Heavy 8x10 - best tripod and shutter value?

I got a De Golden Busch 8x10 on fleabay - I just made a low-ball bid (and offered the seller a chance to relist it when nobody else bid on it because it was so low.) I might flip it, but first I am tempted to do some 8x10 work first. I used to shoot 8x10 studio stuff all the time back in the day, but now I'd like to do portraits and contact prints just to "revisit" the format. I have holders and I already know enough about lenses that I can find some decent old barrel lenses. The two areas I need to learn more about are:

1. What's the best shutter solution for barrel lenses? What should I look for and expect to pay for a nice Packard or ?

2. Considering that this De Golden Busch weighs about 22 lbs. (!) I need a hefty tripod. I stupidly sold my Gitzo Giant last season, but it isn't really a fitting tripod for this sort of camera anyway. I don't want to spend Ries money, so are Berlebaches the best value? (the plastic knobs are troubling) Or are there other good wooden tripods out there? (I'm in the USA.)

If I found a good surveyor's tripod, is there a "drop-in" head for cameras available?

3. While I have a pretty good idea of what to look for in a nice old brass lens, are there any great sources or fantastic deals out there on a plain jane normal lens for portraits and landscapes?

I figure making contact prints or 8x10 chromes in lightboxes is about as far as I'll go with it. Buying modern lenses and scanning one gig files isn't my cup of tea.

Frank,

1) Luc if you can find one, Packard if you can't. Otherwise, front-mount a big old shutter if you can. Hubphoto sells new Packards, and if you know the new price, you can judge how much you want to pay for a used one.

http://www.hubphoto.com/photography-products.htm

2) One word: Majestic.

3) I'd browse FeeBay for "targets of opportunity", and give Jim at Midwest and Jeff Wheeler at Quality Camera a call and tell them what you're looking for.

Good luck Frank!

Steve

Another possibility would be an old wooden cine tripod, like Arriflex.

I had one years ago. It was mightly strong, but handled like a set of bagpipes on steroids.

I picked up some Zone VI legs and a Majestic head for a pretty fair price, about 200$. Never had problems with the plastic knobs on the legs.

JML process lenses are pretty good preformers at rock bottom prices, cause nobodys heard of em I guess. Coverage is like a plasmat, which I am guessing they might be, and the coatings are really shiny. I picked up a 300mm for about 40.00$ that covers 11x14, my 210 just hits 8x10.

I us a Stabil tripod - a "lightweight" wood survey-tripod-type. On that I have a Uniloc ballhead. The combination has had no problems with anything I have put on it - but I haven't used anything heavier than 8kg (Technika III 5x7", Xenar 300/4.5). Rock steady under all (and I mean ALL) conditions.

I've seen a few 360mm convertible Symmars in shutter going for low prices lately on eBay. Right now, they're probably a better deal than lenses like 12" and 14" Commercial Ektars.

22lbs! Man, I hope you have a good back! My camera is half that and I still find it heavy. Anyway, a surveyor's tripod will be perfectly fine and it is essentially the same thing as a heavy Zone VI. Get a Majestic head for it, have an adapter made to slap the head on the tripod (any machinist can do that blindfolded), and you're set. I have that very set up myself but don't use it anymore as it is overkill (read way too heavy) for my 8x10 (I use a light J Ries now).

Good luck and watch that back of yours because this will be an anwfully heavy set up to carry around!

One thing I found helpful with the majestic heads is to remove the small plate on the top and replace it with a breadboard, this allows use of 2 mounting holes and keeps the camera much more steady.

Second the motion on surveyor's tripods.

www.hubphoto.com is the web site for new packard shutters, no need to stumble around feebay. I saw one sell today for about the price of a new one, although you would have to be careful of your lens board size/shutter size.

good luck.

surveyors tripod (aluminium modern ones is much lighter than the old wood & brass, still cost as little as $$ 130 new (in Norway - probably less in US?) + old (have been on the marked for many years - often found quite inexpensive used) Gitzo 570 low-profile head. Newer version called 1570, don't know what they are called in their last, fancy config.