Hello, All. I was recently given an old view camera that is in horrible conditi on due to poor storage, but I'm still very excited about trying large format. T he brand of the camera is Brand, and I've found out that it was made just after WWII. I received two lenses, neither in good shape. The better (and the one mo st suited to beginner use, I think) is a Xenar 4.5 with shutter speeds (Compur) of 1 to 200. The diaphram worked fairly well, and the shutter functioned until I pushed the cocking lever too far, and the speeds were obviously off. The lens had some sort of cloudiness but no scratches. I got an estimate from Houston C amera Repair on repairing the lens for $174, which includes a new main spring an d several other replacement parts and a thorough CLA. I was told that the lense s could be cleaned with a safe acid, solving the cloudiness problem (humidity, I was told) and removing some mildew or mold that they found. Do you feel that t his lens is worth repairing at this cost? The camera has full movements, which I'd like to make use of. Does this lens have sufficient coverage? I need to ke ep costs down because there are many other things I'll need to buy to be ready t o take pictures. The bellows is beyond repair, I think. I tried www.camerabell ows.com, but the site was unavailable. Is the company still in business? Can a nyone give me information for Flexible Products in Florida? Are there any other sources? The bellows is simple, just a wood frame in each end that gets screwe d to the camera at the front and rear. Thanks so much for your help, and again, I'm very excited about the opportunity to try large format.
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