Heavy focussing on wood camera - any cure?

[Hening Bettermann]

Hi

I have just bought this camera cgi.ebay.com/Early-Nagaoka-2X3-Wooden-Field-Camera_W0QQitemZ7576654700QQcategoryZ15247QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem.
The focussing is geared, but is very heavy and uneven, like "ratched". Oil did not help. I have the feeling that it is not the metal parts, that are the reason, but the wooden parts, which glide inside/alongside each other. Is there any cure at all? Taking the thing apart and sanding carefully? I feel I need to know if it can be done or not, before I sacrifice a lot of money on a new bellows and a new back. Both would be necessary if I want to go on with the camera. The low weight means a lot to me, so IF it could be restored to good working order, I would stretch far for it.

Thanks for any idea! - Hening.

[John Kasaian]

Hening,

You might try waxing the wood to wood surfaces. I have a stash of beeswax candle stubs for that purpose(a gift from the priest in the chapel at a hospital where I worked!)

Just rub the wax on and work the wood to wood surfaces back and forth a few times and see if it helps. Bees wax should be available at any woodworkers store if theres no hospital chapel in your area. Ordinary candle paraffin should work as well.

[Ralph Barker]

I think the general feeling is that oil, even very light machine oil, on the gearing of field cameras is a bad idea. The oil tends to collect too much dirt and grit, exacerbating the problem. It's possible that the "heavy" feel of the focusing is being caused by minor warping, expansion, or finish deterioration of the wood parts. If you have good mechanical and woodworking skills, restoration should be possible. The alternative would be to get a rebuild quote from one of the LF camera repair people around. I think you'll find references to Richard Ritter, among others, among the archives here.

The 2x3 format, however, is a relatively minor segment of the LF market. Before spending too much on restoration, you might want to get a better feel for film and holder availability, among other considerations, to make sure you want to move forward with that format.

[Kevin Crisp]

Don't oil it. The issue is unlikely to be drag on the metals parts, more likely binding on the wood. Try a good wax on both sides of the wood where there is sliding contact, Johnson's paste wax for furniture will do it, or a good cleaning car wax like JWax Kitt. Even bar soap, dry, rubbed on the wood contact points, can free things up considerably. Also, putting the camera in a plastic bag with dessicant for a couple days can make a big difference. You shouldn't need to sand anything. There are usually a breeze to focus, nothing is bent? No joints have come apart?

[Lee Hamiel]

Hening:

I saw this camera & was intrigued by it - I'm glad you got it.

I have a couple of suggestions - not sure if they are the answer but here goes.

Firstly - I would totally gear out the rails so as to need to re-engage the rack & pinions. I have experienced where the flexibility of the wood rails allowed for a slight misalignment when reinserting the rails & might allow for the gear teeth to be off by one notch from side to side. This would be my first approach.

Next - I would simply steel wool with 4x0 on the wood rails with no oils/wax, etc, & only clean the accumulated residue from over the years & wipe down.

Lastly - I would take the metal racks off & soak them in "CLR" which is a calcium/lime & rust remover or another rust/corrosion remover for a short while & brush them clean with a stiff brush, rinse well & dry thoroughly before reassembling.

As the listing said there is corrosion on the metal parts & so I would also do the knobs, etc. as well.

Good Luck & please let us know how it all goes for you.

[Ted Harris]

Hening,

Send Richard Ritter an email and describe the issues to him. Send him some jpegs if you can. Richard works on these sorts of problems all the time and will be able to tell you if there are major expenses involved. You might also want to telephone him, but he can tell you if that wil be necessary. He does work for folks in Europe with frequency.

[John Kasaian]

Another thought: I use a wee bit of white grease to lube the metal parts rather than oil. Its far less messy, won't migrate under metal parts to rot the wood and seems not as likely to accumulate wearing grit like oil will. I hope this helps.

[paulr]

if you do lube the metal (as much for corosion protection as for slipperiness) i'd avoid both oil and grease. both are wet; both attract dirt. there are many modern synthetic lubes available now that leave a completely dry finish. they're superior to old fashioned lubes in every way. needless to say, don't put wd-40 on anything!

one of the best lubes i've ever used by by finish line. they make a synthetic lube that goes on like oil and dries to a thin, slightly waxy film. extremely weather reistant and displaces water beautifully. it's made for bikes. it's heavy enough for a bike chain that gets used in mud and snow, but light enough to use on lock cylinders without making them bind.

[Hening Bettermann]

First of all, many thanks to all contributors!

Of all the advice I have received both on this forum and the german LF forum, I have so far tried the following:
The only part with visible rust is the focus drive axis. The racks look clean. I have treated the axis with my electrical tooth brush, then applied a little oil to it as well as to the metal racks. This was done before I posted my question, since it was the suggestion Seth made in the listing, so warnings against oil came too late.) Removed the metal covering plates on top of the sides of the bed. Which revealed, that the wood underneath is untreated (oiled? laquered?) unlike the rest. Applied candle wax to the wooden parts where they glide on each other. Put the metal cover strips back on, trying different degrees of torque on the screws. Loosened the racks a little, focussed back and forth a couple of times, then re-tightened. Totally geared out the rails so as to need to re-engage the rack & pinions, then re-inserted. Altogether, the procedures have brought a little improvement, but far from satisfying.

On top of that, there is another problem that I find crucial: On the right hand side, the mechanism that keeps the rear standard vertical, has some slack, because the guide bar (word?) that glides in the groove (slot?) on the side of the bed, has some play. (This guide-bar-in-slot mechanism is used to move the rear standard forward for use with short focal lengths.) Would anybody know if THIS can be cured?

Well, I have by now followed Ralph Barker's and Ted Harris' advice and mailed Richard Ritter.

Ralph, concerning the 6x9 format: My main camera is a 6x9 Arca Swiss, pre-1984. This woody is intended to be an ultra light minimal camera for skiing - and maybe other occasions where I feel urged to prioritize weight over performance.

Again, many thanks to all of you! - Hening.

[Dan_5988]

I had this problem with the 8x10 I bought, it was indeed the wood being too tight (most likely from just bending and swelling it over time)...I took it apart and very carefully razored the varnish off the sides that were sticking and now its pretty smooth-
be carefull if you do this, it only took a few thousandths to loosen it up