pneumatic shutter

[pierre salomon]

hello I am tryng to acquire a schneider 360 tele xenar(f 5.5 to f 32)the seller wrote:The shutter is a compounded pneumatic timed shutter. I am familiar with copal but not that one. Help will be appreciated. Thanks

[Steve Hamley]

Pierre,

http://www.skgrimes.com/compound/index.htm

Thanks!

Steve

[David F. Stein]

I cannot speak to an individual shutter, but I have a couple of lenses in those shutters and they work great. The best shutter—in my opinion—the straight, squeeze bulb operated pneumatic piston in vintage American shutters-quiet, gentle action, they work 100 years and more later. GOOD LUCK.

[Ernest Purdum]

Compound shutters were made in larger sizes than are available today. This is probably why the lens you mention is fitted in one. They were very well made and therefore quite reliable, though the timing is not quite as precise as the clockwork types. In use, wait a moment after cocking or the speed may be too short. They are not cocked for the Time and Bulb modes. The maker was Friedrich Deckel of Munich. They also made the Compur line of shutters. Compound shutters were made for about seventy years with only minor changes.

[QT Luong]

I used to have the same lens with the same shutter (apparently a frequent combination), and it worked OK.

[Ole Tjugen]

I have the same lens and shutter, as well as a few other lenses in Compound shutters. The 360mm Tele-Xenar is in a #3 shutter, my 300mm/f:4.5 is in a #5.

The shutters are very reliable, and tend to stay reasonably precise over a very long time. As far as I know, they don't gradually deteriorate, but will instead suddenly stop working. But that hasn't happened to any of mine yet...

The Tele-Xenar can be fitted in a modern #3 shutter if the need should arise.

[Bob._3483]

I also have the same lens in the same shutter.

Just a couple of points: do not try to cock the shutter in B or T mode: this will break it; although if my sample is typical, that is not easy to do (even by someone as ham-fisted as me). I can't believe an owner would force it so much - any breakages are more likely to happen in a retailers by potential purchasers not knowing it should not be cocked. Make sure this has not already happened to the one you may purchase.

The other point is operational: there is no lever to hold the diaphragm open for focussing so you need to put the shutter in to B or T mode and then back to M to cock the shutter and fire it. Not a problem, but I do find the M/B/T lever small and fiddly.

Cheers,

[N Dhananjay]

As mentioned above, do not try to force and cock the shutter when the selector switch is set to B or T - the shutter was designed to be fired without cocking it in B and T. Compounds are actually very reliable shutters - most have typcally been damaged by someone forcing the cocking mechanism. Also, I have heard that it is a good idea to wait a few seconds after cocking it before firing the shutter - supposed to make it more reliable. Cheers, DJ