55mm Rodenstock movement questions

[Jeff Dexheimer]

I just purchased the 55mm APO Rodenstock from a member here and I am getting ready to use it. I have three questions however.

1. I will be using technika type boards. What is the deepest recessed board that would be comfortably usable with this lens? As in, how deep could I go and still be able to access my controls?

2. I have never used a recessed board before. What impact, if any, does a recessed board have on movements

3. Would a universal style bellows (bellows without front pleats) allow sufficient movement for this lens if the lens is mounted on a recessed board?

My assumption is this - mount the lens on a 10mm board and get the universal bellows and I should be fine for any movement within the tiny allowable movement range of my 55 mm lens. Any ideas would help. Thanks!

[Old-N-Feeble]

What camera?

[Jeff Dexheimer]

Shen Hao PTB45

It accepts and has available bag bellows and universal bellows.

[Bob Salomon]

Linhof makes several different Technika 45 recessed lens boards. Which one you need depends on which Linhof camera you use it on. The most common recessed Linhof board is the 001015 "Comfort" board. On this board all operating controls, and the aperture scale, are on the front flat surface of the board so you never have to reach into the recess to set aperture, use the press focus, set the aperture, hook up a cable release or plug in a flash cord.
The other recessed boards do not offer or have these conveniences.
A recessed board does not restrict movements in any way. In fact the recessed board is probably the only way the lens can be used at infinity on many cameras. What impacts movements is your bellows. If available, you would need a wide angle bag bellows. The exception to this is the 45 Technika IV, V and Master models which has a bellows that allows full movements with any lens that can mount to the camera up to 400mm.

Your assumption may be incorrect, depending on your camera, your bellows and how much movement you want from the combination. The 55mm Apo Grandagon 4.5 covered a 163mm circle. But you may want the center filter for it. The center filter for the 35/45/55mm Apo Grandagon lenses was a special one with a different center density then the one needed for the 90mm 6.8 and 75mm 4.5 Grandagon-N lenses. The center filter for the Apo Grandagons had a filter factor of 2.5x while the ones for the Grandagon-N lenses were 1.5X. Like the Apo Grandagons and the Grandagon N lenses the center filters are also no longer manufactured. Currently we have one left in stock for the Apo Grandagons and then there will be no more of them.

[vinny]

I use bag bellows for my 90mm if I need rise/fall and always for anything wider due to the bellows causing vignetting. Keep in mind that you don't want to photograph the base of the camera so using a recessed board may not help. Slide the rear standard all the way forward and put the front standard all the way back. Do you still need a recessed board then?