?? Toyo Bellows Question ??

[Old-N-Feeble]

Question for Toyo View gurus: Did any Toyo View accordion bellows come new from the factory with taped corners?

 

[Old-N-Feeble]

Anyone? Kumar?

I bought a very nice-looking used accordion bellows for a Toyo monorail. It looks like new but there's tape running the full length of all corners. It's so well done that it looks like a factory application. However, I've never seen a Toyo bellows with corner tape which wasn't added to mitigate corner pinholes due to wear.

So... did Toyo ever do this?

 

[Dan Fromm]

Wander over to butkus.org and look at his Toyo manuals. Short answer, the bellows' corners aren't visibly taped. Find the B&H Pro Sourcebook (hint: there's a link to it in my list on LFPF) and look at its pictures of Toyo view cameras. Their bellows show no tape.

 

[Old-N-Feeble]

Thank you, Dan. I'm nearly certain Toyo never taped/reinforced bellows corners but I want to be absolutely sure before confronting the seller about it. The taping is uncommonly well done and barely visible. It's so nicely done that it gives me pause before asking the seller about it because it's possible that it wouldn't show at all in many photos. My only real concern is longevity of the tape's adherence, flexibility and wearability.

 

[B.S.Kumar]

Sorry, Mike. I saw this only now.
Toyo bellows do not have the corner tape installed by the factory. But most Japanese photographers tend to take very good care of their equipment, and tape them as soon as they receive the bellows to avoid problems later. I am constantly surprised at the excellent workmanship of almost every Japanese person. This is not just in specialized tasks, but even in everyday life. I suggest you do not worry about the bellows. You've got a better deal.

Kumar

 

[Old-N-Feeble]

Thank you, Kumar. Thank you, Dan.

I'll not worry about it.