Hunting for a #10 Cirkut Camera

[doug grosjean]

Hi all,

 

Hunting for a #10 Cirkut camera.

 

Anybody know of a working example somewhere that could be purchased?

 

I've had some successes locally shooting (and selling) panos, and would use it

to shoot vintage car and vintage motorcycle groups, as well as some landscapes.

 

So, any leads? Any suggestions?

 

And yes, I realize that a hi-res digital camera, a pano head, and a stitching

program would in many ways equal the Cirkut. But I like the idea of a Cirkut,

and I think that for the audience I'm shooting for (vintage car and bike

enthusiasts), the Cirkut would be a draw and a help, and possibly a trip down

memory lane.

 

I'm fairly confident (though I could be wrong) that I have the mechanical

ability to run one, and to process the negs and the prints. I already process

4x5 stuff, and contact-print it. And my day job is mechanical design, with a

lot of hands-on experience; plus some time spent as a portrait photog.

 

Thanks in advance, for any leads..!

 

Doug Grosjean, NW Ohio

[patrick j dempsey]

Just curious... you have access to 10" wide rolls of film?

[doug grosjean]

I'm told they're available, by Ron Klein.

[patrick j dempsey]

Cool... if you find one... be sure to photograph your darkroom setup, I'll be really curious to see how you process these huge negatives! :)

[cliffmanley]

Doug, You just missed one on ebay last week. It was a complete setup including the tripod, ring gear, extra box of speed gears etc, and said it was in working condition. I just checked and it is gone now. It may not have sold and might get relisted.

[randmcnatt]

Cliff, I found a back door; was it <a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/CIRKUT-OUTFIT-6-Panoramic-Camera_W0QQitemZ120236959795QQihZ002QQcategoryZ4701QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem">this one?</a>

[randmcnatt]

Cliff:<br> I used the back door; was it <a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/CIRKUT-OUTFIT-6-Panoramic-Camera_W0QQitemZ120236959795QQihZ002QQcategoryZ4701QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem">this one?</a>

[glenn_mabbutt]

Doug, all the best with this project - judging from your Widelux photos it would certainly be in good hands.

[cliffmanley]

Rand, no that one on there now, is just a back adapter and not complete, There was a full camera setup last week that was nice.

[cliffmanley]

Rand, I clicked your link and that one is nice but not the one I saw, The one I saw looked like it was set up in a living room.

[mark_sampson]

I'd look on the panoramic photography sites. There's an associaton of Cirkut photographers as well. And Douglas Chadwick does, or did, group portraits of vintage race cars with a Cirkut. I have several of his prints that I bought 10+ years ago at Watkins Glen- from the inscription on the prints he's in Hillsboro WV.

[doug grosjean]

Hi all,

 

Thanks for all the replies and kind words. I've got some other feelers out now, including to Ron Klein, Kenneth Snelson, and a couple others, so will see what happens.

 

The one in a living room was a #8. I asked around about that unit, as a matter of fact. A Cirkut photog advised me to hold out for a #10 if possible, as film is easier to get for the #10. So I took his advice.

 

The old car / old bike idea is a bit of serendipity. Photos I've taken that people have raved about (and bought) have usually been those subjects. My background is mechanical design, strong in cars and motorcycles, so... you do what sells, and what people like.

 

Plus, my father is into old cars, ie, Model T Fords, repairs them for a living, is active in local clubs. 70 miles to the north of me is Greenfield Village, and its car and bike shows during the summer. The 100th anniversary of the Model T Ford is this summer, and a large event is planned about 120 miles southwest of here. Then 100 miles southeast is Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and motorcycle Vintage Days. Other friends of mine are active in old bikes. So I have a network of contacts already in place, accidentally, and if I do good work I believe I can make the sales, and everybody will be happy.

 

And if I fail? Well, I've been considering a Cirkut for a long time (couple years) anyway.

 

Regarding darkroom.....

 

Pondering it all in my head, I'm thinking that big round black plastic trash cans in the bathtub could be used as developing tanks, and I could cobble up a big reel somehow, 10" tall. The reel would need a big handle, so it could be lifted out and /or turned for agitation. Inversions would be out of the question... I don't know if tray development is practical, but I have my doubts, given the negative / print length. Esp. if negs or contact prints are longer than my bathtub.

 

Ideally, and this might be naive / arrogant, but I'd like to be able to produce consistent results in 6-12 months. One incentive for that timeframe is there's a local bar & grill that burned down on Christmas Eve 2007, that I'd shot with the Widelux on one of their Bike Nights. Here's that pic, several copies have been sold, and a couple donated to a benefit for the bar owner where they brought a very good price.... Katie's Kitchen is now the final building standing on that block, the rest is just a dirt field.

 

http://www.photo.net/bboard-uploads/00NrLy-40718584.jpg

 

They're going to rebuild on the same lot, if possible, and when I suggested to the owner a pano of his employees outside the new building, and what a cool shot that would be 10-20 years down the road, he agreed and suggested customers and employees. I could shoot it with my Widelux 35mm or my Kodak Panoram, but I think I could shoot it much better with a Cirkut.

 

I have ideas for other uses for the Cirkut as well. Re-photographing some small towns that were shot 100 years ago on Cirkuts, small-town gatherings, a full 360d of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course during Vintage Bike Days... stuff like that. Demand already exists for my smaller pano work, and I think I could translate that into demand into Cirkut work. Crossing my fingers, anyway.

 

I doubt there's enough money / interest in this genre to be a full-time job, but a guy doing it on the side as a hobby / extra income, well.... it would beat the heck out of delivering pizzas or moonlighting at Wal-Mart. :):) Not that there's anything wrong with pizzas or Wal-Mart....

[loren_sattler]

Doug, the Toledo Lucas County Library [or the Univ of Toledo library] has a book titled "The Panoramic Photography of Eugene O. Goldbeck" which you will find very interesting and informative. Goldbeck spent his lifetime in Texas as a professional panoramic photographer. He used a cirkut. The book tells his story and contains photos of his darkroom. I believe he constructed large trays to develop contact prints.

 

Pick up the book, you will enjoy it. I loaned it from one of these libraries. I searched the Toledo Lucas County library web site and cannot locate it. also, Amazon.com lists the book.