Chamonix 45N-1 Order Shipped [Archive] - Page 2 - Large Format Photography Forum

keeds

23-Dec-2007, 15:02

Good news for UK'ers!!!! Latest update from ParcelForce:

23-12-2007 21:48 International Hub En route to delivery depot
23-12-2007 21:46 International Hub Arrived in destination country

Nothing about customs and charges which normally show up, so there is every possibility still of delivery tomorrow. Man what a Christmas present!!!

buze

23-Dec-2007, 15:08

I'm not going to hold my breath :/

Parcelforce also shows the status as 'accepted'.

RooX

23-Dec-2007, 15:20

for all you UK'er's, just a tidbit of info, in Canada, when i received mine through our government mail carrier, there were no taxes/levies or fees. Was a nice surprise to get a parcel for free.

Gary Samson

23-Dec-2007, 22:28

If the camera platform is level and your rear standard is up against these so-called zero detents, is your rear standard really vertical? Mine is not.

On my camera, if the camera platform is level and the front standard is locked into the uprights, the from standard is truly vertical. Not so on the rear - if the rear standard is up against these so-called zero detents the back standard is tilted 2-3 degrees back.

Would someone please check their camera to see if these slide-out stops on the rear are meant to zero the rear standard when the platform is level?

Eric,
My camera also performs exactly as you have described.
Gary

BarryS

23-Dec-2007, 22:43

Are you guys using the bubble levels to determine if the rear standard is tilted? Is it possible that the levels are slightly off? Let me know your technique and I'll measure it on my camera.

Barry Wilkinson

24-Dec-2007, 01:59

I'm not going to hold my breath :/

Parcelforce also shows the status as 'accepted'.

I'm sorry to say this Keeds and Buze but my common experience with Parcelforce and International parcels is...

They send you a card (by post!) when it arrives at your local depot, saying you own them the VAT & Import Duties (if there are any), and a 'handling charge'. To add insult to injury, they then expect you to collect your package for which you have paid delivery.

I hope I am wrong and you get you camera's today.

Barry

buze

24-Dec-2007, 02:10

Well my tracking shows they are now 'out for delivery' which in my experience means it's on a delivery truck and we should be fine VAT wise....

Barry Wilkinson

24-Dec-2007, 02:53

Well my tracking shows they are now 'out for delivery' which in my experience means it's on a delivery truck and we should be fine VAT wise....

That's very good news Buze.

Barry

keeds

24-Dec-2007, 03:02

Well my tracking shows they are now 'out for delivery' which in my experience means it's on a delivery truck and we should be fine VAT wise....

My tracking now says 'Arrived at delivery depot', which means if it hasn't left yet then I'm not getting it today. Hopefully sometime before the New Year would be great though... Have a great holiday boys (and girls) and lets share some Cham pics in the New Year.

buze

24-Dec-2007, 08:07

There they are ! Just in time for xmas!

3 blond/gray models, the wood is a bit darker than on Jack's pictures, and I must say we prefer it that way.
Mine is #0123 (!), my friend Paul has the #0150 and my friend William #0175

One thing of note is that the Fresnel of Paul's & Wlliam's are not cut... the glass is, but not the fresnel...

Otherwise the finition is fantastic, and we spent 1/2h finding new tricks, settings and adjustments ! Heck, the little tabs at the back to 'lock' in vertical postion are just great.
Mecanical adjusment is just great, everything is flush and tiny. excellent piece of equipment!

Oh, the box custom slip was marked as "frames : $10" :cool:
http://oomz.net/scaled/IMG_3252.JPG

http://oomz.net/scaled/IMG_3253.JPG

http://oomz.net/scaled/IMG_3255.JPG

davidb

24-Dec-2007, 08:09

Merry Christmas !!!!

Glad it showed up. It is a great little camera.

Gary Samson

24-Dec-2007, 08:12

Are you guys using the bubble levels to determine if the rear standard is tilted? Is it possible that the levels are slightly off? Let me know your technique and I'll measure it on my camera.

Barry,
When the bubble levels on the front and back standards are zeroed the standards are parallel to each other and so everything in the same plane is in sharp focus. I first adjust the front standard so that it is level and then tilt the back watching the bubble level until it is also level. I hope this helps.
Gary

Andrew_4548

24-Dec-2007, 08:12

Buze - they look great and just in time for Christmas - coming to a UKLFPG meet soon?

My Dad's always whinged about heavier cameras and this might be an option for him if he gets some cash...

keeds

24-Dec-2007, 08:20

buze, congratulations. mine didn't turn up yet, it's 40 miles away but hopefully on it's way after christmas. I think I must be the only one who didn't score a cham before christmas, but all good things come to those that wait... :-)

Michael Rosenberg

24-Dec-2007, 08:25

The levels on the Chamonix are not accurate, but the one on the front standard is accurate. I double checked with a level on the ground glass, which is the most critical way to check. The levels on teh camera are off in both dimensions to the same degree (about 5-10 degrees).

Trust - but verify.....

Mike

BarryS

24-Dec-2007, 09:02

Very nice to hear the UK cams are mostly delivered.

@ Gary and Mike-- Thanks, I thought the bubble levels might be somewhat of an issue. I've noticed that many built in levels of even fine camera equipment can be slightly off. I'm off to check mine for accuracy. I guess that the ground glass always needs to be checked carefully because the zero detents and levels aren't foolproof.

buze

24-Dec-2007, 12:06

I tried with my big, flat 2D level; I leveled the bed, and checked the level of the top of the camera and it's level too, and the camera levels are also /almost/ bang on.. considering their small size, I think it's perfectly adequate.

If you feel you have a problem, do post your serial number, just for curiosity sake..

BarryS

24-Dec-2007, 12:18

I checked my camera with a good level and the built in levels seem very accurate.

buze

24-Dec-2007, 14:59

I did a bit more digging, and uppon closer inspection, the two back tabs are tunable. The tabs themselves are hollow, and contain a small screw (torq head) that allows you to tune the 'perfect' vertical angle for the back.

I must say I have dissected the camera all evening, and I find it spotless. every joint, metal/metal or metal/wood, visible or invisible is flush; every screw is flush, every washer was carefully chosen for it's position.

Here is a closeup of the 'hollow' tab. That is a detail you will /not/ see on a modern camera. This is a camera that was made to be maintained by humans, in the long run, not a 'those that passes the QA go, the others go to the trash'

http://oomz.net/scaled/IMG_3259.JPG

davidb

24-Dec-2007, 15:17

I too feel this is a well built camera.

I grabbed my torpedo level and everything looks fine to me.

roteague

24-Dec-2007, 16:02

I haven't had much time working with mine yet, hopefully I'll get to over the next few days. One thing I haven't figured out yet. What are those two knobs along the top side of the rear standards for.

eddie

24-Dec-2007, 16:20

removing your bellows.

enjoy. happy christmas and good light to all!

I haven't had much time working with mine yet, hopefully I'll get to over the next few days. One thing I haven't figured out yet. What are those two knobs along the top side of the rear standards for.

roteague

24-Dec-2007, 16:24

removing your bellows.

enjoy. happy christmas and good light to all!

Thanks Eddie. Since I never remove my bellows, I probably wouldn't have found that out.

Scott Chandler

25-Dec-2007, 19:39

Does Charmonix have a website, or are specs available for this camera? I'm sort of interested.

BarryS

25-Dec-2007, 21:40

There's no web site, but here are the specs.

Chamonix 45N-1 View Camera
Weight: White maple: 1,380g Black walnut: 1410g
Bellows draw: 395 mm max, 45mm min,
Rear standard swing: 20 degrees,
Front rise: 45mm, Front fall: 30mm, Left and right shift: 40mm
Front axis tilt: only limited by bellows
Rear base tilt: only limited by bellows

Choices of wood: white Canadian maple and dark walnut.
Choices of metals: dark and grey.
There is no price difference between the two woods or metal finishes.

I believe the current batch is completely sold out, but there will be another batch in July 2008 and I don't think the price has been set for the next batch. For more details contact Hugo Zhang hugoz_2000@yahoo.com. Hugo is the distributor.

Maretzo

26-Dec-2007, 04:52

:eek: Moderator!

Daniel_Buck

26-Dec-2007, 09:38

I don't have any film with me here on Vacation, but I did bring a lens and lens board to check out the camera. While setting the camera up, the Chamonix seems quite ridged, surprised me! We'll see how it goes once I'm out shooting with it when I get back home. I do like how it's all setup, seems very simple to use.

It doesn't seem to be as fast or as accurate to setup as other cameras I have used (not all of the movements have positive 'clicks' or 'stops' to them) Other cameras I have used fold out and are pretty much ready to go accept for front rise, which is usually the first thing I adjust anyway. Having to screw in the front standard will slow things down a bit (and having to zero out front swing and rise)

I do like how the screw for focusing is located in the rear of the camera (worm gear I believe), I think this is an excellent design!

The slower setup time probably won't bother me, as I'm not a fast shooter anyway. If I want fast, I'll use my DSLR

Looks like a keeper for sure!

davidb

26-Dec-2007, 11:44

You could choose a "faster" camera but I would think that the weight would double.

I think the camera is well designed and well built.

Anupam

26-Dec-2007, 11:51

I would definitely like to see someone doing a detailed head to head review of this new camera with some of the more 'traditional' cameras in this price range like the Shen or the Tachi, including practicalities like setup time as part of the comparison criteria. Certainly looks like a very interesting camera and maybe one of the folks who have received it will conduct such a review.

-A

roteague

26-Dec-2007, 13:40

You could choose a "faster" camera but I would think that the weight would double.

I think the camera is well designed and well built.

Yes, I'm using mine as a replacement for a Toyo 45AII, which weighs much more. The only drawback I see to the Chamonix over the Toyo is trying to setup the camera in the dark, something I do quite often.

Don Hutton

26-Dec-2007, 13:43

Yes, I'm using mine as a replacement for a Toyo 45AII, which weighs much more. The only drawback I see to the Chamonix over the Toyo is trying to setup the camera in the dark, something I do quite often.You'll find a small flashlight indispensible for that sort of thing - visit a yachting shop and they may be able to sell you a small "bitelight" - they activate by pressing down the two sides with your teeth...

Daniel_Buck

26-Dec-2007, 13:47

You'll find a small flashlight indispensible for that sort of thing - visit a yachting shop and they may be able to sell you a small "bitelight" - they activate by pressing down the two sides with your teeth...

or a spelunking/miners light.

roteague

26-Dec-2007, 15:23

davidb

27-Dec-2007, 14:54

I am going to write a review/comparison of the Chamonix 45N-1 , the Canham DLC 45, and the Toyo 45AX.

Give me a couple of days.

keeds

28-Dec-2007, 07:20

I think I'm the last but it's finally HERE!!! White maple and black fixings. The guys (and girls?) at Chamonix have done a wonderful job with these cameras. Will take a little getting used to when initially setting up but will be much easier to fine tune final setup than my current Wista DX... Happy shooting everybody, lets see some results soon, and thanks again Hugo. Give my thanks to the guys at Chamonix.

buze

28-Dec-2007, 07:23

At last ! let's hope you are the last one !

I already made a mod on mine to allow recentering the front standard from the back of the camera :D

Maretzo

28-Dec-2007, 07:30

Congratulations to all the happy and proud owners of a Chamonix.
I will get mine in 6 months or so....

Happy new year!

BarryS

28-Dec-2007, 08:48

Well, that took a while, but glad to hear you got your camera, keeds.

buze! -- Please show (or at least explain) the mod you made. I'm think of rigging up some front standard detents myself and I'd love to see what you came up with.

uniB

28-Dec-2007, 10:00

I was lucky enough to order one of the last ones from this batch so it should be on its way to me this week, quite good getting a bit later than the rest of you, if I have any problems you'll have all figured out how best to use them, so you'll have the answers for me!

CharlesMason

7-Jan-2008, 18:16

FYI for anyone who cares--I could barely see the hash marks on the front rail. Made it hard/impossible to square the front standard (mine is back hardware, with dark gray/black hash marks). I bought one of those fine tipped silver paint pens at a craft store, squared the standard carefully in each hole, and marked the rail. NOW I can easily see when the board is square. Simple, quick, cheap, and not so bad looking fix.

CharlesMason

7-Jan-2008, 18:35

One more thing--you can put a slash of the silver paint across the top of the centered top standard rails, on either or both sides, and see when it is centered from behind...too.

BarryS

7-Jan-2008, 20:41

Charles, that sounds like a good mod. I've been thinking of doing it myself, but am having a hard time bringing myself to paint my new 45N-1. That's my single biggest complaint--having to squint at those faint lines in order to zero out the swing on the front standard. I wish the factory would do the painting, but kudos to you for making the mod.

davidb

7-Jan-2008, 20:55

I'll be painting mine. Even in the bright New Mexico sun, I cannot see the marks.

uniB

10-Jan-2008, 15:58

Yay - mine finally arrived today :)

See what you all mean about not being able so see the marks, I'm a big fan of minimal and it gray on gray does look lovely, but it's sooo hard to see. I think I'll also be buying a fine silver pen to mark it, or I was considering carrying round a small metal set square I have that I could use to check the front standard is square. That might be a bit too much like faffing about though.

It's all very lovely though apart from that!

Asher Kelman

10-Jan-2008, 16:55

The mysterious package sat in a room
Chinese characters inscribed
No tea inside, instead the Chamonix.
Remarkable not for what it is, but rather what it is not
Elegant and small, the camera gravity forgot.
Less is more, said van der Rohe--the architect was right
Nothing less and nothing more than a box for catching light.

Barry,

What a delight,
A box to capture light,
to see what I might see
and engrave it for thee.
But I have to wait for UPS men
To bring my light box, 8x10!

Asher :)