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Thread: Dumb question about lenses in barrels

  1. #1

    Join Date
    May 2006
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    Ft. Collins, CO
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    105

    Dumb question about lenses in barrels

    Hi all,

    All of the lenses I have came nicely mounted in Copal shutters and I am wondering if I could use lenses mounted in barrels with my Arca Swiss F-field C (110mm front)? I would like to experiment with some older/antique/beat up lenses and I often see them for sale in barrels. Can I get a blank lens-board machined to take a barrel or is this beyond anything reasonable that someone might do?

    Thanks,
    N.

  2. #2
    Vaughn's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
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    Humboldt County, CA
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    9,222

    Re: Dumb question about lenses in barrels

    It is done all the time. I use a couple barrel lenses on my 8x10 regularily. Look for barrel lenses that still have their mounting flange (it screws onto the back of t he barrel to hold it tight in the lensboard)...one can work around not having a flange (using hose clamps, for instance) but finding the proper flange after-the-fact is difficult.

    Generally, using a barrel lens without a shutter means that you'll be using exposure times of a second or more...using the lens cap (or your hat) as your "shutter".

    Vaughn

  3. #3

    Re: Dumb question about lenses in barrels

    What would help is having a flange for each barrel lens. Many of the old flange mounts have screw holes. Then if you have a large enough hole in your lensboard, you can simply drill screw holes for the flange. After that, the barrel lens screws into the flange.

    The tougher part would be adapting some sort of shutter to the barrel lens. Then you might need to have something more extensive done. The downside is that the lensboard, flange, and some sort of shutter might actually cost more than the barrel lens. That was the situation with my old 1935 Tessar 21cm f4.5.

    Ciao!

    Gordon Moat Photography

  4. #4
    Whatever David A. Goldfarb's Avatar
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    Mar 2000
    Location
    Honolulu, Hawai'i
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    4,658

    Re: Dumb question about lenses in barrels

    Yes, if the lens has a flange or retaining ring, you can have the lensboard machined for the flange. If you don't have a shutter, you'll need to figure out something like a Packard shutter behind the lensboard, Luc shutter on the front, or the simple "black hat" method.

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Cleveland, Ohio
    Posts
    73

    Re: Dumb question about lenses in barrels

    What about the adjustable lens flange?

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