I've been using my Rittreck View for 9 months or so; I bought it as a cheap, beater camera for wet plate (generally landscapes) for which it works great. Since I'm already doing wet plate, the weight isn't really an issue. Prior to that I was using a Toyo 4x5 monorail, which wasn't very convenient to pack/carry around but did have all those lovely geared movements. I still have it but haven't touched it since I got the Rittreck, though I did find myself wishing I had it for some architectural stuff I was doing last week.
When people ask about the Rittreck (usually assuming it's valuable, and being surprised I'll leave it unattended for 20+ minutes while I get a new plate ready) I have to explain that it's a really cheap camera because nobody wants them anymore - AFAIK all the current 4x5 cameras being made are lightweight field cameras for people who want to take them out and do landscapes, and those types of cameras do best on the secondhand market as well - Tachihara, Wisner, etc. The Rittrecks, on the other hand, can be picked up on Yahoo! Auctions for a pittance -- it's not hard to get one for under US$100 in good working order with the 4x5 back, and not too much more for the 5x7. If you're outside Japan you need to add on international postage, proxy site fees, etc, but still, it's really cheap. Demand seems non-existant as they don't seem to fill a relevant niche for today's LF photographers, who are largely hobbyists.
I'm curious what the niche was for these heavy metal field cameras originally; I couldn't imagine taking this thing on a long hike, and a monorail seems to be the better camera for macro/studio work. Was it just cheaper than an equivalent sized monorail or wooden field camera? Or was it used by pros who shot outside of the studio frequently and wanted something portable, but also durable? I will say mine has soaked up a decent amount of abuse in the brief time I've owned it, largely without complaint.
My particular camera has markings on the ground glass for a Polaroid back, so my best guess is that it might have been used by a Japanese commercial photographer in the 70s/80s, I'm guessing for modeling (since a product photographer would probably want the more generous and convenient movements of a monorail).
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