Wooden Holder... Brass Combs

[Annie M.]

I am in the process of restoring some old wooden holders... when I removed the light trap with the intention of replacing the felts in one holder the brass comb disintegrated to dust and verdigris brassy bits in my hands... and even more disconcerting no matter how much I swore, cajoled & begged it would not return to it's former functional glory.

Now I require a replacement for the comb..... is there any possiblility that something like this is still being manufactured? Are there other innovative solutions for replacement light traps that others have discovered?

Thank you,
Annie

[Kerry L. Thalmann]

Annie,

You might try contact some of the folks who currently build wooden holders to see what they use for the light trap combs. They might even be able to supply what you need for a modest fee. I'd start with Sandy King at S&S. Sandy frequents this forum and is always a pleasure to deal with.

You might also contact the folks at Lotus View Camera. According to their web site they use metal combs in their current wooden holders. Here's a quote from their web site:

We at Lotus View Camera have spent a lot of time on research and a lot of money on creating the best tooling for making a guaranteed lightproof lighttrap. We ended by incorporating the traditional copper-beryllium comb shape as the heart of our lighttrap. Felted with special fabric it makes our sheet film holders more reliable.

I have always found the folks at Lotus friendly and responsive to my email inquiries.

Good luck,
Kerry

[Michael Mutmansky]

Annie,

The most similar product that you will find is called 'fingerstock' by the electronics industry. It is used for grounding and RF shielding in the construction of cabinets for electronic products.

There are hunderds of different styles and I'm sure with some searching, you can find one that will be similar to the original product, but be warned that the amount of spring in the product will likely be different, and probably much more than the original.

Here's a link that has some samples...

http://www.surplussales.com/RF/RFFingerstk-1.html</a>

The Lotus holders I have contain a very stiff light trap, which can cause the rib-lock piece to bow a bit, leading to increased potential for light leakage between the holder and the frame of the camera. So, having a real stiff spring is not necessarily a fully desirable characteristic.

[Donald Miller]

Annie, It is my opinion that much of the metallic light trap material is Beryllium Copper. You might check with Small Parts here in the US...I believe Fla. They have it in their catalogue.

[Jon Shiu]

Hi, what brand and size of holder? I have a few Kodak and Agfa 8x10 holders I would like to pass on, don't know how compatible these would be. Is a "comb" the springy metal thing?

[Annie M.]

Thank you for your input everyone now I have some possibilities to explore!

Jon... the holders are not 8 x10 which have the springy metal thing..... but 7 x11 which have the
metal spring thingy.

Also wondering how to dissolve the glue that holds the holders together.

Cheers & thanks...

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Hi there,

As a last restort for your light trap try .002 stainless steel sheet metal available at a local hobby store. It cuts with regular scissors and bends with a straight-edge. Careful, it can cut you like a razor.

Boiling water will undo the glue but then you need to dry the wood and such tiny pieces may warp. You could try dry heat from a hair dryer to unglue it.

Happy holidays.

[Jim Galli]

Annie, I think Jon was on the right track for you. 8X10 holders of the same era will have the same comb and they're nearly worthless on ebay. Buy some clean ones for the parts. Another thought is the soft "furry" side of black Velcro. I think it would stop light and be about the same width as the old "comb and black felt". Where'd you get that worthless junker anyway? :')

[Annie M.]

OK... I have a Gepetto/Pinocchio thing going on and I been making some serious progress this morning.

Taking apart holders...
I think boiling up a pot of ‘holder soup’ may not be the best idea. However, Paul was correct
about the hairdryer. What I did... I laid a rigger brush charged with hot vinegar (thanks Bob
Vila!) on the seams while blasting it with the hair dryer... lifted the slats with a #0 painters knife (thin but strong)... it came apart like it was put together with butter.

Combs...
I think Donald is correct about the material supplied by smallparts (don’t you just love that site) I have some holders that do not have the comb but use a folded ‘shim stock’ similar to the material suggested by Donald... on these, each side of the holder has an individual smaller
‘comb’ recessed in a groove so it does not impede the movement of the dark slide. These when functioning work very well and have a lot of ‘flexibility’ as they are made so that the felt
overhangs the comb...reducing the type of stiffness Michael mentioned.

Anyway I shall post here if I find a source for new combs.

Felts...
Just one last thing... when I replace felts I place a thin strip of the anti-static fabric under the
felts.... helps cut down on the static created by pulling the darkslides especially if you are using synthetic vs. natural fibre felts.

Thanks again everyone....

psssst Jim.... it is not your holder.... yours turned out just peachy.

[wfwhitaker]

Annie,



Looks like you may have stumbled onto a new business. I can see it now... Annie's Restoration Service and Home for Old Film Holders (A.R.S.H.O.F.H.).



At least something should come out of all your hard work.... It sounds like you've been working your ARSHOFH.:-)

Cheers,
Will