Gundlach w/ Turner Reich

[Denis O'Regan]

Thnx for the previous info.

It does most resemble the Korona; though, in addition to not having a model name plate (or room for one), the front edge of the base has a mating plate for adding another section. The bellows is long, with 3 leather tabs and metal rings (I assume to keep the "unused" material from sagging....true?). Both front and rear are tilting and movable (a small pendulum on the rear).

So, if I decide to restore the wood......
The original finish was shiny, thick varnish. It is crazed, so it looks like a "grained" finish.
Is the original finish of value, as collectables go? Or, is the goal to have a good looking restoration? I get the idea that I'm dealing with a fun hobby item, rather than a valuable collectable.......true?

Where can I read about restoration techniques for the lens and hardware?

thnx
Denis

[Steve Hamley]

Denis,

The cameras are neither expensive nor especially rare, so restoration should be done to satisfy yourself. It's unlikely you would profit by it.

Pretty much the same for the lens. The Turner Reich does not have a good reputation, likely because the 5+5 construction reportedly made it difficult to manufacture with acceptable tolerances given the methods of the day. Also, if the cells are split and recemented, that means dealing with 5 pieces of glass each cell, so you're likely to have a huge bill and end up with a $400 lens instead of a $250 lens.

There's a restoration article here:


http://largeformatphotography.info/burke-james/restore8x10.html (http://largeformatphotography.info/burke-james/restore8x10.html)

Lens restoration here:


http://www.optil.co.uk/ (http://www.optil.co.uk/)


http://www.skgrimes.com/ (http://www.skgrimes.com/)


http://www.focalpointlens.com/fp_intro.html (http://www.focalpointlens.com/fp_intro.html)

Steve

[Mark Sampson]

Edward Weston used a Turner-Reich at the time of his Guggenheim awards- at the end of "California and the West" he complains about it, although not by name. "On this of all occasions they sent out a dog" or words to that effect. The rest of the story is in Ansel Adams' autobiography.