SINAR ?NORMA 4x5 - any experience?

Hello all LF users,

I have just purchased a near mint secondhand SINAR (?NORMA) expert

outfit, which includes the 4x5 monorail camera, 3 bellows and 6, 12,

18 inch rails, and a few other bits and bobs in a big rigid carrying

case.

Nothing on the camera indicates it is the NORMA, but it looks like

the ones I've seen on ebay. The instruction manual is dated 1967, and

the Norma's were produced from 1947 to 1970 (Arca Swiss made them for

Sinar I believe). Was there any other Sinar monorail produced during

this time??? (The previous owner purchased it new around 1980).

Does anyone have experience with this camera? Any advice/tips/quirks

would be appreciated. I will be using it for landscapes only.

What is the current market value of this outfit? Judging by my brief

handling of the gear, I think I got a good deal.

PS. I also got the Sinar binocular reflex viewer as part of the

package, but I think I will sell it as its too much to carry around

for me. Anyone interested can email me off list -

(mosadekmiah@hotmail.com).

Thanks.

Mosadek Miah

I believe Emil Schildt has experience with that LF camera.

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/903601">Norma Image</a>.

The Norma is a base tilt design, but is not yaw free likethe later Sinar p, & F

series of cameras. For a camera to be yaw free the tilt axis needs to be

located below the swng axis point. All current Sinar compnents: rails, bellows,

lensboards -- in short just about anythingthatcan be attached the the basic

camera -- can be used with the Norma. You might want to consider getting a

newer groundglass frame + assembly as I don't think the Norma GG back

assembly will let you use a fresnel lens.<P>Other than that: Great camera!

enjoy!

I use a Norma which belongs to my lab, and was bought

sometime in the mid sixties. It's so good, and I have such

guaranteed access to it, that I have no excuse to drool over

brochures for more modern outfits - not that that stops me. It's

good enough that I've been looking at buying one for myself

when I move from this job. For a basic outfit with a good

mid-sixties lens like a Symmar the prices I have seen vary

between $1000 and $2000 depending on accessories, condition

and weepy-eyed nostalgia on the part of the seller.

'Mine' doesn't say 'Norma' anywhere on it. It does say 'System C.

Koch' and 'Made in Switzerland' on the front of the base of the

front standard. The standards are fairly distinctive, as is the

green colour of most of the fittings. If yours looks like eBay

photos of Normas, it's a Norma.

I use a lot of precision mechanical equipment in my job, and the

Norma fits right in. It's well made and precise. More modern

monorails offer fully geared movements and finesses like

yaw-free operation, but unless you are doing a lot of

production-line shooting of closeups I don't see how the Norma

can limit you.

One of the best things about it is that it is compatible with the

current Sinar range, which means you can hire the latest toys

and gadgets and they bolt right on. It's also easy to find adapter

kits to expand the rear for 5x7 or 8x10 should you wish to, which

makes the Norma a bargain route into monorails for bigger

sheets of film.