Toyo 810G in the field?

[Lars Åke Vinberg]

Looking for a more stable camera than my current wood camera, I am considering the Toyo 810G, as these can be found used for a relatively modest price.

Apart from weight, how packable are these cameras? My backpack is a Supertrekker.

[fishfish]

I used a Toyo 810G for three years in the field, and it is doable, if you have a surdy physic and dedication. I took one of the short rails and had it cut even shorter, so it was long enough just for the two standards to go on, and then carried the camera in a Eureka backpack - I can't remember the model, but it was the largest one (Yukon perhaps). It has a smaller bottom compartment which held three lenses, and hte best part, and daypack could zip to the bag, and it was the perfect size for sif film holders! So I could carry the camera, three lenses and 12 sheets of film in one bag. True, it ended up weighing over 45 pounds, and when you add the tripod, I was up to around 60...not including other film formats, but when you consider the weight of a fully equiped A.L.I..C.E. pack, that is nothing...sp I would say it is doable.

[Erik Sherman]

This month's View Camera has an article on a photographer who was working on top of Mt. Washington - billed as having the worst weather in the world. He used a wooden camera but built an additional two-piece sliding enclosure. You might take a look, as something like that would run less than the 810G and might add the stability that you need. (I have an 810G, and can't imagine trying to drag it out into the field. When conditions are rough, I prefer a camera with fewer gears and knobs and other things that could go wrong and be a pain in the rear.)

[Ralph Barker]

On the rail, the 810G compresses to about 7" thick, and would require a space of about 17" (w) x 20" (h) in a pack, assuming you had a cut-down rail to mount it on. I'm not sure how much additional stability one would gain with it over a wooden camera, however, as everything sits atop the (smallish) centrally-located mounting block. Because of that, I think some form of rail clamping would be needed. Plus, it's gawdawful heavy.

[fishfish]

The camera might be only mounted on the single clamp, on the rail, but I can attest it is steady as a rock - I could rack mine out to 32" and it would just not move...beautiful geared movements as well. Great to work with. And heavy...which is why I now have a Zone VI Ultralight...fits in a smaller backpack, and 1/2 the weight. No geared movement though...snifff.

[Ralph Barker]

Eric - what I had experienced with mine was a tendancy toward both vertical and lateral vibration because of the central balance point of the mounting block. But, I was using an extension rail and a heavy, shutterless lens (a 610mm APO Nikkor in barrel). Dampening the vibration caused by having to touch the lens immediately prior to exposure pretty much solved the problem, however.