Bellows pinhole leaks

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RichL

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My Duo Six-20 bellows had pinhole leaks because the covering was wearing thin. Taped up the body and gave it a light spray of liquid electrical tape. Worked like a charm.

Did the above two days ago so cannot say what the long term affects will be. Being the nervous type I gave it a light coat of talcum then brushed it off. Residue does not show and bellows do not stick. Camera had no corner or other large holes so have no idea how well it would work for plugging them.
 
It is pretty common in the US. Beats the old carpenter's glue and shoe dye for minor bellows problems I am told. I intend to try one of these days on an 8x10 that has corners that look like planetarium projections.

I think it is called electricians liquid tape though.
 
I am guessing so.

I am guessing so.

I picked it up at the local hardware store (Portland Oregon). It's called Liquid Tape 'electrical' and made by Performix. It comes in both spray on and brush on styles. I was thinking the brush on might be thick enough for corner leaks.

If you get the spray on spray a piece of paper a few times till you get the hang of spraying a light coat without blobs :)
 
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I'm using (real) gaffer's tape and usually reinforce it with (real) contact cement. Makes for a great, durable non-sticky repair.
 
I used gaffers tape on a Retina IIa but it was a bit thicker/stiffer than I felt comfortable with.

Does someone make fake contact cement? :)
 
RichL said:
I used gaffers tape on a Retina IIa but it was a bit thicker/stiffer than I felt comfortable with.

Does someone make fake contact cement? :)
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I know that was tongue and cheek, but I used something called Aleene's Tacky Glue to replace the "yak yarn" in my Kiev 4am. It was said to be good at holding things, but easier to remove. It is holding the replacement yarn, but I haven't tested the easy to remove yet.
 
RichL said:
Did the above two days ago so cannot say what the long term affects will be.
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Well, with the exception of replacement, all bellows repairs are temporary. The problem is that a bellows that leaks has reached the point where the cellulose or vinyl has flexed enough and has become brittle enough that it's cracking and splitting. This isn't going to get better and no matter what you do, that brittle covering is still going to be under your repair. It will hold up for a while, but don't expect that you can get away with it indefinitely.

If I wanted to do this cheap, I'd be looking for a Kodak 66 that I could use as a donor and I'd transplant the bellows. Kodak 66es are cheap, crappy plastic cameras, but they have one good point: They almost always have excellent bellows. Since they were such horrible photo-takers, most of them didn't get much use and the bellows are pristine or close to it.
 
Seems a bit problematic to adapt a 6X6 bellows to a 6X4.5 format.

Seems a bit problematic to adapt a 6X6 bellows to a 6X4.5 format.

I'm making my own out of brass. Brass? Yup, giving it a try at least. It will be tapered and nested similar to a collapsible aluminum cup.

Don't know if it will pan out but it is fun tinkering with it. :)
 
RichL said:
I'm making my own out of brass. Brass? Yup, giving it a try at least. It will be tapered and nested similar to a collapsible aluminum cup.

Don't know if it will pan out but it is fun tinkering with it. :)
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Sorry; the photo of one I was looking at looked like a 6x6. Some of the Kodak vest pocket 127 cameras were 6x4.5 and they usually go for a song. Since a 645 frame is the same size, the bellows might work.
 
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Good idea.

Good idea.

I think I found a junker Dou six-20 with what appears to be good bellows. Not the same model as mine but the bellows should still work.

FallisPhoto said:
Sorry; the photo of one I was looking at looked like a 6x6. Some of the Kodak vest pocket 127 cameras were 6x4.5 and they usually go for a song. Since a 645 frame is the same size, the bellows might work.
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Is the liquid electrical tape opaque or clear?

I was also considering some black silicone. Wasn't sure which would be easier or more effective..
 
RichL said:
Does someone make fake contact cement? :)
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Unbelievably, all contact cements are not the same. :) The best stuff that I've used is made by Weldbond. I've used it many times.

Real gafffers tape, not duct tape, works very nicely for bellows, because it's pliable and its adhesive doesn't get gummy and spread all over the place.
 
ZeissFan said:
Unbelievably, all contact cements are not the same. :) The best stuff that I've used is made by Weldbond. I've used it many times.

Real gafffers tape, not duct tape, works very nicely for bellows, because it's pliable and its adhesive doesn't get gummy and spread all over the place.
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Thanks, good to know about the contact cement. Though I've tested dozens of types of -white- and -yellow- glues for woodworking it never crossed my mind that there would be just as many varieties of contact cements.

I do use gaffers tape when I can find it.
 
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As an experiment, I've just got hold of some artist's oil paint with Lamp Black pigment - should be available in small tubes from any artist's supplies dealer. Not sure that it would be the best to use on a plastic bellows, but it it goes nicely in to a leather/cloth type bellows, applied & worked in with a cotton-tip. The linseed oil base should suit the leather very well. It'll be interesting to see how it lasts :rolleyes: .
 
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citizen99 said:
The linseed oil base should suit the leather very well. It'll be interesting to see how it lasts :rolleyes: .
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I don't think so.
1. Very few bellows made after 1930 or so were leather. Usually they were cellulose on a fabric base. What effect would linseed oil have on cellulose?
2. All oil is persistent. Linseed oil takes years to completely dry. As long as you can smell it, it hasn't completely dried. The leather on a leather bellows MIGHT like it, but a bellows (even a leather one) is not just leather. You have to ask yourself what it is going to do to the glue, cardboard and silk.
3. Linseed oil is used as a wood finish and it hardens as it dries, like varnish, over a period of a few months. If the bellows is leather, won't this make the leather brittle?
 
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Good points and words of caution, thank you for that.

I'm reasonably optimistic in the circumstances of the experiment, as the pinholes are in a small group well away from the mounting surfaces (cardboard, glue ...) and the application is very thin, so I'm hoping that rigidity won't be too much of an issue. The attraction of the idea was that the lamp black should give dense 'dark coverage'. Anyway, time, and a number of open/shut flexings of the bellows will tell ...
 
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