5x8 Camera Build

[Michael Roberts]

Springs are on!

I still need to finish-coat the mahogany spring anchors. The wooden anchors look dull b/c they are.

[John Brady]

That is a super cool camera, John! And 11 holders and the lenses you have are an abundance of riches! I hope you are still enjoying the heck out of that kit!

Plus, I assume you still have the Ebony when you want to shoot 5x8 with longer lenses or need more movements!

Thanks Michael! I don't have your skill so I had to purchase. And yes I still love the format and still have the Ebony 810 slw and 5x8 back. I'm a wide lens guy, so for me the appeal was to create a camera that would utilize the 120 deg and large image circle of the super angulon 72XL.

I look forward to following you as you complete and get to using your very custom 5x8!

[Michael Roberts]

I still have some adjustments to make, but I got everything assembled this afternoon!

Bellows installed, rear brackets installed, hinges, and front standard.

[Michael Roberts]

This has been a long time coming, and it feels good to see it come together, literally.

Thanks for all the views and to those of you who have commented.

[Michael Roberts]

20 1/2" of bellows, equivalent to 25.5” on 8x10, and I think there is more to be had if I make a longer extension rail.

[Michael Roberts]

By the way, there is a reason I have not yet posted a picture of the camera when closed. Well, three reasons, actually.

I need to add a pin and retaining clip. That's the easy part.

The hard part is I forgot the low-profile steel knobs have a raised area on the inside, sort of like a built in washer, that adds 1/16th" to the thickness of the knob. The consequence is I need to route 1/16th off the inside of the rail so the front standard will fit. This is doable. In fact, I had to do the same thing with my 7x11 camera build, and this 5x8 requires much less material to be removed. It's just going to take a little time and thought to get the right router bit and set up to do the cuts.

The third, and scary but as it turns out not so hard issue, is that I set the rear bracket anchor 1/4" too close to the front of the camera base. Thus, the rear brackets won't fold up inside the camera. Instead, the right angle studs hit the top of the slots in the sides of the rear frame and prevent closing. So I took a hammer and chisel to my beautiful new camera. Fortunately, the plywood pieces of the rear bracket anchors came off cleanly and I can reuse them and set them 1/4 to 1/2" further back.

I'm heading out of town today, so my agenda is set for when I return.

Again, I'm reminded that if Large Format was easy, everybody would do it.

[Michael Roberts]

I love the 5x8 format! I started by having Hiromi build a 5x8 back for my Ebony 8x10. Later, I came up with the idea of commissioning Fotoman in China to build a 5x8 aluminum camera, with ground glass back, rise and fall, and a lens cone for a 72xl and a 90xl, both with helical mounts. I went pretty far down the rabbit hole on this one, but a very fine camera. I have 11 5x8 Chamonix film holders to go with it.
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John, how do you process your 5x8 film?

[John Brady]

John, how do you process your 5x8 film?

Another reason why 5x8 is a great format. The Jobo 3010 drum for 4x5 fits a 5x8 sheet in each cylinder, so it handles 5 sheets at at time.

[Michael Roberts]

Good to know! Thanks!

[Michael Roberts]

I reset the plywood pieces of the rear bracket anchors further back. I also glued in additional 1/4 mahogany pieces 3/4" x 1/2" against the rear wall of the base so I can switch out the screws in the hinges to 1/2" to provide a more secure fastening. I will let these pieces dry overnight before changing/attaching fasteners.

Pretty tired from a quick overnight trip to Estes Park and a late night. I might get to the closing pin and retaining clip later this evening or else I'll tackle it tomorrow along with routing out the inside of the rail. It feels good to be making progress again!