Satin Snow Ground Glass

[Michael Graves]

I saw an earlier thread about Satin Snow ground glasses on these pages and decided to take a shot. On my first try, I failed to mention that my 5x7 was a Toyo, and apparently these cameras have a GG inset that's 1/8" smaller than "standard". I sent an email to the company and told them my dilemma. Even though it wasn't their fault, they told me to send it right back and they'd trim it for me. I sent it back last Wednesday and got the resized glass yesterday. The image is at least a full stop brighter than my old glass, which makes it so much easier for these senile old eyes to see. After seeing several posts saying how slow these guys were, I thought I'd just point out that not only was my order processed very quickly; I got about the best customer service I've gotten from anybody in a LONG time. My thanks to whomever posted the plug for Satin Snow.

[Kevin Klazek]

I did have a long wait for my 5x7 Dorf gg, but I was aware of the delays because Dave was upfront with his backlog situation. The wait was well worth it. I would also say the view was at least 1 stop brighter. My 90 f8 SA is definitely easier to use with the brighter image. An excellent product overall.

[Ron Marshall]

I was sceptical, but no longer, SS is definately brighter than my stock Sinar GG.

[Nick_3536]

I also don't consider it slow. I think mine shipped with in days of the date he claimed it would. I knew when I ordered it would take a while but that's okay. It's the ones who don't tell you that bother me.

[Dave Moeller]

My experience was like the experiences that Kevin and Nick had...at the time Dave definately had a backlog and was very upfront about how long the glass would take. He missed his original estimate by two days (not bad, all things considered), and I couldn't be happier with the product. I know there are other solutions out there for getting a bright image to view and focus, but the performance his ground glass delivers at the price he charges is fairly astounding.

As with many small operations, it's worth setting your expectations with the seller before the transaction starts. In my experience small companies are better at communicating problems and at hitting their deadlines reasonably (although there will always be exceptions). What they tend not to be good at is having a large stock of things to ship out to you immediately...which is, I believe, fully understandable.

Be well.
Dave

[Mike Kovacs]

I've decided to get one for my 4x5 Calumet monorail.

I had one in my 1920's plate camera and of course it was miles better than the stock screen. Its no comparison to the Maxwell in my MF Rolleiflex TLR but at 1/10 the cost its hard to complain. My guess is that an add-on fresnel will help with my wide angle lens.

Suggestions for a cheap fresnel to go along with it?

[William Mortensen]

I ordered a SatinSnow replacement for a gridded gg (which I didn't like), and at the prices being charged, ordered a couple of spares to save on shipping and just have the peace of mind that a future broken one will not be a problem. Definitely a great value for the dollar. I had a bit of a wait, but was warned in advance, so no complaints there.

This is definitely one of the few high-quality bargains in lf photography. Thank you, Dave! (You should up your prices, now that I have mine!)

[lee\c]

I have 4x5 5x7 and 8x10 glass for my cameras from Satinsnow gg. They are great. I highly recommend them but like everyone has said it did take a while to get them. It was worth the wait.

leec

[James Bleifus]

I received my 8X10 SS glass last week after a 6-8 week wait and took it out shooting this weekend. Wow. My 210 G-Claron sure is easier to use. I'll be ordering another one for my 5X7 back soon. And the wait for the GG didn't bother me at all. Dave has always seemed very upfront about his delays that I knew it would ship when available.

Cheers, James

[Tom N]

I ordered one for my Shen-Hao a while back and I didn't expect it to show up until at least January. Wouldn't you know it but it arrived last week. I installed it right away and it's fantastic!

[John Bowen]

Ditto on the Great Glass at a VERY Reasonable Price!!! I ordered one for my 8x10 wisner after attending the Fine Focus Workshop in Vermont and having Bruce Barlow and Richard Ritter recommend I do something to brighten my view. I believe it was Richard that suggested Satin Snow. I knew it would be a while before it arrived. I got it about two weeks ago and was astonished at how much brighter it was compared to the original. I immediately ordered a spare 8x10 and a couple 4x5s for my Zone VI. Much Thanks to Dave and Richard.

Highly Recommended....both Satin Snow and Fine Focus Workshops!

[Dean Tomasula]

Dave at SS is definitely one of the class acts in this business. I have his GG on my Shen-Hao and it's like night and day compared to the original. And the price is amazing. It makes you wonder why if SS can sell a GG for about $20, why other manufacturers sell theirs for like $200.

[David Honey]

Maybe a silly question, but I want to order an exact-size Satin Snow replacement glass for my Graphic View II, which is listed there there on the site as one of the cameras they've fitted.

But in the ordering column there's no option for selecting sizes, only nominal 4x5 etc with or without corners. Does anyone see there how to specify and order a particular size, or for a particular camera?

They say they are out of town for the holidays, but I want to get in an early order for next year.

Thanks!

[David Parker]

David,

When you check out you will find a comments/special instructions box, just let us know there and I will know what size to make your screens.

Thanks everybody, and Happy Holidays.

We will start getting all the new orders out right a way, upon our return from the Holidays, Our goal is to ship all orders in 2006 with in two weeks.

Thanks again, I will have email access while we are away from the shop, so if you have questions, please feel free to drop us a note.

Dave Parker

Satin Snow Ground Glass

[David Honey]

Thanks David! I'll go ahead and order.

Merry Christmas.

[Capocheny]

I concur 100% with all the positive comments regarding Dave and the Satin Snow ground glass screens. I recently purchased a 5x7 Dorff with a 4x5 reducing back. The ground glass in both the 5x7 and 4x5 backs weren't that terrific.

Unbeknownst to me... the 4x5 reducing back was not 4x5 exactly. It came from a Graflex back and, therefore, was of a different dimension.

What I did was to take the old GG from each back, traced them onto a sheet of paper, and emailed the drawings to Dave.

Well, guess what? They both dropped into the respective backs like they were always there. The dimensions were dead on! :)

Lastly, Dave said I'd have them before the middle of December... they arrived during the first week!

Satin Snow is a great company to deal with and I wouldn't hesitate in doing business with them again... or recommending them to anyone in need of a replacement ground glass!

Thanks Dave!

Cheers

[Mike Kovacs]

I just wish they would offer more options for permanent grid patterns. As it stands now I either have to print a transparency from a template or simply rule them on with a pencil.