Looking For Kit To Build Own Wooden 4x5

[pnphoto]

Does anyone know of hardware kits I could buy so I can make my own 4x5 wooden field camera? I am wanting to build a camera something like a Deardorff, Tachihara or Zone VI. I'm a woodworker with no skills machining metal. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks, Patrick

[Tim Meisburger]

Nobody makes such a kit. If we could find somebody that would, that would be great!

[DKirk]

It is MDF, however you could use the hardware, and pattern the wood on the MDF as a template - http://shop.pinholesolutions.co.uk/products/251264--the-bulldog-5x4-or-10x8-self-assembly-camera-kit.aspx

[pnphoto]

Thanks for the link. I checked it out. Unfortunately photo on their website don't enlarge for me to really check it out. Looks like limited movements…. Any experience with this kit?
I thought about buying an old camera and remaking it, but the hardware usually is a beat up as the wood is. Maybe I'll get lucky one day on ebay!

[Len Middleton]

Patrick,

Welcome to the community...

Have you looked at: http://www.bulldogcameras.com/index.html

Hope that helps,

Len

BTW, Canadians are well represented in this community.

[koh303]

Bullgods kits are not quite the same as any of the cameras you mentioned in your OP, but they do work.

[barnacle]

Patrick,

Take a look at my Sapele camera thread. As a woodworker, you'll be able to do the woodworkery bits a lot better than I did, and there is nothing in the metalwork that needs (so far) more than a drill and files (though a mill saves some work!)

It's not quite finished yet, but I'm hoping to get pictures out of it before the end of next week...

Neil

[pnphoto]

Hey Len,

Thanks, it's nice to be part of the community. I have often ended up on the Forum via Google searches, but never put the time into signing up.

I checked out Bulldog. Part of the site is undergoing maintenance at the moment. Only found a few photos of cameras others have built. Looks like it could be similar to the one on pinholesolutions website. I want to build one myself, but am looking for higher end parts. Maybe Tim's thought is correct.

Patrick

[pnphoto]

Nice job Neil! I'll follow your progress as it comes to completion. I have thought about finding a machinist to CNC parts. My first thought is $$.

Patrick

[Len Middleton]

One of the other issues not mentioned yet is how do you feel about tedious work and searching for hard to find suitable fabric i.e. making bellows...

[Willie]

https://lbcustom.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/bender-4x5-building-a-view-camera/

Find one of these kits and go to town. Have built two of the 8x10 models a decade ago. Worked fine. Not fancy, but did the job.

[Jac@stafford.net]

https://lbcustom.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/bender-4x5-building-a-view-camera/

Find one of these kits and go to town. Have built two of the 8x10 models a decade ago. Worked fine. Not fancy, but did the job.

Yes. Jay Bender's kits were cut to micrometer precision, and his directions were oriented to those who had no special tools and the directions worked! I made two of his kits, the first with his rule-of-thumb directions, few tools, and another when I had many woodworking tools. No difference!

Bender cameras are hard to come by today, and I do not know if that is good or bad news.

Aside: To those who get an old wooden camera and wish to break it down into its components, do this: First remove the metal parts, then the bellows, and pop the rest into your home microwave for one minute. Check it. Is it loose? If not, hit it for another minute. The whole glued assembly will pull apart cleanly with ease.

[Light Guru]

Have you looked at: http://www.bulldogcameras.com/index.html


I've built one of those and the MDF is horrible. It will break the first time you fry to put a film holder in. I had to make a new peace made out of real wood.

[barnacle]

Nice job Neil! I'll follow your progress as it comes to completion. I have thought about finding a machinist to CNC parts. My first thought is $$.

Patrick

Thanks. As you can no doubt tell, I'm no woodworker... I have some preliminary Tinkercad drawings which I may have made up at one of the 3-d printing companies; I'm just unsure of the stiffness of the material after printing. It's only a few quid to get some of the parts I need.

Neil

[Len Middleton]

I've built one of those and the MDF is horrible. It will break the first time you fry to put a film holder in. I had to make a new peace made out of real wood.

Zak,

I guess I should have mentioned I had no experience with them.

If however the metal hardware is good then maybe Patrick could use his woodworking skills to build the non-metal bits, and buy the parts from Bulldog.

How good is the Bulldog design and quality of the metal bits?

An alternate apporach,

Len

[pnphoto]

Building the camera will be fun. Definitely a little more fussy because of the size, but have built quite a few kitchens, interior stair railings and custom furniture professionally. I'm up for the challenge. Bellows on the other hand, if I can find high quality metal parts, I'd go with folks at Custom Bellows in the UK. If I try a less expensive route, maybe one of the Chinese makers on ebay. Making your own bellows seems like a tough thing to do to get them nice. I'm still interested in making a very nice camera.