...it's one they list to sell with the RB67. It's 65mm f4.5 and a wide angle lens.
I didn't know a left hand bracket was available...I'll have to look into it.

MattKing · Mar 10, 2013

The left hand bracket is what the wedding shooters would use when they shot weddings with RB67s.

The most basic model also works with the Mamiya C330 TLR.

The trigger release on the bracket makes for very effective hand-held use, although I would say that you need a neck strap as well.

rwhb12 · Mar 11, 2013

Clunk

I love my RB67. There is that satisfying clunk when the image is in the bag. The logic of levers and slides.

I always say that years ago I was never able to afford a professional camera - thanks to digital I now have quite a system.

Does anyone know where I can obtain a replacement knob for the focus?

Russ

edcculus · Mar 11, 2013

Glad things are working out! I took my RB out for its first spin on Saturday too. I carried it around in a camera bag, and took it out when we stopped at different places in the park. It was a little awkward and will not be my carry around camera, but the experience was not bad. I hand held the entire time. It was a sunny day and I was able to keep up shutter speeds. I am going to have to figure out a strap if I'm going to carry it around the streets etc.

Its actually my first MF camera. I developed the roll last night, and all I can say is WOW! I'm in LOVE with how big this negative is compared to 35mm. I can only imagine a LF negative!

revdocjim · Mar 11, 2013

Here is how I had mine set up when using it hand held. What a beast though!
If your's is the Professional SD model Mamiya will still service it at a reasonable rate. But if its an older model servicing can be more difficult.

paul ron · Mar 12, 2013

Glad everyone loves thier RB67s.. I won't shoot anyting else these days.. I'm in love with my huge negatives. I like hand holding mine n have no trouble.. it is jsut a matter of getting the hang of it. I do use an ETRS for street shooting but even then I still prefer the wonderful 6x7s of the RB.. still no comparrison in details n tonality.

I also repair RBs for many years, but only the mechanical RBs (no RZs) n work on all the older lenses (No K or newer series).

That hand grip looks really nice.. never had one, that can be a real asset.. does it hurt your wrist after carryig it for awhile? I tend to hang my camera on the neck strap over my head n a shoulder. That takes the weight off it so it virtually is suspended just at the right level when using a chimney or WLF. When using the prism I have to support it but still not a problem after working with this beast for many years.. your arm tends to get stronger with experiance... still a balancing act of a sort to take the weight off it.

Enjoy your new toys!

revdocjim · Mar 12, 2013

I used the neck strap when carrying it around, but to be honest, if I want to shoot handheld 6x7 I am far more likely to use the Bronica GS-1. It's lighter and more intuitive with the right hand speed grip and traditional focus ring on the lens barrel. And more recently I've totally fallen in love with the Fuji GF670 even though it has a fixed lens. It is extremely light and compact, and designed to be a walk around. The 6x7 SLRs are at their best on a tripod. But don't let me pour water on the RB flame. It's a great camera that has one of the biggest, clearest and brightest finders around. And I absolutely loved the all mechanical design! I hope you enjoy yours!

cepwin · Mar 12, 2013

Thanks everyone. I developed the negatives last night and there was some oddity was the images seemed to cut off at the start and end with a gap. I also messed my and only put 450ml of fixer rather than 500ml which I think caused a dark band on the top of the images. Here are two images and a picture of the negatives so you can see what I mean. My guess is I didn't load it quite right. Still the images are incredibly sharp...love it!

MattKing · Mar 12, 2013

Re the start:

Did you line up the start mark on the paper backing with the start arrow on the insert?

Re: the dark band at the top:

If indeed it is a problem with fix not reaching part of the negative, you can re-fix and re-wash them.

And it is okay to do it in the light.

And I agree about the negatives!

revdocjim · Mar 12, 2013

You should check the capacity of your tank with a reel in place. Just add water and the empty reel, adding just enough water to cover the top of the reel and then measure how much water you used. In all of my tanks 450ml is sufficient.

brucemuir · Mar 12, 2013

paul ron said:
That hand grip looks really nice.. never had one, that can be a real asset.. does it hurt your wrist after carryig it for awhile? I tend to hang my camera on the neck strap over my head n a shoulder. That takes the weight off it so it virtually is suspended just at the right level when using a chimney or WLF.

I have that same adjustable grip as revdoc shows in his post above on my RZ. The thing is all metal so it can add weight to the already massive kit. It is adjustable so it has a setting for a prism and another if you're shooting with a waist level or chimney finder etc.

I'm sure it would eventually give you a cramp but it really helps making the camera manageable with the metered prism. The meter is awesomely accurate and versatile for street shooting so to me its an essential part of the rig.

They are a bit hard to come by so if anyone is looking, make sure the bottom plate is included. This plate is magnetic and is essential for mounting and gets misplaced. I've seen several with this piece missing on that lovely auction site and the sellers usually dont even know it's needed or existed

brucemuir · Mar 12, 2013

Cep,
see how your negs have that slight pink/magentaish hue to them?
That's a sure sign that you haven't quite fixed the film completely.
Delta or Tmax films require due diligence when fixing and generally will exhaust your fixer quicker than with not tabular grain films.
Not saying your fixer is exhausted just you probably could use some longer fixing times.

The odd striping is stumping me but hopefully that issue will sort itself out when you have perfected your film loading technique and get your solution levels correct when processing.

Have a blast and it will be tough to ever accept 35mm again :devil:

Took the RB67 out for a spin...

cepwin

Pigpopper

Jeff Kubach

Pfiltz

tkamiya

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cepwin

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cepwin

MattKing

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Took the RB67 out for a spin...

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