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Thread: Fudging speeds on old shutters

  1. #1

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    Fudging speeds on old shutters

    I may be the last person in the world to have figured this out - and I am not even sure if it is a good idea - but on old shutters which have a dial, like my Universal #5, it is possible to select between the printed speeds. For example, the 1/2 second stop on my Universal is off quite a bit. However, if I dial in slightly less than "2," I get 1/2 second, dead on.

    Who knew? Ok, probably everyone, but it was a big deal for me to discover it.

  2. #2

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    Just in case you haven't already noticed, you can do the same sort of thing with the aperture too.

    I do this while using a Packard shutter on instantaneous.

  3. #3

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    Quote Originally Posted by docw View Post
    I may be the last person in the world to have figured this out - and I am not even sure if it is a good idea - but on old shutters which have a dial, like my Universal #5, it is possible to select between the printed speeds. For example, the 1/2 second stop on my Universal is off quite a bit. However, if I dial in slightly less than "2," I get 1/2 second, dead on.
    Bad idea, works for few shutter types.

  4. #4

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    Either adjust via aperture or just use the closest shutter speed. The difference is small enough that it rarely matters.

  5. #5

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    BTW, it is possible to put the index mark between the speed designation markers but that generally does not “select” an intermediate speed. The speed cams (one of the shutter parts that regulates shutter speed) are often designed essentially with steps rather than a mechanism to allow accurate (if any at all) intermediate speed selection.

  6. #6

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    I should have explained two things. First, this only works on dial shutters like my old Universal #5 (the famous "toilet seat" shutter, so-named because of its size). It will not work with "click stop" shutters. Second, I didn't do this randomly. I used an electronic shutter tester until I found the right spot. It works great.

  7. #7

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    To be more exact, perhaps... you had success with one specific design of old shutter.

    But a hearty congratulations for finding a shutter that would do intermediate speeds.

  8. #8
    Alan Klein's Avatar
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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    I know this is LF. But does anyone know if Mamiya RB67 6x7 lens shutters work that way too?

  9. #9

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    Not sure, Alan, but it doesn’t work on a Hasselblad.

  10. #10

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    Re: Fudging speeds on old shutters

    If you have not seen one of these, here is an example.

    You can see that there is a quite a distance between the shutter speed numbers. Also, notice that this is a dial. I am pretty sure that this technique only works with dial-type shutters. I tried it on a few others with no success. I seriously doubt that it would work with an RB67. I have two of these old Universals, so this was a great discovery for me.

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