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bjames
27-Oct-2009, 19:13
Hello all. I recently looked inside my camera with a light on the outside and realized there were a ton of pinholes in my bellows. Hopefully this repair job will solve some of the problems Ive been experiencing with strange mottling in my skies. Anyway, I just wanted to let folks know what I used in case it helps them make a similar repair. I have an 11x14 camera with fabric bellows. The pinholes were apparent in almost every crease, on the last 9 pleats or so. Im guessing from age and use. I tested two products on a swatch of fabric. Black silicone caulk and black rubberized neoprene caulk. The rubberized caulk was far better. Rubbed into the fabric so it was thin, it was light tight, completely flexible, had great adhesion and dried with a matte finished if rubbed. I will get the exact name off the tube tomorrow when I get it from work. It cost $8 though. It said that it stretches 250% and works at large temperature ranges. Unfortunately now that it is getting colder, Im not sure I will have a chance to test this stuff in the heat, however when this stuff dries it feels like neoprene which makes me feel like it would have to get really hot to stick again. Maybe I will put my test patch on a heater or in the oven and test it that way. Anyway I'll post the name of the stuff tomorrow and the heat test when I get a chance.
Brandon

shadow images
28-Oct-2009, 10:20
Spray or brush on liquid electrical tape. Been discussed before and I have used it on both camera and enlarger bellows.

Paul Kierstead
28-Oct-2009, 10:40
I had pinholes in almost every corner of one of my bellows. I taped all the corners with an opaque black masking tape (designed for photographic masking applications) and now it seems great. only a hundred or something bits of tape :) Before that i used the dark cloth trick.

Derek Kennedy
28-Oct-2009, 11:36
Cant find liquid electrical tape anywhere around me. A chain store here DID sell it but stopped carrying it couple months before I went in looking for it.

Bob Salomon
28-Oct-2009, 11:46
The problem with repairing them is that more will occur. The only cure is a new bellows.

Robert Hughes
28-Oct-2009, 11:47
... or shooting in the dark.

Paul Kierstead
28-Oct-2009, 12:07
The problem with repairing them is that more will occur. The only cure is a new bellows.

Of course, this is true in the long run, probably for ones that don't have pinholes yet either. And on an old, kinda crappy Calumet, I'm sure not going to replace the bellows. However, in the shorter run, I am not so sure you are correct. Every pinhole in mine was in a corner; not a single other pinhole exists in it that I could find. I taped every corner (not just the ones with pinholes); I can't see why new pinholes should suddenly pop up in the next couple or three of years.

Daniel_Buck
28-Oct-2009, 12:16
does gaffers tape work well for holes or cracks?

Peter K
28-Oct-2009, 12:33
does gaffers tape work well for holes or cracks?
Yes with one or two holes or cracks. But with every piece of tape the bellows get stiffer, cannot compressed etc.

shadow images
28-Oct-2009, 12:51
I get mine at Harbor Freight. You may be able to order it from their website.





Cant find liquid electrical tape anywhere around me. A chain store here DID sell it but stopped carrying it couple months before I went in looking for it.

bjames
28-Oct-2009, 15:29
Hello all, here is a jpg of the stuff I used. Looking again after this stuff has dried over night I think it was the right stuff to use. The bellows folded up nicely, and did not seem stiff. The pinholes I had were only in the corners of the creases. I applied it with a rubbergloved finger and just worked it into the corners.
One is bound to get pinholes in their bellows at some point so why not repair them as they come instead of replacing it everytime. A friend was looking at a site that replaces bellows and they state they use fabric impregnated with neoprene or something like that, so I figure my bellows would be pretty close to that now. I hope this info can be useful.
Brandon

Maris Rusis
28-Oct-2009, 17:37
Bellows repair? 3M #850 black tape; very black, very thin, ultra-flexible, very sticky, no-bleed no-creep adhesive, won't decay, rather expensive, but otherwise perfect.

I have covered an entire camera bellows, enlarger bellows, and compendium lens shade bellows with this stuff without noticeably bulking up the original stuff or making it stiff.

Jim Jones
31-Oct-2009, 07:59
Black liquid acrylic artist's paint, well scrubbed into lining fabric, works for me.