Dark Box Build Mark II

[Ethan]

I had posted my previous dark box build here, so I thought I would post my dark box mark II here as well. The first dark box which I documented in my Dark Box Build thread turned out to not work so well. Well, It worked fine as a darkbox, just failed in the portability department. It weighs a lot, and was harder to move around than I had hoped.

Because of that, with warmer springtime weather beginning to show, I started construction of my new darkbox last week, and finished it this morning. It's conceptually simpler than the last one, but overall more portable and easier to set up. The main feature of this dark box is that it has wheels attached to the bottom so when it's folded up it can be used as a cart to transport the rest of my tintype gear.

If any of you want to replicate it or build one inspired by it, I can send you some instructions and a parts list, though I'd have to put that together first. At the moment the plans exist mostly in my head.


https://youtu.be/bZuraOCvWQU


https://www.instagram.com/p/CNxnGn2HNO2/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

[Tin Can]

Ooops!

I and some others will not view or use FakeBook...insta

Youtube I do use

[Ethan]

Ooops!

I and some others will not view or use FakeBook...insta

Youtube I do use

Just updated it with a youtube link!

[Tin Can]

Very thoughtful

Thank you!


Just updated it with a youtube link!

[Two23]

I've been thinking of something similar. I'm looking at buying one of those metal grate garden wagons with big tires. I make a PVC frame which is fastened to the wagon, then fastened to my dark box. My box is a big plastic tub from Walmart, and the tent is stretched over a PVC frame. It all collapses into the tub. I would have about six gallon jugs of water in the wagon part, down low to provide stability. Where I live wind is a major problem.


Kent in SD

[Drew Bedo]

A Dark Box: is is to replace the classic/traditional little tent used by wet plate shooters of old?

A great idea and looks like it will work as a traveling work space for wet plate.

You could take that rig out to a Cowboy Action Shooting event or Civil War re-enactments and do period portraits with it.

[jkober@mac.com]

Though I'm a few months late to the party, I love what you've done here and would appreciate the list of parts and whatever expertise you're willing to share. Thanks.
Jeff

[Ethan]

Though I'm a few months late to the party, I love what you've done here and would appreciate the list of parts and whatever expertise you're willing to share. Thanks.
Jeff

A lot of it was cobbled together from things I already had, so I'm not sure I can create a list of parts very easily. I'm going to build a similar box for a friend soon, and will try to document that one more to show how it goes together, though it will be a slightly different design to accommodate the larger plates she shoots.

its basically just a large clamshell which has wheels on one side, I added some supports in the middle to help with strength, but the design is fairly straight forward.

[jkober@mac.com]

A lot of it was cobbled together from things I already had, so I'm not sure I can create a list of parts very easily. I'm going to build a similar box for a friend soon, and will try to document that one more to show how it goes together, though it will be a slightly different design to accommodate the larger plates she shoots.

its basically just a large clamshell which has wheels on one side, I added some supports in the middle to help with strength, but the design is fairly straight forward.

Thanks. Watching the video again I can see the simplicity of it. But yes, if you do another, documenting it would be useful for those of us not quite so handy.