recessed lensboard or bag bellows

[snip]

Hi there.

I have a very nice 125mm Fujinon lens which I just love the punchy contrast of, my main gripe with it is that on my Toyo monorail I need to get the standards so close together to focus on anything more than 10" away that nearly no movement is possible.

Obvious solution to this would be bag bellows, a Toyo "Balloon bellows" is £250 +VAT :eek:

A recessed lensboard is £50 +VAT, how much more movement would this allow me? Or should I just bite the bullet and buy the bag bellows, also I have seen nasty chineese bag bellows for around £120 on the Bay, are these any good?


Best regards

Jan

[mikec]

I don't have a Toyo, but on my sinar P I prefer the bag as movements are easier.
I think you will find the Chines products good quality and good value for money, however , if you can wait a couple of days and it is 4x5 you are looking for, have a look at 170298622146 on the bay. Genuine Toyo, indicated as light tight and only a dollar at the moment, factor in postage from Europe and you could still get a great deal. No, it's not mine and I don't know the seller.

[Alan Rabe]

You can probably figure it out for yourself. A recessed lensborad only gives you about an inch of extra extension. So move your front standard out an inch from the focus point and see if it gives you anything you can use. Either way you have your answer.

[snip]

You can probably figure it out for yourself. A recessed lensborad only gives you about an inch of extra extension. So move your front standard out an inch from the focus point and see if it gives you anything you can use. Either way you have your answer.

Sage advice sir,

I tried that and it does not really give that much..

Bag bellows it is then.

//Jan

[snip]

I don't have a Toyo, but on my sinar P I prefer the bag as movements are easier.
I think you will find the Chines products good quality and good value for money, however , if you can wait a couple of days and it is 4x5 you are looking for, have a look at 170298622146 on the bay. Genuine Toyo, indicated as light tight and only a dollar at the moment, factor in postage from Europe and you could still get a great deal. No, it's not mine and I don't know the seller.

Thank you very much for the heads up, I have added it to my watch list.

//Jan

[Vick Vickery]

If your camera its use with your chosen lens, a flat board is always preferable...swings and tilts become more difficult with a recessed board and, sooner or later, the pleated bellows and the recessed board are going to get in each others way. I love my bag bellows and flat boards on my Cambo with lenses down to 75mm. I do have the 65mm on a recessed board, still using the bag bellows.

[snip]

Another little question, once I get my bag bellows, is there any adverse effects from mounting the clamp behind the rear standards and then the front standard imediately in front of it, this would allow the standards to get a bit closer together.

My rail can be split down in two so it would also make the camera much more portable.

//Jan

[Archphoto]

As long as everything fits and it is workable for you: do so.
BTW the only lenses you should mount on a recessed board are the 47XL and the 58XL even when used with a bag-bellows.

Peter

[mandoman7]

I've read the other posts and my experience with my Arca Swiss A is different from some of those. It came with a recessed board(about 3") and bag bellows so I could've gone either way, but with a flat board and bag bellows, my 75mm was still pretty restricted with the standards getting in each other's way. I was surprised to find that when I did use a the recessed board and no bag bellows I actually got more movement than with the normal board and bag. The best arrangement is, of course, both the bag and recessed combo. But I found the recessed board was better for quicker field changes and still having some room to move around. YMMV as they say.

JY

[emo supremo]

With regard to using lensboards, recessed from alternate source I'd like to share my experience last week. I bid and won a recessed lensboard described as a knockoff for Sinar cameras. I am new to wide angle and had trouble similar to the originator of this thread on my 4x5 Sinar F with a Super Angulon 90.

The lensboard does not fit the front standard. More sleazebay? Or perhaps my ignorance is the culprit for inability to fit it.

Anyways, I just got a bag bellows yesterday and will follow up tomorrow cuz the camera is at work.