Packard Shutter Limitations

[Don Wallace]

I recently bought a 24 in LD Artar and I want to use it mainly for portraits with my 8x10. It has no shutter and I am either going to fix up an old Packard that came with an even older Kodak I bought a few years ago, or I am going to get the Grimes folks to put it in a new Copal shutter. I do most of my portraits indoors with available light, so shutter speeds of 1/8 or 1/4 are pretty typical. If I am correct, the Packard only goes to 1/25. Obviously, getting a modern Copal is an expensive option, so I am asking if there are any other alternatives.

[Ernest Purdum]

You won't lose much by giving the Packard a try. If its in good working order you can probably train yourself to give exposure times you can use in "Bulb" mode. Play with it some and see what happens. If you decide it is infuriating, then you will be all the happier with the results of spending all that money to put the lens into a modern shutter.

[Jim Galli]

Don, It's very easy to get consistent 1/4 second and longer exposures with a packard. 1/8 is a little harder. With the pin pulled so that it won't close except with suction from the bulb, get a Nikon fm and let your ear tell you where 1/4 is after listening to the Nikon several times. It's also pretty easy to build a flash sync for an old Packard. In that case the flash will be the determiner, not shutter speed. I'm using a Kodak 2D with an oversize Packard built into the camera for multiple barrel lenses. Taking it to Winnemucca for "Shooting the West" tomorrow AM. That's a sweet old set-up with a 450mm APO Skopar.

[steve simmons]

The Packard Shutter Co. is still in existence. It isbeing run by the son of the longtime owner. Their phone is 209-245-5719.

steve simmons

[Ralph Barker]

The Packard Shutter Company's site is at http://www.packardshutter.com/.

[David Flockhart]

Jim,
How do you build a flash synch for a Packard without one? Thanks.