Wide-angle lenses for 4x5 Pacemaker ?

Luddite Frank

Luddite Frank

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Am thinking of trying to find a general=purpose wide-angle to use on my 4x5 Pacemaker Speed.

Based on the reading I've done so far, I'm thinking that 90mm is probably what I'd want.

Any suggestions for decent-performing lens/shutter combos that won't break the bank ?

How are Caltar lenses ?

Are there front-standard/bellows clearance issues with "funnel-shaped" lenses you see at KEH and similar vendors?


Thanks !

Luddite Frank
 
90mm f8 Super Angulon. More image circle than a Graphic has movements for.

http://www.schneideroptics.com/info/vintage_lens_data/large_format_lenses/super-angulon/data/8-90mm.html

Caltars are fine. They used to be cheap before everyone learned that they are rebadged German lenses. Now they cost as much as the parent lenses. Still good.

Bargain hunting: Wollensaks in the 90-108 range. Tominon lenses from old Polaroid copy cameras. 75mm & 105mm in Copal #1 shutters cheap cheap. I know for a fact that the 105mm Tominon works on my Speed Graphic
 
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Luddite Frank said:
Am thinking of trying to find a general=purpose wide-angle to use on my 4x5 Pacemaker Speed.


Are there front-standard/bellows clearance issues with "funnel-shaped" lenses you see at KEH and similar vendors?
Click to expand...

Yes, there is often a clearance issue when comes time to close the camera. You have protruding elements front and rear.

The protruding rear element limits how far you can rack back the front standard before you hit the cloth shutter or ground glass focus screen. Plus, you have a protruding front element.

So a Super Angulon or Caltar 90/8 will probably need to installed once the camera is open and then stowed in a separate case prior to putting the camera away. If not it will be a very tight fit.

Angulons, Optars and Raptars are no problem with regards to closing up the camera.
 
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I have a 108mm Wollensak WA f6.8 in a shutter. It's tiny and covers 5x7. Very sharp little lens and I will sell it for $150. PM if interested.
 
You should be able to use a 65 or 75 super angulon or similar type of lens. The only consideration is whether the bed will be in the shot and whether you can focus it. I had a 75 SA and now have a 72 SX SA but have never tried it on a graphic. I gave a 90 WA Wollensak to a friend and he has trouble with the bed showing in the photo. It takes a little rise in the front to eliminate it. The 90 Angulon and Wollensak don't offer much in the way of rise. They just cover the film when stopped down.
 
Here's what a 108mm WA Wollensak looks like. They're tiny lenses compared to a Super angulon or similar lens.
 
x-ray said:
You should be able to use a 65 or 75 super angulon or similar type of lens. The only consideration is whether the bed will be in the shot and whether you can focus it.
Click to expand...

I'm a bit clueless with regards the Speed Graphic, but was this with the bed in the dropped position, the tilt swung back and the rise adjusted upward?
 
Caltars can be good... It's a brand, not lens mfr.

Caltars can be good... It's a brand, not lens mfr.

Caltar did not make their own lenses. Most Caltars lenses were made by Rodenstock and Schneider and branded for Calumet as Caltar. I can't tell you if they were made to different standards than lenses branded Rodenstock or Schneider, but perception seems to be they may be lesser lenses, since they sold for less and command lesser prices in the market.

I don't think the quality is necessarily less because of the distribution model. I used a Calumet Caltar (Rodenstock) and found it certainly as good as I needed.

Calumet was a marketing company that sold largely in the entry level market place, and Caltar was the lens brand.

Others may be more informed on this, but I would certainly look at the price advantages of the Caltar. The model name usually contains enough information to see if the glass mfr was Rodenstock, Schneider or some other on earlier Caltars.
 
Here are two more suggestions. Bausch & Lomb 88mm f6.8 and Kodak Ektar 100m f6.3 Wide Field. Both of these will allow the camera to fold up with them still mounted on the front standard.

If you drop the bed, tilt back the standard and apply a small amount of rise the front rails will not show with either of these lens.

Wayne
 
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I've had a few Caltars and I do not think they were inferior lenses. They were just labeled for a major retailer with a house brand name, and a good brand name at that. I had a 90mm Caltar f6.8 which I wish I now had rather than my 90mm Super Angulon F8. In general I would say they do go for a slight discount over the name brand, maybe 10% less? They used to be cheaper before so many people were online and knew what they were.

Remember your shutter. Try to find a lens with a good, accurate, readily serviced shutter. If its been CLA'd recently (really, recently, not 5 years ago) that should matter a lot more than whose name is printed on the lens.
 
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Haven't tried it out yet, but it looks good and is certainly cheaper than a Super Angulon, the Fuji 90/f8 w/Copal 0 shutter. Mine set me back a cool $180.
 
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