Getting Bessa to Hang Right

[clintock]

I should make a picture of this, but I found a cheap easy way to make my bessas hang properly on the strap without having to have a 20 oz lead hood on or buy the side grip or trigger winder.

Find a 1/4-20 whitworth screw to fit the tripod socket. Hardware stores sometimes have them in nylon.
Fold a two foot length of string in half and tie the fold end to the screw, so there are two loose ends. Screw the screw in the socket then tie either end of the the string to the shoulder strap, one string end for near the left end of the shoulder strap, one on the right, so that the string goes around the back of the camera, pulls on the shoulder strap a little. I had to wind some string around the screw to get the hang angle right. Tie each string end about two or three inches away from the strap ends near the strap rings.

I made this rig up with kite string and walked about three miles and was so happy to not have the top ridge of the camera wearing a trench in my hip. I found some nice black woven nylon to try next. I guess these were the thousand words that a picture could have been used for..

 

[triplefinger]

I got a "STRAP" from Leicagoodies.com, i love it and use it on all my cameras

 

[tedwhite]

Very innovative, Clintock, and do show us a few picks when you get around to it.

As for me, mine came with the side grip. All problems solved.

Ted

 

[rover]

Getting Bessa to Hang Right

Have you tried boxers?😱



Oh, sorry, it is still like 5:30am, I haven't gotten myself together yet. :angel:

 

[FrankS]

Tighty-whities for me: the boys need a home.

To get the Bessa to hang right, just put a (heavy) Summarit on it. Just don't try to focus too close wide open.

 

[clintock]

Bessas are female, so this is more of a halter thing I guess.. I'll try to make up a neater rig than the kite string one and load some pics.

 

[FrankS]

You can fix practically anything with duct tape. 🙂

 

[ElrodCod]

I wonder why they don't put two studs on the side grip like they do the winder? It might be time to break out the Dremel.

 

[brachal]

I use a Jupiter-9 when the bessa absolutely has to hang straight.

 

[physiognomy]

I got a "STRAP" from Leicagoodies.com, i love it and use it on all my cameras

I'm seriously tempted by most things on their website... Sooner rather than latter I'm going to get a 'SLING' plus a 'STRAP' & 'HOOK'... Very cool stuff!

Peter

ps for anyone that hasn't seen these before I put links in my text above... just click.

 

[Ken F.]

I found, the easiest, most elegant solution was to purchase a Leica MP.

Cheers,
kf

 

[clintock]

Here are some pitiful pics for those who may find it easier to tie a length of string to a machine screw than to buy a Leica body.
Now we see why I have no gallery! pip pip

 

[Benny Boy]

That is ridiculous. Why doesn't VC fix this issue by moving the lugs? They could start with the R4.

You listening Mr. K and Mr. Gandy?

 

[clintock]

I think the problem lies in the body casting; it's for SLR really, and as an SLR the lens is plenty foward to balance. There is probably some impossible to adjust assembly line with robots and jigs to mill the threaded holes for the lugs, and the casting itself may only be thick enough just in those places for the lugs..
Still, the things should come with no lugs at all instead of usless ones.. I wish the side grip would do what the trigger winder does and put a lower lug on, so the camera could hang properly like a CL or M5. Until then, bailer wire and duct tape.

 

[ElrodCod]

... I wish the side grip would do what the trigger winder does and put a lower lug on, so the camera could hang properly like a CL or M5. Until then, bailer wire and duct tape.

It shouldn't be too difficult to drill & tap another hole in the side grip. The biggest problem is finding a matching lug. I may just make two new lugs & give it a go.

 

[biomed]

It shouldn't be too difficult to drill & tap another hole in the side grip. The biggest problem is finding a matching lug. I may just make two new lugs & give it a go.

That works well for hanging the camera vertically. I had two side grips - pirated the lug from one to put on the other. I didn't like the vertical hang, so I restored the lug back to the donor grip and used it on another body.

 

[heliographer]

Hi Folks,

This is my first post, though I've enjoyed reading for some time now. This really is a great, friendly forum, with lots of knowledgable and supportive people.

I have 2 solutions for the Bessa problem. On the Bessa T I use the rapid winder with the side lugs. I love having one camera hanging vertically, M5 style, when I have another around my neck.

The other solution is the Fed 2 Case, which fits my Bessas almost perfectly. The Fed 2 case I have has a built-in leather strap mounted to the sides that allows me to use whatever lens I like without the annoying backward droop.The particular Fed 2 case I have also covers the self timer on the Bessa L and Bessa R, and adds a nice comfortable (and protective) leather grip. The 1/4 20 tripod screw is almost perfect for Bessas. The only complaint I have is that the leather at the base of the lensmount sometimes fouls the focusing lever on small lenses (like the 21 and 28 Skopars).

On the other hand, when the Bessa R is naked, the 35mm VC Ultron has enough mass to keep the camera from drooping backwards. A more massive lens, like a Nokton or the 28 Ultron should also work nicely. It's only the teensy lenses that suffer.

Cheers,
heliographer

 

[luketrash]

I took my triggerwinder off hoping I'd love the smaller size and lighter weight. However, I hate the way the camera hangs with the 40mm Nokton on it.. The lugs need to be on the side of the camera.

So I have the triggerwinder back on it, and it makes the camera look huge. The added weight lets me take photos down to 1/4th second handheld, however.