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Photo Forum / Film Photography / Medium format / April 2004source for folder bellows?
I have a neat old welti 6X4.5 range finder with a tessar. It has an interesting "bed focus" rather than front cell focusing and the first images look promising but... the bellows has some pinholes and basically are shot. They are too brittle to bother with patching. I already did some patching and got about 4 good images then new holes appeared! So my question, where is a good source for small bellows? This camera seems worthy of spending some money on but of course not worth spending $300 on either. The camera seems well made but the bellows aren't as good as say the ikonta's bellows. Unfortunatly the 6X4.5 ikonta bellows is too small on the lens end so I can't pirate one from a dead one of those. TIA for any advice.  SignatureStacey Stacey >source for folder bellows? Unfortunatly the 6X4.5 ikonta bellows is too small on the lens end so I can't pirate one from a dead one of those. TIA for any advice. Try a bellows from a polaroid land ca mera. The 100-200 series. They are usually cheap at thrift stores and the like. Bob AZ Second the Polaroid bellows - but try for one from a series 80 or 80a Polaroid. Regards, Marv > Stacey > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > usually cheap at thrift stores and the like. > Bob AZ > I have a neat old welti 6X4.5 range finder with a tessar. It has an > interesting "bed focus" rather than front cell focusing and the first [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > advice. > -- Some of the older roll film Polaroid folder cameras have very good bellows materials. Unfortunately, some trimming would be needed to fit it into a smaller folder camera. The material is slightly thinner than the older bellows materials of other cameras. You could cut on two sides, then glue it to a smaller size, then install, and still have it close. With cutting down other bellows, often it could be too large, and not allow the folder camera to close. The really small bellows are very tough to find. The one source I sent you I think sold out of the smallest bellows very quickly. I find it much easier to repair the larger cameras. I have done one 6x9 repair using a cut down Polaroid bellows off one of the old pack film cameras. One issue is that larger pleats in the replacement bellows might make the final frame even smaller. Anyway, I wish you luck with your bellows repair/replacement. Hopefully, you will get your folder camera working well, and enjoy using that camera. Ciao! Gordon Moat A G Studio <http://www.allgstudio.com Stacey, can you post the actual dimensions of the bellows you need? I have a couple that I can check. If they fit, they are yours for postage. > Stacey, can you post the actual dimensions of the bellows you need? I have > a couple that I can check. If they fit, they are yours for postage. The outside dimensions in mm: the small end is 45mm X 43mm, the big end is 55mm X 65mm and it's 70mm long extended. Thanx for checking! SignatureStacey > The outside dimensions in mm: the small end is 45mm X 43mm, the big end is > 55mm X 65mm and it's 70mm long extended. Thanx for checking! Excellent. I'll look in the Big Box tonight. > > The outside dimensions in mm: the small end is 45mm X 43mm, the big end is > > 55mm X 65mm and it's 70mm long extended. Thanx for checking! > > Excellent. I'll look in the Big Box tonight. You are right, Stacey. It is a difficult size. I have two (front) 37x43mm by (rear) 70x90. Sorry. >> The outside dimensions in mm: the small end is 45mm X 43mm, the big end >> is 55mm X 65mm and it's 70mm long extended. Thanx for checking! > > Excellent. I'll look in the Big Box tonight. Thanx to microsoft worms, the e-mail connected to this account fills up every 15 minutes. You'll have to respond here.... SignatureStacey > The really small bellows are very tough to find. Some months ago I bought a bag full of bellows of various dimensions. I found two bellows (out of 50 pcs) which seem to have dimensions similar to 6x4.5 (one of these in bad shape) but I have to check this in detail on a 6x4.5 folder. > One issue is that > larger pleats in the replacement bellows might make the final frame even > smaller. ACK. I found that there are at least three or four slightly different dimensions for the rear end of bellows designed for 6x9 format, and depending on the shape of the last pleat and the shapes of the edges of the camera to glue it on (on most cameras you would have to destroy quite a few rivets and folded seams of sheet metal parts to remove the film screen) they will reduce the effective image size. In the bag full of bellows I also found some designed for 6.5x11 format but I am everything but sure whether their rear end will fit a 6x9 film screen when cutting down the last two or three pleats. Winfried > > The really small bellows are very tough to find. > > Some months ago I bought a bag full of bellows of various dimensions. > I found two bellows (out of 50 pcs) which seem to have dimensions > similar to 6x4.5 (one of these in bad shape) but I have to check this > in detail on a 6x4.5 folder. On my one 645 folder, the original leather and cloth backed bellows was easy to repair. I checked one source for a replacement, but nothing was nice the correct size. I think too large a bellows, and the camera would no longer close. > > One issue is that > > larger pleats in the replacement bellows might make the final frame even [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > quite a few rivets and folded seams of sheet metal parts to remove the > film screen) they will reduce the effective image size. I had an okay time with the AGFA folders, since the metal film rails are held in with screws. The long sides were okay, but on the short edges, the bellows intrudes slightly. Anyway, I am still getting 56 mm by 85 mm, so the intrusion is slight. > In the bag full of bellows I also found some designed for 6.5x11 > format but I am everything but sure whether their rear end will fit a > 6x9 film screen when cutting down the last two or three pleats. I thought about using the larger Polaroid pack film camera bellows on the 6x9 folders. It is thin enough, and strong enough, so I could cut down four sides, and glue it to the smaller size. However, I think the larger pleat folds would intrude more on the frame. The older slightly smaller roll film Polaroid bellows would have less of a problem. With the 6.5x11 that you found, one thing to check is the pleat depth, and hopefully it is close to the original. Also, the thickness when reglued could be another issue, and could prevent the camera from closing. Ciao! Gordon Moat A G Studio <http://www.allgstudio.com > I have a neat old welti 6X4.5 range finder with a tessar. It has an > interesting "bed focus" rather than front cell focusing and the first [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > small on the lens end so I can't pirate one from a dead one of those. TIA > for any advice. Thanx for all the advice, I found a place in the UK who quoted me ~$40 to make a replacement from the original. Sounded reasonable to me and I'll report back when it arrives as to the fit and quality etc.. SignatureStacey > Thanx for all the advice, I found a place in the UK who quoted me ~$40 to > make a replacement from the original. Sounded reasonable to me and I'll > report back when it arrives as to the fit and quality etc.. Has anybody bothered to ask a nearby shoemaker? Seems to me that the requirements of bellows (supple, weatherproof, tight seams, etc.) are pretty much the same as for boots... -- Lassi Lassi Hippeläinen wrote: >> Thanx for all the advice, I found a place in the UK who quoted me ~$40 to >> make a replacement from the original. Sounded reasonable to me and I'll [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > requirements of bellows (supple, weatherproof, tight seams, etc.) are > pretty much the same as for boots... The problem with folding cameras is the leather is VERY thin so it will still fold up. This bellows for example must extend to 70mm yet fold to 7mm for the camera to close. BTW are their still actual shoemakers anywhere? SignatureStacey > Lassi Hippeläinen wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > still fold up. This bellows for example must extend to 70mm yet fold to 7mm > for the camera to close. BTW are their still actual shoemakers anywhere? I didn't mean something as thick as in cowboy boots. The materials used in handgloves, for example, should be better. For $40 you'd expect to get something as simple as bellows. And yes, there are people who still make a living that way. Either making or repairing boots, shoes, gloves, saddles etc. I'm living downtown, and I've seen two shops within walking distance from my home. -- Lassi Lassi Hippeläinen wrote: > And yes, there are people who still make a living that way. Either > making or repairing boots, shoes, gloves, saddles etc. I'm living > downtown, and I've seen two shops within walking distance from my home. Oh I've seen shoe -repair- shops, but haven't seen anyone who is hand making shoes lately.. SignatureStacey > The problem with folding cameras is the leather is VERY thin so it will > still fold up. Actually most bellows of folding cameras are NOT made of leather but from a multi-layer material, mostly with a synthetic coat (there WERE synthetic materials before WWII), strips of cardboard to hold the pleats, and an inner liner of rubberized cloth (similar or identical to shutter curtain material). There are some bellows with different design but I did not stumble across a genuine leather bellows yet. There are some 'recipes' available on the net recommending substitutes for the original materials which probably are hard to get nowadays (except for shutter curtain material). > This bellows for example must extend to 70mm yet fold to 7mm > for the camera to close. BTW are their still actual shoemakers anywhere? As mentioned by others most 'shoemakers' are just 'low grade craftsmen' (as they are specified by german law which prohibited most craftsmen from opening their own shop unless they have a master degree). There are very few still making shoes, but handmade shoes are expensive. I know a (real) shoemaker in the neighbourhood who did a great jobs in repairing some camera bags for me, one required quite a bit of hand stitching. Winfried |
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