Holy Bellows

[conrad_hoffman]

I know a lot of people knock the low end Toyos, but I really like

mine (an Omega View 45E actually), though I don't use it as often as

I'd like. Plenty flexible and rigid enough for my needs. I think

I've had it for 15 years or more. I've also read about problems with

holes in the bellows. Because mine sees so little use, I would have

bet the bellows was perfect. Still, being a bit paranoid, I did the

40W bulb in a dark room trick. This thing isn't a camera, it's a

planetarium! Just put a bright enough bulb inside and watch the

show. Every other corner had a pinhole. Worse, the pinholes are

highly directional, so you have to try lots of angles while painting

in a repair. I used opaque black Createx fabric paint with some

additives. Seems to work ok. I have to wonder, were these ever light

tight right from the factory? With so little use, how did the holes

open up? There isn't any sign of deteriation or hardening of the

surface, just lots of holes. Anyway, thanks to the forum for making

me have a look.

[lee hamiel]

Good Luck Conrad - thankfully you are not in a boat!

 

Don't know the history of these but you may want to simply consider getting a new set of bellows.

 

Maybe convert the old one into a short/wide angle version by chopping off a bit.

[nikos peri]

Cool! I've been looking for an easy way to make a planetarium! Although, I would rather it be using someone else's bellows than mine... but I'll check now. Thx for the trick and good luck with the paint.

[james___]

Too many of us store our view cameras all squished together. You should actually let the bellows be stored in a relaxed state. Keeping the bellows squished tight while in storage begs making holes at the corners of the pleats. When you are shooting the bellows are usually racked out in a somewhat relaxed state. Very little compression and extention is observed this way. That's the way you should store the camera so as to extend the life of the bellows. Everytime you store the camera with the bellows all squished together, you keep the pleats compressed and then you extend them and put strain on them everytime.

[conrad_hoffman]

James, that makes an awful lot of sense! My repair got me through a few shots, but now I'm shopping around for a new bellows.

[bill_winters]

Thank you for the tip James! As soon as I submit this posting I shall briefly leave to extend the standards on my old Calumet 4x5.

[james___]

I also found that a great repair material for pinholes in bellows is that plastic goop that mechanics use to coat there screw driver shanks. It comes in red and black. Home Cheapo, most hardware and auto parts stores seem to have it. I repaired the corners of the bellows on my old Gundlach Wizard using the stuff. Made a big difference. Just a tiny dab will fill in most pinholes. Now I need to get some good strong spring metal to make new springs for the back.

[bill_winters]

James -- Thank you for the tip.

 

I ought to look for that product. My Calumet has numerous pinhole light leaks in the corners. Originally I planned to use a mixture of white glue and lamp black to cover the holes. The product you mentioned sounds easier to manage.

[bill_winters]

I just have one question pertaining to the application of that product. Did you apply to the interior or exterior of the bellows?

 

Thanks!

[scott_walton2]

Bill, It doesn't really matter... inside or out. Either way though, you need to make sure it is dry before you close the bellows together. Make some kind of rig to stretch the bellows out, dab on some of the stuff and let it dry. Good ventilation is key here!

[conrad_hoffman]

An update- since I'm near Rochester NY, I went over to Turner Bellows and ordered a new bellows, about $150. Delivery is about 4 weeks. A Mr. Merry gave me a quick tour of the place, and it's kinda neat. Bellows making comes down to skill and craft. IMO, the more you do, the better you get. They have a couple people who've been at it there for something like 19 years. They still have steady commercial business, but "personal" replacement bellows orders come in at a few per month, depending. From what I can see, bellows making is not a big growth area! My advice to anyone needing a new bellows is not to wait a decade, but to order it while there's still some volume production going on. Their material is a very nice commercial rubberized fabric, and they use two layers of it, with custom cut stiffeners for the panels. They claim no returns for light leaks, so I don't expect any pinholes out of this one for many years to come!