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jb7
28-Jan-2009, 13:38
* With apologies to those nice people in France, only joking...

Let's see if I can make the pictures tell most of the story...

I started with a Cambo SC back from ebay, after I was unsuccessful finding one here...

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/3607/cambosc810back5005215ef9.jpg



Even before the back arrived I started work on the rear standard- I chose American Black Walnut, and made a rough frame.


http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/6415/dsc4009xi5.jpg http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/7334/dsc4016ay4.jpg


It was quite rough, all the 'precision' work was done with a plunge router-


http://img262.imageshack.us/img262/7056/dsc4027pk1.jpg

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 13:41
http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/1253/dsc4038tj4.jpg http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/3475/dsc4054kw3.jpg



http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/5113/dsc4048bk3.jpg http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/2184/dsc4050dn3.jpg

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 13:49
I made the hardware from bits of scrap Aluminium angle and channel-
everything was prototyped a few times- none of these made it to the final version, and the sliding lock was completely redesigned for the final version-

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/8052/dsc4107wv2.jpg http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/7627/dsc4098tg2.jpg

After some inspiration from an instructional post by Christopher D Keth here, I decided to grind my own glass-

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/6391/dsc41171zt0.jpg http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/3042/dsc4753xm9.jpg

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 13:58
Very fortuitously, JB and Susan Harlin published a most comprehensive guide to bellows construction a little while before I took the project on- I think I've read all the others posted on the internet, and I think this is the best-

http://www.jbhphoto.com/articles/article.htm

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1389/dsc4739wu8.jpg http://img264.imageshack.us/img264/6442/dsc4761uw1.jpg


http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/9013/dsc4768ns7.jpg http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/3126/dsc4797hx4.jpg

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 14:07
I chose two layers of Book Cloth for the fabric and 0.5mm styrene for the ribs,
and display mount as a contact adhesive.
Individually, everything seemed supple and thin enough,
but when laminated together, it's much stiffer than I'd like.

That's the problem with prototypes...
you don't really know until you've tried it-


http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/2396/dsc48081xk9.jpg http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/8236/dsc48111rj4.jpg


http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/6034/dsc4816ge6.jpg http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/4757/dsc4829cy9.jpg

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 14:13
The bellows are made inside out on a form, and the material had a sheen to it, so it received a few coats of matte black spray paint-
which didn't help the suppleness either, I suppose-

Lessons for next time...

http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/6559/dsc4838ba7.jpg http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/1694/dsc4845ob8.jpg

Removing the bellows from the form was the point when I realized how stiff they were...


http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/2130/dsc48541kx7.jpg

However, the geometry was perfect, and For that I owe JB and Susan Harlin many thanks-

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 14:19
The fixings for the rear standard were quite simple-
wood screws and sheet aluminium, in four strips, shaped to the frame.

Next time there will be a weight saving by using carbon fiber and titanium screws...


http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/452/dsc4896nu7.jpg http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/5383/dsc4964bn6.jpg


For the front frame, I used an older flat Arca board, and chopped the centre out-


http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/4493/dsc4862yq7.jpg http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/9335/dsc4915ql3.jpg

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 14:22
I ended up using epoxy resin adhesive to glue the front frame-
that thing is stuck fast...

http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/4917/dsc5180vo2.jpg


Well, that's most of the bits made-
time for a beer I think...

venchka
28-Jan-2009, 14:24
I'm impressed. What? Not finished?

BarryS
28-Jan-2009, 14:31
Great work--can't wait to see the finished camera.

Walter Calahan
28-Jan-2009, 14:36
Let's hear it for the Irish. Aren't they the best!!!!!!!!!!

Very cool. Puts my 4x5 Arca to shame, but reminds me of my KB Canham 8x10.

American Black Walnut! Good choice. Grin.

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 14:48
Thanks for the comments-

Yes, American Black Walnut- got to be a favourite.
I wouldn't have used anything else, especially with the black of the Arca-

However, I did google it, and learned that it's the material of choice for making airplane propellers-

I already knew it was light and strong enough, but learning that was pretty cool-

Ok, some pix arriving soon,
no point in making this a long drawn out affair...

j

Simon Benton
28-Jan-2009, 15:15
The bellows are amazing. I must read that article.

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 15:20
http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/7781/dsc5092wl6.jpg

Oh, and one other thing-

My folks got a big TV and wall mounted it, and were about to throw out the base.
So I grabbed it, chopped a channel out of some walnut, and slid the Arca Rail into it.
Makes a nice table top or low level base, but there's nothing to lock the swivel- apart from the end stop itself.

The lens in the picture is a Buhl Projector lens 9" ƒ/2.5 - it covers 8x10 at portrait distance. It's in front of a rear mounted Packard shutter- 6" with a 2¾hole - it's the very biggest that can be mounted behind a 171 board.

It's used in these pictures for illustration purposes, but I will end up using it at some stage too-

I picked up an older 45cm rail in the 'Mr.Cad pre-Christmas 50% off all used stock sale', and chopped it in half to make a telescoping one-


http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/1151/dsc505215nr1.jpg


The top lock- I mentioned it in the hardware prototypes post-
this is the final version.

The sliding lock worked fine, and was quicker to operate than this one,
but there was a possibility of accidentally opening it,
so I came up with a much better solution.

The two studs are pieces of 6mm part threaded wood screw, with slots hacksawed into them to allow them to be screwed into the frame.

They positively locate the 1/16th angle, and the knurled thumbscrew locks it down.

wfwhitaker
28-Jan-2009, 15:25
Aye, you're a brave man, Joseph. And a damn talented one at that!

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 15:31
Well thank you, much too kind...

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/8742/dsc5102fi5.jpg


http://img403.imageshack.us/img403/7420/dsc5155cr0.jpg


http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/1706/dsc5198qs3.jpg


http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/213/dsc5108xr4.jpg



So that's about all for now-
though the camera is only part of the project,
and there's more to come, so I'll probably add it here as I go along.

I've no way of processing anything yet, so I haven't even exposed anything-

At best, this is like a proof of concept-
I haven't tested it yet at all-
though I can't wait-

Thanks again for the nice comments-

j

jb7
28-Jan-2009, 15:38
By the way, I've posted text on my local forum, but it was written for a non-lf readership;
it might seem too much like a basic primer for everyone here,
but it does go into more detail about the construction process-

If you'd like some more description, you can find it here (http://photographyireland.net/viewtopic.php?t=25732)

Darren H
28-Jan-2009, 18:19
Great project and looks like a great camera. Cheers!

PaulRicciardi
28-Jan-2009, 18:23
Wow looking good
Can't wait to see what you do with it, that's a gorgeous camera...Something about the combination of the wooden rear standard and the black rail/front standard is really striking. Has a very clean, modern look to it while still having some classic appeal.

Nice stuff.

John Kasaian
28-Jan-2009, 18:36
Beautiful work & engineering! Plus you've got an 8x10 now---congratulations!

Brandon Draper
28-Jan-2009, 19:12
Very cool!!!!

Allen in Montreal
28-Jan-2009, 21:13
That is beautiful, great work.
I admire your ability to see a project like that through!

David Karp
28-Jan-2009, 22:03
It is beautiful.

This is exactly what I would like to do to make a whole plate back and bellows for my Discovery. Too bad I am not a woodworker! (And too bad there are no Cambo WP backs floating around!!)

What a wonderful job. Very impressive.

Frank Petronio
28-Jan-2009, 22:39
It's a really smart approach to getting 8x10 from what would otherwise be an outrageously expensive system upgrade. In fact it is probably better than the OEM Arca 8x10 (bail back for one).

walter23
28-Jan-2009, 22:51
Hell of a nice camera.

pkphotog
28-Jan-2009, 23:54
You did a beautiful job! This is something I would like to tackle in the near future.

Steven Barall
29-Jan-2009, 08:22
WOW !!! That's like showing a city boy like me where bacon comes from.

jb7
29-Jan-2009, 09:09
Thanks for all the nice (and entertaining) comments-

I just realized that I neglected to show any of the business end-


http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/5928/dsc5153uv8.jpg http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/4900/dsc5138sq5.jpg

seawolf66
29-Jan-2009, 09:23
jb7: It only goes to prove when one puts his mind to something what they can accomplish, Walnut is a dream wood , nice to work with, quite awhile ago I had a piece of 8/4 stock that a red streak through it and made it very nice : , Waiting to see what come's out film wise of your new self made camera

Antonio Corcuera
29-Jan-2009, 10:19
Congratulations Joseph, that is a beautiful camera indeed.

Henry Suryo
29-Jan-2009, 11:14
Wow, Joseph, that is beautifully done, congratulations! The bellows look great, too! Enjoy the camera and the new format. Thanks for sharing the pics.

Mark Sampson
29-Jan-2009, 13:37
Very elegant photographs of the process and the finished camera too- a beautiful presentation. Based on those, I'm looking forward to seeing photographs made with the camera.

lenny8513
28-Feb-2009, 23:01
Great works

:)

John Schneider
1-Mar-2009, 00:52
That's an impressive example of woodworking.

What did you use for the dovetail rail at the bottom of the 8x10 back? Is it a cannibalized Arca part or was it made from scratch?

spiky247
1-Mar-2009, 00:52
wonderful! the illustration photos were beautiful too! One day I wish to also build a camera for my self :-)

jb7
1-Mar-2009, 01:39
Thank you all again for all the nice comments-

John, the dovetail was cut from a piece of aluminium extrusion using a circular saw-
not the correct circular saw either,
so it needed a lot of patience, steadiness, ear defenders, and about three attempts.

It's not the most beautiful thing in the world, but it works-

It's made in two parts, the dovetail itself is cut from 4mm section,
and seems to be one of the strong alloys;
the angle is from 1/16th".



http://img102.imageshack.us/img102/5/dsc50671.jpg



I've added to the project since this, so I might add a few more pictures soon-

Thanks again-


joseph

jb7
18-Mar-2009, 06:57
Time to wrap this up, I think-
I did mention that I'd be adding to this thread, that it wasn't finished yet-
so here it is- last post-

At some point in the future, I might get a backpack for the camera,
perhaps a large Alice pack...

But for the moment, wheels are the answer-


http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/3035/dsc5357.jpg

Mary Poppins goes Large...

The case is a Stanley Rolling tool case-
the camera fitted quite well, and there was room for film holders, film, lenses, meter, filters, darkcloth-
pretty much everything really-
I fitted some padded dividers-

http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/7581/dsc5404.jpg

However, the plastic lid was a bit ridiculous, occupying part of the interior of the case, making it quite useless.
It was almost a deal breaker- but I decided to make a custom lid for it,
mainly because the extra height made it worthwhile-

I've used the camera a few times now, and I've used the case to stand on for most of the pictures so far...


http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/8734/dsc5354.jpg


The extending metal handle makes the case ride too tall,
and isn't comfortable, so I added an extension to suit my height-
now it just tags along behind me.

It isn't perfect, it's very loud for one thing-
I could really use some pneumatic tyres-
The tripod makes it a bit top heavy too, though the balance and weight can be helped by extending the head out the back-

Like any photographic project, I could improve it by spending a lot of money-
a nice carbon tripod would help-

Anyway, that's it-
there are other parts to this diy project, but they're in the darkroom, and don't really belong in this section- although it's all the same project to me-

Thanks for looking, apologies for the bump-
won't do it again, promise...

joseph

C. D. Keth
20-Mar-2009, 17:33
That looks awesome, Joseph. I'm glad my little groundglass write up helped.

Turner Reich
22-Oct-2009, 01:06
This project is inspiring Joseph, can you estimate how much the camera weights, it looks like you have a 410 tripod head, how is that working for you?

tr

jb7
22-Oct-2009, 01:48
Thanks Turner, funny to see this one back-

I did weigh it, it's 4,070g, inc. 450mm telescoping rail, without lens or board-
I'm not sure how that would compare to the Arca,
but I would imagine it's similar-

My 410 head has been through a lot, the gears are worn,
and there's excessive play- more than can be adjusted out by tightening the bolts.
I removed the gearsets completely and rotated them to a fresh position,
and it made it slightly better, but it isn't an 8x10 head-

A brand new one would be better, obviously-

It's just about ok for 4x5, but I've since got an old Gitzo 3 way head for this thing...
not as portable, but solid-

Turner Reich
25-Oct-2009, 01:32
Thanks, a wonderful project with a lot of imagination and skill in building this camera. I have an old Gitzo Studex and it will last for many lifetimes.

tr

Michael Roberts
25-Oct-2009, 06:00
Since this thread is back, I'll add my congratulations and admiration for both the finished camera and your imagination and hard work along the way. Great job! Great looking camera!

and, in the .02 dept, if the noisy plastic wheels are a bother, you might consider a low tech solution of wrapping them with a couple of strips of cloth tape (or duct tape)....

btw, your handheld wooden rangefinder camera body in the other thread is an absolutely beautiful piece of work, too!

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=45775&page=8&highlight=home+built

jb7
12-Nov-2009, 12:15
Thank you-
sorry, only just saw this now-

That gaffer tape sounds like a fine idea-
like remoulds-

Will make a fine on-site dispenser too-

Thanks for the comments-


j

jeroldharter
12-Nov-2009, 14:47
I would like to buy your spare. I assume you made a dozen of these. Now I can convert my Arca to 8x10!

jb7
12-Nov-2009, 16:15
ooh, it'll cost you-
couldn't possibly do it for less than two hundred quid-
but if it makes it any easier, I'll take care of the paypal and shipping...
maybe throw in one of those custom rolling cases,
and a couple of boxes of film-

jeroldharter
12-Nov-2009, 19:13
ooh, it'll cost you-
couldn't possibly do it for less than two hundred quid-
but if it makes it any easier, I'll take care of the paypal and shipping...
maybe throw in one of those custom rolling cases,
and a couple of boxes of film-

I'll take it for 200! Thanks.