Mounting an Agfa Record III to a tripod

[Denverdad]

I would have thought that mounting a folder like my Agfa Record III to a tripod would be as straightforward as it has been with other cameras I have used. But I am finding that not to be the case! The difficulty - as you can see in the picture below - is that the small center pad that actually has the tripod screw-hole in it protrudes a small distance from the lower surface of the camera, even above the raised chrome edge all around. Consequently, any type of bracket that one would normally bolt on (such as an Arca-Swiss compatible plate) only contacts this very small pad; and this is just not enough surface area to keep the connection secure, and free from rotation and flexing. Even if it were, it seems that the bottom of the camera is somewhat thin such that unless contact were made all along the length of the camera bottom, there would be additional potential for flexure.

It makes me wonder, was tripod use just an afterthought with these folders? Was it that "back in the day" this type of camera just didn't get used on tripods much? Or were there (are there?) appropriate brackets that I am not aware of, or perhaps a different tripod interface which allowed the camera to mount more securely?

If not, has anyone found a good solution for a secure connection? My Google search turned up just one "quick and dirty" solution - the idea being to add a large washer (like the rubber variety from a garden hose, for example) that fits around the mounting pad and is taller. I tried this and found that while it did help, it provided nowhere near the solid connection that most of us are used to. Now I find myself thinking up ideas for a long custom plate (or maybe even an L-bracket) which I might be able to machine/bend/cut/bolt or otherwise kludge together. But I would like to find out what others out there are actually doing before I take it to that extreme. Maybe I am just missing something obvious.

Thanks.

 

[xwhatsit]

I have a Record III too and have noticed the same thing. Perhaps back in the day people had less expectations of a camera mounted on a tripod; get it set up, plug in the cable release, release the shutter on 1 second or B or whatever, and be done. Don't do it in the wind. Framing accuracy through the tiny viewfinder is pretty poor so precise framing on the tripod wouldn't be much use anyway.

 

[bucs]

i have the exact same problem on my moskva 2. mine tends to bend forward when mounted on a tripod.

a long custom plate would be a good idea though

 

[Peter Irwin]

Two methods I've tried:

1) using a piece of cardboard with a hole cut in it - a variant of your washer method. This certainly helps a little.

2) using the miniature ball head from my Manfrotto table top tripod. This is more nearly satisfactory. It makes good contact with the small area. The base of my mini Manfrotto head accepts the 1/4 inch screw on my normal mounting plate. I think the designers of many folders expected very small tripod heads like this.

I think that the designers of many of the old 120 folders did not expect people to use these small pocketable cameras with proper tripods.

 

[Denverdad]

Interesting responses, thanks. It sounds like I am not the only one who has struggled with this. :bang:

As for a custom mounting bracket, I keep thinking of two alternatives. One would be to have the thing register to the two outboard pads on the bottom - either on the thin annular flats of those pads or perhaps to their beveled sides. In either case, the piece might be made to leave a slight gap between itself and the tripod hole, such that upon tightening everything would be drawn snugly together.

The other idea would be to have the contact be made to the raised chrome ridge, all around the base, rather than at the two outer pads. It seems like this would provide better constraint in the fore-aft direction, just because of having a wider footprint in that axis.

 

[graywolf]

The thing that is being missed here, is that that is not really a tripod socket. It is a socket for the ever ready case screw. The ERC screw would have a wide flat base to mount on a tripod.

People think differently today than they did 50+ years ago. Today most would not even consider using an ever ready case on their $2000 camera because it is inconvenient. Back then they would not use the camera without the ever ready case, because they did not want to scratch up their expensive $25 camera.

It is sort of like the different way photographers shoot. Back then it was usually, one subject, one shot, get it right before you press the button. Now it is shoot 200 frames, one of them might be good. Back then working class folks just did not have a lot of spare money, and no one had heard of a credit card.

 

[Denverdad]

graywolf, thanks for that description! I knew there had to be a reasonable explanation and yours finally tied it all together for me. I don't happen to have the ever-ready case for my Record (in fact, hadn't ever heard that name "ever-ready case" before), but I do have them for a couple other cameras I own, and now I can appreciate what the original concept and intention was.

 

[Gerry M]

When mounting my Record III on a tripod, I used an Acra type QR plate that I trimmed to fit the lower body. Dremel tool and a little smoothing and it was rock solid. I use the same method on my 6X9 Ikonta. Just a thought. PM me if you are interested in more detailed info.
Gerry

 

[Denverdad]

PM sent, Gerry. It will be interesting to see how you and others handle this. It seems to me that there could be various solutions, but what they would all have in common (I think!) would be to provide some relief for the center pad while creating contact elsewhere on the bottom of the camera.

At this point I consider myself to be testing out the Record III (along with a couple other cameras), putting it through its paces to see how I like it, and determining its ultimate capabilities/limitations for how I intend to use it - mostly landscape photography. To that end I don't mind putting in a little effort to insure that I am maximizing the camera's potential. If I like it, I may end up using it for a long time. 🙂

 

[xwhatsit]

Would love to see a photo of that, Gerry!

@Denverdad: I'm no landscape photographer, but my first Record III shots were vaguely "landscape" and it absolutely blew me away. Extraordinary detail. I was able to zoom and right down. The Solinar is very good; if you crop a section of a big negative to 36x24mm, it looks as good as a 35mm camera. The only difference is there's about 6 and a half 35mm negatives worth of detail on there!

I'm sure with a sturdy tripod you'd find even more detail and sharpness. When I scan in my 35mm negatives now, I feel ever so slightly disappointed.

 

[draka]

Gary,
I posted elsewhere looking for a suitable quick release for the Ercona. Did you use a 3/8" plate or the standard 1/4" plate for your 6x9 Ikonta?

 

[Gerry M]

Gary,
I posted elsewhere looking for a suitable quick release for the Ercona. Did you use a 3/8" plate or the standard 1/4" plate for your 6x9 Ikonta?

Do you mean the screw size? If so, I bushed the body socket to 1/4".

 

[draka]

Thanks Gerry.

 

[rojobear]

Gerry M: Do you still have the photo of the Kirk plate you modified to mount your Agfa Record?

 

[besk]

Gerry M: I have been thinking about the problem of mounting my Record III to a tripod also. Your idea is very good.

I assume that you hollowed out the area in your Acra plate to fit the base.

It would be nice if you have some photos to share.