How does Linhof manage to stay in business?

[Bob Salomon]

Bob, my first replacement was done by Marty Forsher with a bellows which he told me was obtained directly from Linhof in Germany. I just happened to find it last week in a box of old photo stuff. It was replaced with a Linhof factory bellows item #30LHMS-27955, purchased from a Linhof dealer in Columbus, Ohio, and installed by my excellent local repairman. (I believe that in those days, Kling was the importer.)
When I get the current replacement done, I will send both of them to Linhof in Germany so they can evaluate them. My guess is that they subcontracted the bellows and got some stinkers.
Incidentally, I just checked the bellows on my Kardon Color 45S, purchased new at about the same time, stored in the same room as the Technika, and found its bellows to be in perfect condition.
Why do you seem to be intent on blaming me for the problems, (although it is a well-known technique for European, particularly German, manufacturers to always "blame the victim")?

Bill,

Berkey Photo was the Linhof distributor in the USA until the late 70's. Then we took over the distributorship. Berkey Photo Marketing was the successor company to Kling Photo back in the 60's.

Back when Berkley was the distributor they were also the authorized service center and also the supplier of spare parts like the bellows. This was to save the time/cost and headaches of importing parts from a factory by individuals or repair centers. It would have been much faster for Forscher to have simply gotten the bellows from Kling in NYC or, if Berkley, from LI.

When we took over Linhof we had ZV Service trained and appointed as the official Linhof service center since we were formed from the former Zeiss Ikon Voightlander USA company and ZV Service was owned by the former service manager of Zeiss Ikon Voightlander, USA, Wolff Umbach. Additionally they had two service centers, one in NY and one in CA.
After Wolff retired we appointed Marflex Service as the Linhof service center and sent their people to the factory for training. Marflex was owned by Martin Arndt who had been the Rollei USA service manager and Marflex remained the service center and parts supplier until the death last year of Martin.
After Martin died we appointed Nippon Photoclinic in NY and Bob Watkins from Precision Camera the official service centers and parts suppliers. Nippon purchased all of the parts that Marflex had at the time of their closing.

Midwest is a camera store who is a dealer of ours but they are not an official source of Linhof parts and had been a major gray importer of Linhof parts and products through other exporters then the factory, same as Badger.

I have no doubt that you have an excellent repair person in FL. There are lots of excellent repair shops. But excellent is not the same as factory trained and we have sent both Rim from Nippon and Bob Watkins from Precision to the factory for training. Both have direct contact with both us and. more importantly, with the factory and with the technical people at the factory, none of which your repair person has.

Maybe it is strictly co-incidental but several threads here have stated how little problem has been experienced with the Technika bellows. Maybe you should go to Bob Watkins and have him install a genuine Linhof Technika bellows rather then experiment with a copy bellows and a not factory trained technician.

Why should you have to go through the time/expense/rik of sending two cameras to the factory when you can send them to IL faster/cheaper and with far less risk and get just as valid an answer.

And I am not European, and we sell not only European but also Japanese (Wista), Chinese/Taiwanese (Giottos), USA (Brno), Vue-All products as well. I am not blaming you. I have not said that you are the cause of the bellows problems, but you seem to have more then your share of them and that makes me wonder what is different in your situation.

But I am curious about your cameras. The IV, which I thought you have, was made from 1956 to 1963. The Kardan Color 45S was made from late 1970 to mid 1975 so if you bought the S new then the IV was a used camera. Correct? Or do you have a V? The V was made from early 1963 to early 1976. So while the V and the Master were both available new for about 4 years the IV and the S never were.

[John Schneider]

How do Rolls Royce, Lotus, Maserati, Lürssen Yachts, Abeking & Rasmussen, etc. manage to stay in business? For the same reason.

Rolls-Royce is a massive (>25,000 workers) company that has no problems staying in business selling aircraft and marine jet engines, stationary power turbines, etc. Cars were never more than a sideline to them, and they stopped making cars and sold the rights to BMW in the 1990s. So the R-R Ghost you're eying is made by a large Bavarian car company that likewise has no problems staying in business.

Likewise, Lamborghini is owned by VW, Maserati by Fiat, etc.

[WayneStevenson]

I am not blaming you. I have not said that you are the cause of the bellows problems

Heh. I don't know your guys' history together but it sure sounds like you're insinuating that, and at the very least insinuating that he may be stirring... Well, you can read for yourself.

But why were they bad? Improper storage? Extremely heavy use? Incorrect lens boards? ..............................................................Why do you seem to have the most problems with them? Or are you just happy stirring up mud?

[StoneNYC]

I don't understand why the linhof bellows need to be "installed" though I've owned a Toyo45a I never actually looked at removing them, but my Chamonix just pops out with a frame on either end that just pops into the body. Pretty simple and functional design, but the only kind I'm really familiar with, So I don't quite understand, how elaborate is the install?

[toyotadesigner]

Rolls-Royce is a massive (>25,000 workers) company that has no problems staying in business selling aircraft and marine jet engines, stationary power turbines, etc. Cars were never more than a sideline to them, and they stopped making cars and sold the rights to BMW in the 1990s. So the R-R Ghost you're eying is made by a large Bavarian car company that likewise has no problems staying in business.

Likewise, Lamborghini is owned by VW, Maserati by Fiat, etc.

I know these facts. What I wanted to point out is the quality and the market (target group) that can and will invest large amounts into excellent products. If there wouldn't be a market, the companies would be out of business.

BTW, I have learned in a studio with Linhof equipment, but somehow I never managed to own one myself. The Linhof cameras are built to last a century (at least). Don't ask me why I ended up with an Arca Swiss - it just happened, but I am not too delighted with it for the reason of spare parts - this is a point where Linhof really shines and excels. If I contact Arca for spare part for my model, they tell me they don't have any parts any more. If a friend of mine calls Linhof for spare parts for his very old Linhof, the just mail it to him in three days. This sort of service is what really counts if you make a living with your cameras...

[Bob Salomon]

Rolls-Royce is a massive (>25,000 workers) company that has no problems staying in business selling aircraft and marine jet engines, stationary power turbines, etc. Cars were never more than a sideline to them, and they stopped making cars and sold the rights to BMW in the 1990s. So the R-R Ghost you're eying is made by a large Bavarian car company that likewise has no problems staying in business.

Likewise, Lamborghini is owned by VW, Maserati by Fiat, etc.

Actually VW bought both Bentley and Rolls Royce and BMW objected since the engine in the Rolls is made by BMW. After a legal battle VW agreed to divest itself of Rolls and let BMW take it and VW kept Bently. VW also owns Seat, Lamborghini, Ducatti, Bugatti, Porsche, Audi and some others.

[Bob Salomon]

I don't understand why the linhof bellows need to be "installed" though I've owned a Toyo45a I never actually looked at removing them, but my Chamonix just pops out with a frame on either end that just pops into the body. Pretty simple and functional design, but the only kind I'm really familiar with, So I don't quite understand, how elaborate is the install?

On most Linhof Kardans, the TK, the M679, the Techno the bellows are interchangeable and do have frames and just snap in and out and are sold as accessories.

On Linhof cameras that have a universal bellows that work for extreme wide angle through long focal lengths like the Kardan Standard 45, the original Kardan and Kardan Color and the Technikas the bellows are not user interchangeable and do not have frames and replacemnet bellows need to be properly installed. Not by the user usually. Installing these requires gluing and some disassembly of the front/rear standards, depending on the model.

[Noah A]

My MT 2000 has been around the world with me, and I purchased it used from another busy pro photographer who traveled and used it in tough conditions. It's still working great and has the original bellows. I can't imagine a better camera or one that is more rugged or well-made.

It's true that a lot of used Technikardans have bad bellows--but perhaps that is because the camera was a workhorse for many travel and architectural photographers who used their equipment hard in real-world situations. It's also very flexible, which may mean it's not quite as durable, but it's great to shoot with.

Linhof service has also been top-notch. Martin, may he rest in peace, was amazing. I'm glad to hear that Bob Watkins is now an authorized repair shop, I've used him for other gear in the past with great results. And Bob S. has also been very helpful. His presence and advice here on the forum is much appreciated, and his customer service is exemplary. For example I needed a part at the last minute before a shooting trip, and he got it to me the following day! Service and support matter especially when you rely on your cameras for your livelihood.

My Linhof 3D Micro head is a wonderful product. It was expensive but now that I've tried it, I can't imagine working without it.

Linhof makes great products. They're pricey, but not out of line with other high-end european equipment.

[StoneNYC]

On most Linhof Kardans, the TK, the M679, the Techno the bellows are interchangeable and do have frames and just snap in and out and are sold as accessories.

On Linhof cameras that have a universal bellows that work for extreme wide angle through long focal lengths like the Kardan Standard 45, the original Kardan and Kardan Color and the Technikas the bellows are not user interchangeable and do not have frames and replacemnet bellows need to be properly installed. Not by the user usually. Installing these requires gluing and some disassembly of the front/rear standards, depending on the model.

Oh I see, thanks! I assume this is because wide angle "tightness" means the "snap in" bellows might snap out from compression or light leak, so fixing them in place ensures a good seal? Or some other reason?

Thanks.

[Bob Salomon]

Oh I see, thanks! I assume this is because wide angle "tightness" means the "snap in" bellows might snap out from compression or light leak, so fixing them in place ensures a good seal? Or some other reason?

Thanks.

The original Technika was introduced in 1936 and interchangeable bellows were not a consideration as the tapered bellows design allowed the use of extreme wide to long lenses, with lots of movements, with that bellows. So there was no need to interchange bellows. It is a function of the design that the bellows does not need to be interchanged even still today with the latest models, the Master Technika Classic and the Master Technika 3000. With the Master Technika 3000 the bellows accommodates lenses from 35mm to 400mm (on the proper boards, of course). On the Master Technika Classic the camera handles the same range of lenses but the 35 to 65mm lenses each has to be mounted on its own special board with its own focusing helical on each board that is specific to the lens' focal length. On the 2000 and the 3000 the extreme wide angle focusing system is built into the camera body.

I can not think of any other 45 view camera that is capable, with the regular bellows, to accommodate this range of focal lengths other then the Technika and still allow all movements!. And this range is not limited to the Master Technika Classic. The same lens boards with helical mounts for the 35 to 65mm lenses also fit and work, with movements, on the V and IV models as well!

For Noah,

The difference in the 2000 and the 3000 are mainly two things:

1: On the 3000 the focusing for the internal extreme wide angle focusing rails has been moved from the lever in front of the front standard to a knob on the bottom right front corner of the body so you don't have to worry about blocking part of the image with your hand while focusing the camera.

2: The front bed has an extra setting so it drops 90° straight down to eliminate any possibility of including part of the bed when shooting with the back in portrait orientation with a 75 or wider lens. This extra drop position can be added to some older models, like the 2000, by the Linhof Service Centers.