tobias
Member
Hi all,
I just acquired a Linhof, battered and used, but they have been a dream of mine for about 15 years, and I know that what i would ideally like would cost around 4000 euro.
Thus, I have a body in need of love and care, but would first like to figure out the model number, and look for service manuals. do any of you have a serial chart? The number is 15862. The camera has full movement front, and full tilt on the back. the DRP DRGM stamped in the top would indicate that it was manufactured before 1945.
The lens board says Standard Press, but it is not a SP body, from my understanding. The mounted lens is a Voigtlander Vaskar 105/4.5 with a Prontor-s shutter. oh, and the RF is a Kalant Synchronized Range Finder. Sadly the cam coupling is damaged, so I shall have to figure out what it originally looked like too. the RF mirrors seem to be good, albeit a little dusty, as there is an odd flap thing covering the mirror, which opens easily.
My hope is that this camera will allow me to work creatively as with a large format, but with the film handling of medium format. which will be good, as i hate tray processing sheet film.
A couple of pics, and thanks for the help.
Tobias
I just acquired a Linhof, battered and used, but they have been a dream of mine for about 15 years, and I know that what i would ideally like would cost around 4000 euro.
Thus, I have a body in need of love and care, but would first like to figure out the model number, and look for service manuals. do any of you have a serial chart? The number is 15862. The camera has full movement front, and full tilt on the back. the DRP DRGM stamped in the top would indicate that it was manufactured before 1945.
The lens board says Standard Press, but it is not a SP body, from my understanding. The mounted lens is a Voigtlander Vaskar 105/4.5 with a Prontor-s shutter. oh, and the RF is a Kalant Synchronized Range Finder. Sadly the cam coupling is damaged, so I shall have to figure out what it originally looked like too. the RF mirrors seem to be good, albeit a little dusty, as there is an odd flap thing covering the mirror, which opens easily.
My hope is that this camera will allow me to work creatively as with a large format, but with the film handling of medium format. which will be good, as i hate tray processing sheet film.
A couple of pics, and thanks for the help.
Tobias
Attachments
David Goldfarb
Well-known
Interesting. I used to have an old pre-war 4x5" Linhof Technika that was similar to this, but it didn't have a rangefinder. It was actually a nice lightweight field camera, with most of the same movements as a modern Technika. I'm guessing the Standard Press lensboard has been cut down to fit this camera. The Standard Press that I've seen was like a Tech III but with a shorter bellows, and it took Tech III lensboards.
There are instructions for calibrating the Kalart Rangefinder on the net, I think at graflex.org.
A Voigtländer Vaskar is a basic three-element lens, if I remember correctly. It won't give you much room for movements. Try it and see how you like it, but you could always add new lenses. The pre-war Technikas use a smaller lensboard than the Tech III and the later cameras, and they're easy to make out of thin plywood used for making models. I made five of them when I had the camera.
So if I understand correctly, this is a 6.5x9cm camera? A 105mm Vaskar won't cover 4x5". Do you have a rollfilm holder for it? Otherwise, you'll still be shooting sheet film, which you said you wanted to avoid. 6.5x9cm and 2.25x3.25" (usually called 2x3") sheet film holders have the same external dimensions, but the film size is different, just to give you a few more options. If the back has Graflok-type slides, you might be able to use the small Graflex rollfilm backs or RB67 backs on it, and there was an Adapt-a-Roll holder, I think, for such cameras. There is also a later Linhof Rapid Rollex rollfilm holder that slips under the groundglass of a 6.5x9cm/2x3" camera, but they are hard to find and expensive.
There are instructions for calibrating the Kalart Rangefinder on the net, I think at graflex.org.
A Voigtländer Vaskar is a basic three-element lens, if I remember correctly. It won't give you much room for movements. Try it and see how you like it, but you could always add new lenses. The pre-war Technikas use a smaller lensboard than the Tech III and the later cameras, and they're easy to make out of thin plywood used for making models. I made five of them when I had the camera.
So if I understand correctly, this is a 6.5x9cm camera? A 105mm Vaskar won't cover 4x5". Do you have a rollfilm holder for it? Otherwise, you'll still be shooting sheet film, which you said you wanted to avoid. 6.5x9cm and 2.25x3.25" (usually called 2x3") sheet film holders have the same external dimensions, but the film size is different, just to give you a few more options. If the back has Graflok-type slides, you might be able to use the small Graflex rollfilm backs or RB67 backs on it, and there was an Adapt-a-Roll holder, I think, for such cameras. There is also a later Linhof Rapid Rollex rollfilm holder that slips under the groundglass of a 6.5x9cm/2x3" camera, but they are hard to find and expensive.
tobias
Member
indeed
indeed
Hi David,
Yes, it is indeed a 6.5x9 body, though i must admit that I didn't know the format existed before yesterday. I assume that it was designed for great MF versatility, as it would accept a myriad of formats nicely.
I do not have a back yet, but one is on its way. Not sure what it is that the seller had, which he forgot to post me. So if it is a sheet back, then I shall hunt for a rollfilm back.
The back is not a spring back, and I am not sure how the Graflex universal system worked, as I have never owned one, and not handled one in many years, before now. The back on this has a folding leather hood, which opens to the right, like a door, and then there is a sliding brass bar at the bottom, which allows the whole assembly to open upwards, matched with a groove at the top. I hope to find both 6x7 and 6x9 rollfilm backs, or an adapter to use Mamiya backs, worse comes t o worse.
Thanks,
Tobias
www.tobiasfeltus.com
indeed
Hi David,
Yes, it is indeed a 6.5x9 body, though i must admit that I didn't know the format existed before yesterday. I assume that it was designed for great MF versatility, as it would accept a myriad of formats nicely.
I do not have a back yet, but one is on its way. Not sure what it is that the seller had, which he forgot to post me. So if it is a sheet back, then I shall hunt for a rollfilm back.
The back is not a spring back, and I am not sure how the Graflex universal system worked, as I have never owned one, and not handled one in many years, before now. The back on this has a folding leather hood, which opens to the right, like a door, and then there is a sliding brass bar at the bottom, which allows the whole assembly to open upwards, matched with a groove at the top. I hope to find both 6x7 and 6x9 rollfilm backs, or an adapter to use Mamiya backs, worse comes t o worse.
Thanks,
Tobias
www.tobiasfeltus.com
David Goldfarb
Well-known
It sounds like you've got a spring back, and it probably won't accept rollfilm backs.
I don't quite recall how the folding hood worked on my early Technika, but on the later Technikas there is usually a folding hood with a latch on the bottom that causes the hood to pop up for viewing the groundglass. It is usually hinged on the left side so that the folding hood can swing out of the way for better viewing with a darkcloth. You should be able to lift up the hood on the right side and slip a sheet film holder under the groundglass panel. If the groundglass panel isn't set up to slide off in an obvious way, then you probably don't have a Graflok/International type back, and you'll need to use sheet film.
Could you post a picture of the back?
I don't quite recall how the folding hood worked on my early Technika, but on the later Technikas there is usually a folding hood with a latch on the bottom that causes the hood to pop up for viewing the groundglass. It is usually hinged on the left side so that the folding hood can swing out of the way for better viewing with a darkcloth. You should be able to lift up the hood on the right side and slip a sheet film holder under the groundglass panel. If the groundglass panel isn't set up to slide off in an obvious way, then you probably don't have a Graflok/International type back, and you'll need to use sheet film.
Could you post a picture of the back?
tobias
Member
David Goldfarb
Well-known
Curious. You may have a back that takes thin single-sheet 6.5x9cm filmholders, and maybe it's been adapted to some kind of rollfilm holders, since it looks like the bar at the bottom will slide up to lock a rollfilm back in place.
You might post this on APUG.org. Ole on APUG has a few of these folding 6.5x9cm cameras like the Voigtländer Avus and knows how the filmholders work.
You might post this on APUG.org. Ole on APUG has a few of these folding 6.5x9cm cameras like the Voigtländer Avus and knows how the filmholders work.
AlanG
Alan Goldstein
tobias
Member
1936
1936
The Techinca II does look about right. Thank you Alan.
It is odd, to me, that even looking at these images of the different locking systems, I am not entirely sure which it is
http://www.xs4all.nl/~lommen9/holders/index.html
The sliding bar at the bottom would, yes, hold a rollfilm back, and there is a matching groove at the top, for the lock and light seal.
Then, once all the parts are identified, and ready to clean up for use, one shall have to decide if it should be "restored" (ie paint and new leather), or left and simply CLA'd.
t
1936
The Techinca II does look about right. Thank you Alan.
It is odd, to me, that even looking at these images of the different locking systems, I am not entirely sure which it is
http://www.xs4all.nl/~lommen9/holders/index.html
The sliding bar at the bottom would, yes, hold a rollfilm back, and there is a matching groove at the top, for the lock and light seal.
Then, once all the parts are identified, and ready to clean up for use, one shall have to decide if it should be "restored" (ie paint and new leather), or left and simply CLA'd.
t
David Goldfarb
Well-known
It could be something strange, since there were other kinds of rollfilm back then. For instance, I've seen a rollfilm back for my 5x7" Press Graflex, that uses 5" wide rollfilm (I forget what the format was called, maybe 818), and the Press Graflex uses its own unique film back that functions as a spring back for Graflex-type 5x7" filmholders, but without the slides that a Graflex back usually has, and it has two clips for attaching film or plate magazines that only work for Press Graflex magazines.
Old German 6.5x9 cameras sometimes have backs that take single-sheet filmholders that are hard to find, so that's a possibility.
Old German 6.5x9 cameras sometimes have backs that take single-sheet filmholders that are hard to find, so that's a possibility.