I was just surfing Robert White's web site and it seems he has the Wista VX listed for about the same price an AX would cost here (and he is having problems getting Toyo...). Does anyone know how this would compare to the Toyo (I suspect comparing it to the Tachihara is similar to comparing the Tach to the Toyo)?
Eric:
I started out with a Wista VX, then switched to a Toyo45A so I will comment on the differences that I experienced.
1. The Toyo has more "native" bellows draw. The Wista can be fitted with extended beds and bellows, but in its native state, is difficult to use with a 300mm lens.
2. In its "neutral" position, the Toyo lensboard is higher off of the bed, allowing for easy use of lenses down to 75mm without "drop" bed contortions. It also allows more clearance for filter holders and compendium hoods.
3. Front tilt is different, with each camera having advantages and disadvantages. Front tilt is centered on the lens axis on the Wista, and is driven by a friction wheel. This allows easy adjustment. Unfortunately, there is no zero detent, so you have to look at a scribed mark to set the lensboard to zero tilt. The Toyo has no "detent" at zero, but has zero stops which prevent the front standard from tilting back past zero unless you press two release latches. This is nice for "eyes-off" work, since you can quickly return the standard to zero tilt, but there is no resistance to small tilts that sometimes result from detents.
4. Front swing and shift are much nicer on the Wista. The combined lock for front swing and shift on the Toyo is its weakest feature. Fortunatly for Toyo, front swing and shift are seldom used in landscape work, so they never bothered me.
5. Rear swing is somewhat more convenient on the Wista. On the Toyo, you almost need to use the rear rails a bit so that the locks on the rear swing are easy to get your fingers on. Maybe smaller fingers would not notice this. On the other hand, I don't think that the rear swing on the Wista had a lock, so if I am correct on this recollection, that is a potential difference.
6. Rear tilt was somewhat more convenient on the Toyo, and it seemed to lock down a bit tighter than the Wista.
7. The compendium lenshood for the Toyo, though expensive if purchased (they have free compendium promotions every couple of years), is very nice. The Wista compendium did not fasten to the front standard very well, it used some friction screws that were not well designed.
8. The finish on the Toyo seemed a bit more rugged. The Wista uses alot of anodized aluminum which seemed more susceptible to scratching.
Both cameras are excellent machines. I found that I preferred the Toyo and kept it for over a decade before downsizing to 6x9... but I took some nice shots with the Wista.
Hope this helps some.
Glenn
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