PolaroidCollector

For anyone that may find this thread I did find a Rada Roll-film back that will accept 120 film and slide into the back of the Thowe with NO Modifications! It took some patience but I finally got one for well under $50 so if you are looking for one just be patient. They seem to come up fairly often but usually have a high price tag

A quick look at other Rollei TLR Cameras indicates that this would maybe work on the model I and II series only (they look like pre-bay type mounts). Anyone know if that is correct?

@John Seaman Thanks for the info! Looks like @Dan Deary was right about the DOF idea :) I tried to see if this fits on my Rolleiflex MX-EVS and no luck. That little silver lever prevents it from fitting on the viewing lens. I even tried with the Rolleinar attached but the inner diameter of the Rolleiphot is about 28.5mm, which is to small. Any idea as to what camera this would work on? Where the earlier Rollei TLRs sized differently?

Hey! Picked up this odd Rollei accessory along with a Roleinar 3 close up lens. Anyone know what camera it is for or how to use it? It has aperture and shutter speed marking around it, but not like a lens more like a measuring device. Also it seems to have a ring that is supposed to hold it in place. The aperture blades move and all, just not sure what this is. Thanks in advance!

I think you are right. I will just get a different lens for the Speed Graphic. If I did want to get this lens mounted at some point (sounds like I should just do a 35mm lens mount from what [uSER=2403817]@rodeo_joe|1[/uSER] said) where should I look? Also here is a shot of what I’ve got.

Do you know of any places that do that kind of work? Also I know 8cm is pretty wide for 4x5, would that be worth it or should I look at other mounts?

@bob_salomon I don’t have a lens board or shutter, just the front and rear elements. After some searching I have found someone trying to sell this lens adapted to a Leica 39mm mount but I can’t figure out what they did. I need a way to mount the 2 elements either in a shutter or on a barrel (and use the focal plane shutter). I’m just not sure what to even look for.

Hey everyone! Recently got a Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 8cm 3.5 lens (front and rear elements only) and would like to adapt this to use on a 4x5 camera. I have been trying to get into large format and finally acquired a Anny Speed Graphic camera. Since this is all new to me I’m not sure how to go about picking a shutter for this lens. The front thread is about 34mm and the rear is 29.5. Any thoughts or help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks for the response [uSER=2403817]@rodeo_joe|1[/uSER] I certainly have no intention to modify this camera in any way as I love its original condition! Since I posted last I have found a few types of roll backs that might fit this without modification. The most promising looking one is made by "Rollex" and looks like it may slide into place without modification. I will have to carefully measure my backs and see if it will work. As for sticking with sheet film, do you have any advice? I have not tried to use sheet film before but I do have a changing bag I could use. As for the development I'll have to check around with my local labs and see if any can do this for me. I will leave the lens as is until I can do some test shots and hopefully won't have to resort to using a marker.

Hey everyone, Found this beauty recently and would love to use it but I need some advice/help. I cleaned it up and it seems to be working fine. I’ve read that Thowe was only around from the 19 teens to the early 30s but I’m not sure which model this is and would love more information if anyone knows. It has a plate holder and multiple sheet film holders... but I have never used either technique before. I was wondering if this would accept a 120 type back and what brand I should look for. The sheet holder is about 3x5 inches (including the dark slide). Also there is a chip on the rear element, should I remove it or use it as is and see what I get? Thanks!

I realize that this reply is quite slow but I finally got this problem resolved. I tried the suggestion to remove the bottom plate and tripod socket and put a little lighter fluid in the hole for the escapement. This did not end up working for me. I didn’t want to apply too much lighter fluid but tried twice to loosen up with this method to no avail. However I found a disassembly guide by searching for Nikon F2 repair and tackled this the hard way. Removed the top plate with the winding lever, shutter button and shutter speed dial, then removed the front of the body with the mirror box assembly attached. After doing this I had complete access to the escapement and used about 5 drops of lighter fluid in strategic places while triggering different gears with a pick. And it worked!!!! My F2 is back in action with all shutter speeds working!

Thanks for the info! I easily removed the 4 screws but the plate is still held in place by the autowinder coupling point, any advice on how to remove this without a spinner tool?

An interesting option that you can do is print a digital photo on a Polaroid. There is a device by The Impossible Project called the instant lab that lets you turn photos on your phone into real polaroids. Not sure if that is of interest but just thought I would share. :)

Hi all! I pulled out my backup F2 for the fireworks on the 4th of July and came across an issue that I have not had before. When I set my Shutter speed to 1, 1/2, or 1/4 the curtain opens and the mirror lifts but then it stops. When I try to advance the mirror will not lower and I have to reset it by hand. The Shutter works perfectly at all other settings including Bulb. Any advice would be much appreciated. I know I can just avoid these shutter speeds but if I could fix them I would love to get these beauty back in full working order. Thanks!

I see this thread is quite old, but wanted to let you know it might not be your rollers if you have already cleaned them. It could be “opacification” which is essentially overexposed areas of the photo, if your rollers are clean check out a frog tongue attachment for the SX-70. I have one on mine and it helps :)