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View Full Version : Shen Hao bag bellows on Canham DLC 45



GSX4
9-Mar-2007, 12:01
Does anyone know if the Shen Hao bag bellows would fit onto a Canham DLC 45? I'd like to try a 58mm lens for roll film back use on my Canham, and if I could save a 2/3 of the cost of a Canham bag bellows for one that is actually leather, it might be the way to go.

Failing that, I guess it;s time to start thinking about making my own.

Dan Baumbach
9-Mar-2007, 14:19
I have a 58 SA XL and I've used it on my Cahnam with the regular bellows. It's tight but I was able to swing the back a little for focus.

- Dan.

Kerry L. Thalmann
9-Mar-2007, 15:23
I'm positive the Shen-Hao bag bellows won't fit a Canham DLC. They use entirely different and incompatible format frames, both front and rear.

Also, are you sure the Shen-Hao bag bellows are made out of leather? The one I reviewed several years ago was made from a very thick, heavy vinyl (similar to the stuff my Dad's Barcalounger was coverd with back in the 1970s). It wasn't the nicest wide angle bellows I'ver ever used (that honor goes to the ARCA-SWISS leather wide angle bellows), but it was inexpensive and worked fine.

Unless you can get the front and rear bellows frames from Keith. you're probably better off just buying a geniune Canham bag bellows. If I remember my DLC correctly, the format frames were rather specialized and had mechanical lighttraps that mated with the front and rear standards to make sure there were no light leaks. If you try to cobble something together without the proper format frames, you may end up wasting a lot of film chasing light leaks.

Since there isn't a lot of excess coverage with the 58mm SS XL (166mm image circle), you might want to consider a recessed board instead. I used a Toyo recessed board with my 75mm Nikkor SW back when I had my DLC. It gave me enough wiggle room with that lens to forego the need for a bag bellows. The Toyo recessed boards are well made and inexpensive (you can get one on eBay for half the cost of the Shen-Hao bag bellows). They are JUST big enough to allow access to the shutter controls - tight, but usable - and fit the camera well.

Kerry