FOBA Baby FOBA

[Nokton48]

Hi Pal-K,

Yes I have a fully equipped darkroom down here also.

See Here:

Darkroom Renovation Phase II Started

Darkroom Renovation Phase 2 No 1 by Nokton48, on Flickr Starting with Phase 2 of this project. I have a contractor doing the work for me, I can input ideas and he runs with them and sometimes makes my ideas even better. Adding new drainage, New inputs with two more sink units, my green...

www.rangefinderforum.com

 

[Nokton48]

FOBA COSNO Stativ-Klappstander Modell 1 by Nokton48, on Flickr


And now back to FOBA BABY FOBA!

Another good FOBA snag for me, this time from Germany. Four original COSNO FOBA Stativ-Klappstander Model 1 units. These turn FOBA Combtubes into heavy duty collapsible stands. They will support just about anything and Combitubs are infinitely extendable, and have parts galore to make useful studio things. I'm glad I found these, they are kinds rare I think. First time I have seen these offered.

 

[Nokton48]

Homemade Barndoors FOBA Fresnel Spot 60W Appliance Bulb P70 Fine Grid by Nokton48, on Flickr

I bought this FOBA Incandescent Fresnel Spot from a vendor in Germany for 99 Euros, never used brand new. Wasn't sure what I'd do with it, but here it is now. Attached two Manfrotto 375 Clips with Gaffer Tape (for now), the barndoors are black mount board. Been buying P70 Grids from Dodds in Cleveland, this is the P70 FINE Grid, cut down with scroll saw to press fit in front of the fresnel. Relamped the unit, here it has a 60W 120 Clear Appliance Bulb in it for now, I have ordered 250W 120V Clear and Frosted Photo Bulbs on Amazon, which will get me going using this for digital. BTW the Barndoors are completely adjustable (more so than the Modern Flooter $500 ones) and are quite effective in scrimming off excess light away from the centrally illuminated Fresnel spot. I also plan to adjust my three Blue Universal 1600J Fresnel Spots in just this same way. I might use JB Weld to attach the 375 clips for good to the sides of the unit.

 

[Nokton48]

Broncolor Balloon Primo Head Primo A 1600J Octobox 150 Manfrotto Scissors by Nokton48, on Flickr

A 1600J Broncolor Primo Head is connected to a Manfrotto Scissors, connected to Ceiling with a FOBA Combitube Mount. Beautiful fill light from the Balloon, as soft as you can get, set at 90 degrees to the set. Octobox 150 Main Light (set one stop brighter) at 45 Degrees. Could do a group of ten, if I was doing that. I bought five of the Manfrotto Scissors, $50 each at World of Used Photography. Turns out they are close to $500 each at B&H. Cheap Cheap. My Universal Heads are in individual boxes (up top Metro Shelving) heads and cables. My big Olde Broncolor Universal Fresnel Spots are in the big boxes near the bottom. Room for loose stuff on top of the boxes. If I invest in a rail system I can slide these lights easily around. This is fine for now. Scissors work great, they are super strong.

 

[Nokton48]

FOBA ARTEO Metal Tray bolted to Plaubel Camera Stand by Nokton48, on Flickr


I bought this uber expensive FOBA ARTEO Camera Stand Accessory Holder, for a great price on Ebay. Been wondering how in the world to attach it to my olde Plaubel Peco Camera Stand. Worked on it (on and off) for the last few days, and made a couple of trips to Lowes for parts. Now it's solidly bolted to the stand arm. to the right and below my Twin Lens Norma Portrait/Action Camera. Solid enough to hold my 5x7, 13x18cm and even 18x24 and 8x10 Norma Film Holders, with some extra room for "stuff". So, a nice upgrade to my olde Plaubel Studio Stand. This digishot was made with my new to me Sony Nex-5 Body, with my new to me Sony Nex 50mm F1.5 Light Sucker, wide open at F1.5. I like this new Nex lens. Shown above are original Sinar Norma 13x18cm Film Holders loaded with Fuji HRU and ready to go.

 

[FOBELIO]

Hi to everybody

this is my first post... I am Elio, living in Switzerland, and a great FOBA enthusiast/collector and of course I photograph also, mainly portraiture and nature.

I like to see that there are people around that still love and use good old photo studio stuff...
The 60ies studio project sounds great! Looking forward to see further development! Good luck and please be careful with the old flash lamps.

Sadly news is as probably many of you already know that FOBA is closing their business at the end of 2024...

I am fortunate to living near Zurich and so close to the FOBA factory in Wettswil...
I visited their factory last Friday and it is sad to see that all machines are already sold and gone and they only have to build the very last batch of stands for the last order... very nice people and very welcoming and generous!

I made this collection of FOBA's logo used in their 85 years of history, hope you like it.

I call the first logo the "Wegweiser"-logo, as how they advertised themselves in the early days. "Wegweiser" is the german word for a signpost...
The very nice "red segment"-logo is probably from the late 50ies and used during the 60ies until they moved the factory from Zurich to Wettswil.
The new build factory got over the entrance a new logo and still have it today. I call it the "Wettswiler"-logo, as they started to use it around this period... The final logo seems to be a modification of the "Wettswiler", I call it the "White bar"-logo, very nice and cool. Introduced probably in the mid 80ies... in 1980 they introduced column stands with a hexagonal column but early Asaba and Astio models still got the "Wettswiler" label...

Enjoy your FOBA stuff, lucky us it is build to last 😉

PS: If anyone ask, the font for FOBA's Superball is called "Jackson" by Mecanorma

 

[Nokton48]

New Broncolor Flooter S Fresnel Pulso Spotlight by Nokton48, on Flickr

Welcome! Thank you for your excellent contribution.

This is not FOBA, but also from Switzerland! A giant Bron Fresnel Spotlight, useful to me for lighting backgrounds and a myriad of other uses. Fully cleaned and operational, on an Italian Manfrotto Light Stand Heavy Duty with wheels. I do have a couple of FOBA Light Stands too. 🙂 So I'm repurposing what I already have around in storage.

 

[FOBELIO]

I have it too! 😁😌

I also use Broncolor lights and today I was in Allschwil at their factory for picking up some repaired Grafit generators... and only 15min from there I picked something 🤩 that match so perfectly for answering your flooter post... 😉

It is interesting that Broncolor changed the name of this modifier during the years...
First it was called "pulso-flooter S" (any idea what the "S" stands for?), then shorted to "pulso-flooter" and now simply "flooter"... I also noticed that the new ones have a slighty different lens... if you notice the center lens is slighty smaller than previous models...



So today before I arrived at Broncolor's factory I picked this beauty: a vintage and probably the first flooter made by them... to be correct the casing is made by FOBA.
FOBA sold them also but they are in silver and not in this nice Broncolor blue... FOBAs flooter are also just lamps and not a flash as Broncolor ones.

It is was crucial for me to pick it up before arriving at Bron's factory. Of course I showed it to a Bron's technician (the man works since 40 years for Bron! So if somebody knows something about this lamp than this is the man! To be fair he was probably just born when the lamp was produced... )



super nice and in great condition... the lamp is from the early 60ies... focusing works very smooth...


you see the hammered logo of FOBA on the foot plate and the knobs are also a classic FOBA knob




it is weird inside... look this tiny flash tube mounted on a plastic block... the lamp bulb seems replaced...I assume it was originally used with a partially mirrored bulb?
Bron's technician said it doesn't look original (adaptations were common in the past...), because showing me old lamps of the same age in their museum their flash tube are quite bulky and far larger as today ones... but he will investigate it a bit and will give me a feedback...
Who knows??... but on old Broncolor advertising photos the lamp is present... and the connector match also to the generators...



speaking about the connector... here is this guy from the 60ies saying hello...



other views


here some details of the fresnel lens...



I am very happy with this pick! A Broncolor-FOBA symbiosis... 😜☺️
But in this condition I can't use it... I would like to modify it to a standard lamp for using it at home for getting enlighten...
What do you think should I or shouldn't I ?



and for ending this post a little insight from FOBAs factory around the 70ies in Wettswil...

 

[Nokton48]

I would be afraid to use it with a modern power pack. It does look adapted but what a beautiful design!

I have three Broncolor Universal Blue Fresnel Spotlights, with 1500J tubes and modeling lights. They all work great with my modern packs. And a fourth FOBA Fresnel in black, beautiful absolutely like new never used in box. Same fresnel without the flash tube, I have converted it to USA voltage tungsten spotlight.

I have also new a set of F1000 Incandescent FOBA Lamps, one with the big silver spun reflector. I converted that one also to 120V USA power and USA bulbs will fit. I prefer strobes but hot lights are useful at times.

Great find! 🙂

FOBA 4 by Nokton48, on Flickr

I see they made barndoors for it.

SONY DSC by Nokton48, on Flickr

SONY DSC by Nokton48, on Flickr

 

[Nokton48]

SONY DSC by Nokton48, on Flickr

 

[FOBELIO]

I also like this more boxy flooters of Bron and FOBA... the first ones are in silver and FOBA called them PODEO (until 650W) or POMEO (until 2000W) ...




here an insight from an old catalog and the available accessories... the barn doors are the same as used by Broncolor for their Pulso-Spot...



I suspect that the spot attachment from this early model is the same. I know there are also blue ones for Broncolor flooters... once I saw one offered....

 

[FOBELIO]

Checking FOBAs website I found a mistake of my comments about the logo history... precisely about the introduction date of the "Wettswiler" logo...

This advertising should be from 1966 when the shooting tables were introduced... and the "Wettswiler" logo is already present...
and also the flooter with the spot attachment ☺️

Does somebody know how to preserve FOBAs website for the future for having a reference?? Webarchive seems to store only single pages??

 

[Nokton48]

SONY DSC by Nokton48, on Flickr

Outstanding Contribution! ^^^ Thank You 🙂

A venerable Olde Studio Light comes to me, providing me with beautiful light indeed. A retro FOBA F1000, relamped by me to 120 voltage, 100 Watt Globe Bulb makes it look right out of the catalog, and quite useful me. It's mounted to a FOBA Combitube for sturdiness. Gorgeous soft light, the bulb can be moved forwards and backwards to focus and fine tune the lighting. This unit is designed to take up to a 220V 1000 Watt Bulb, just way too much light and heat for my needs. But it is made to take it!

 

[FOBELIO]

It was a tight week!

 

[FOBELIO]

Here an overview of Foba's adapter sleeves for the beams on their column stands...

on the left:
ASABA/ASABO stands beam have 41mm in diameter

on the center:
ASTIO/ASTEO stands beam have 46mm in diameter

on the right:
AROBE/AROBO stands beam have 51mm in diameter


with the correct grey sleeve (or combinationof two) you can use accessories of the big stands as AROBE on the smaller ones as ASABA.

Hope this helps!

 

[FOBELIO]

Foba factory is almost empty... so sad...
some parts became scrap metal other stuff is saved...

ENLARGER SAVED!



2 COLUMN STANDS NOT SAVED! A third one SAVED!



OLD LAMP WITH ORIGINAL STAND SAVED!

 

[Nokton48]

So happy to see amazing stuff being put to good use instead of Landfill.

 

[FOBELIO]

I was today again at FOBA's factory... and a employee gifted me with this FOBA made pen holder made once by an apprentice.
Thanks you Alex so much, I appreciate it a lot... 🤩🥹😌👍🤝





but also a discarded Superball can be used in this way... 😁

 

[Nokton48]

FOBA F1000 converted to Broncolor Universal by Nokton48, on Flickr

The importance of repurposing what you already have. Here a FOBA F1000 Fixture (missing stuff) was converted to Broncolor Universal Mount. So a Broncolor Universal Quadrofix olde Softbox now fits beautifully. INtegares with all my FOBA Combitube stuff. Optional Quadrofix Diffuser shown, I have two of the Quadrofixes around, venerable lighting units. From the same source I bought this FOBA Acrylic Diffusion Cone, perfect for illuminating small products on my sweep table. The conversion involved Gaffer Tape, Brass Micro Hobby Bolts and Screws, and Strips of Gorilla Tape.

 

[FOBELIO]

An other Broncolor/Foba symbosis! 😆

Foba lamp on Broncolor softbox... I like it and agree with you in using what is already around. Your Foba F1000 is now very versatile! 👍