Vintage Front Lens Mount Shutter Information Request - S&S (?)

[Lee Hamiel]

I've looked for info on this shutter & have either missed it or there are not many out there - hoping someone can provide some input

Logo is a Crossed "S" - Outer diameter is 4 & 1/8" - front aperture opening is 1 & 15/16" - Rear recess opening is 2 & 3/16" - thickness is 1/2" & Crinkle paint - Settings are A/-/P

It appears to be well made & I have had it for 10-15 years & received it as a part of a group of equipment - put it away & now trying to decide what to do with it - keep it & use or ...

I'm probably emblematic of a number of photographers who have acquired much gear over the years & at this point trying to decide what to keep/use or move on

Any input is greatly appreciated

Regards - Lee

[Steven Tribe]

I have seen these and I think I own one!

There were FRench, Italian and German makers of these front of lens mounted shutters. This one is for the French market, Silens = Silence.

The ones I can find in catalogues around 1910 were made with internal diameters of 38, 45, 53, 63, 72, 85 and 100mm.
These has pneumatic release and you can see on yours where the housing has been cut away to facilitate mechanical operation. USed mostly for portrait work and very useful if you have a favorite lens and a shutter which actually fits!

[Lee Hamiel]

I have seen these and I think I own one!

There were FRench, Italian and German makers of these front of lens mounted shutters. This one is for the French market, Silens = Silence.

The ones I can find in catalogues around 1910 were made with internal diameters of 38, 45, 53, 63, 72, 85 and 100mm.
These has pneumatic release and you can see on yours where the housing has been cut away to facilitate mechanical operation. USed mostly for portrait work and very useful if you have a favorite lens and a shutter which actually fits!

Thanks for the info Steven - I appreciate it

[RJ-]

A little late to chip in -

the Silens shutter which you have Lee, can be operated a pneumatic release as Steve describes or by screwing in a Sinar long throw cable release. It has an instantaneous shutter, B and T setting - a great front shutter alternative to Packard, Thornton Pickard shutters.

The three metal long screws clasp around the front barrel and offer a little recess like a lens hood for uncoated lenses - this allows quite a lot of freedom to fit to different lenses without custom adapters. I've not found any as wide as the 100mm ones which Steve mentions, although Zetor (German) designed ones are very similar and can fit large front elements like the 360mm f4.5 Voigtlander Heliar.

Kind regards,
RJ

[IanG]

I have a few similar shutter, pneumatic releases are less common, but then I have a 120mm 1913 CP Goerx, Berlin, Dagor and the Compound shutter has a pneumatic release.

Like Thorton Pickard roller blind shutters these are vastly superior to the Packards favoured in the US.

Ian

[Lee Hamiel]

Thanks for all of the input RJ & Ian - much appreciated

I don't have any lenses to use it on so now I have to decide to look for a lens or decide to part with it - decisions ...

Regards

[IanG]

It's a nice example in good condition, they aren't worth a lot. Keep it don't part with it you may stumble on a lens to use it with. I'd just wait until one comes along . . . . . . . but that's me, I do that all the time.

The latest similar shutter I bought needs a clean up and repainting but has flash sync, so cou8ld be useful :D

Ian

[Robert Opheim]

I have and use a: Silens (my research says Italian), Gitzo (French) and LUC (German) add on shutters. They work well for long exposures and up to somewhere in the 1/15 to 1/25 of a second range. The slow shutter speed isn't a big thing with large format - in general. Obviously they don't work well for stop action. These are diaphragm or leaf shutters in a metal housing that clamp on to the outside of the lens. These were manufactured in Europe and used with barrel lenses. The US had a camera mounted shutter for this use (the Packard shutter - a diaphragm or leaf shutter). England had the Thornton Pickard Shutter a camera mounted shutter (a roller-blind shutter style). These shutters are really fairly crude. All of these shutters are made in a range of sizes that will fit different sizes of lenses. There are a few other manufacturers: Zetor, English Day, and Max Gorgen Manufacturing (MGM). Zetor is an art-deco design. Note that some of these shutters do not have the 3 screw lens clamp built into the shutter housing.