Building a sliding tripod Block for my 8x10 Agfa Ansco.

**logan.egbert** · 19-Oct-2014, 16:19

Hi All!

I'm toward he end of a restoration of an old Agfa-Ansco 8x10 Commerical and apart from the bellows, everything is done. I've got it mounted on my tripod and I'm now realizing that I'm going to get some significant droop when I extend the back standard.

Has anyone built their own sliding tripod block? I realize that I'll have to have some metal pieces fabricated/bent, and I'm willing to do that if need be.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

**mdarnton** · 19-Oct-2014, 16:40

I have one, and thought of making a sliding block, which I'm certainly equipped to do, but in the meantime, I made a platform for it to sit on, and it's working so well, I think I'm done. The original Agfa-Ansco tripod has a long mounting platform with a screw on each end, so the camera is balanced on it and it bridges both sections, stiffening it. The camera was never intended to be hung from one screw hole or the other, and that's your problem. Actually, mounting it on one screw is kind of scary--the thing weighs quite a bit, and I imagine that tripod gets a lot of leverage on the head when you use either screw on the camera. I have visions of the tripod's mounting screw just snapping. . . . . so. . . .

I took a piece of 1/2" baltic birch (The Art Store), cut it to cover both mounting holes plus an inch or two at each end, made it a bit narrower than the bottom of the camera, so about 3/8" of the camera overhangs both sides. Then I screwed that to the camera's two mounting holes, using 1/4-20 screw knobs, so I don't need a screwdriver to take it off. Then I found the camera's balance point with the lens and film in a normal location, and mounted a 1/4-20 hole there, for my tripod (I used a brass threaded insert, with wood threads on the outside, but a t-nut would work). Finally, I cleaned up the edges (plane, sandpaper) put a little bevel on all the edges, and painted the whole thing with india ink. It's pretty much invisible under the camera, but the camera is both stiffened and balanced. The thing about my mounting plate that I especially like is the stiffening effect, which is considerable.

I have both a 5x7 and an 8x10, and recently bought one of the original A-A wooden tripods. It's amazingly nice, and the wood-sandwich tilt head works beautifully. I have it under the 5x7, and I haven't tried it on the 8x10, for which it seems a bit insubstantial. I see that though Ansco did list it without comment, the tripod's catalog number has 57 in it, which may indicate it's not really for the bigger camera, but in high school I worked at a studio that had the 8x10 on that tripod, so maybe. . .

The A-A wood tripods usually go for around $100 on Ebay. It's got some extremely clever aspects, and it's become my favorite tripod.

If you insist on making a sliding base, I have a piece of 1x1 square tubing I was going to use for a short Cambo I was making. I was thinking that sawing it in halfish lengthwise (bias cut--one long side for screwing to the underside of the block, one short for the camera's grooves) would turn it into two C-channels for a sliding block--the wall thickness is just about exactly right for this.

**logan.egbert** · 20-Oct-2014, 08:20

Thank you, your stiffening board is a terrific idea. I'll also keep my eye out for an A-A tripod and see if that doesn't work.

**William Whitaker** · 20-Oct-2014, 10:32

I've had several Agfa/Ansco cameras. At first I thought the sliding block was a helpful accessory. But too many times I had trouble tightening it securely and discovered what would happen when I tilted the camera too far forward. Since I usually use a Ries tripod and that has a large top plate, I've not missed the sliding block.

For my 12x20 Folmer I built a support platform (which I've documented on this site before) which allows me to place the camera where it has the best balance and fully supports the extension. And it keeps the camera from twisting on the tripod screw. Come to think of it, I'd like to have a similar platform for the Ansco 8x10. (All I need is a shop...) If you're interested in the details, send me a PM or an email. That would be a good one to write up and put on my web site.