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blevblev
3-Feb-2008, 14:45
Does it matter? What does each bring to the table?

Rob_5419
3-Feb-2008, 14:48
Wood: cheapness, easiness, convenienceness and does the job; multiple quantities easily made. Great DIY option.

Metal: more expensive; can be the only option for some types of lensboards.

Depends on your purpose really...

Gene McCluney
3-Feb-2008, 15:08
On most cameras you do not have a choice, as they are engineered for one or the other, and to (for example) adapt wood as a lensboard material on a camera engineered for a metal board would require shaving down the edges of the board to the thickness of the metal board, and this would put serious compromises on the structural integrity of the wood.

On a camera engineered for wood...the issue would be making a metal board thick enough.

One compromise is on larger wood-board cameras, making a wood adaptor board that will accept a smaller metal lensboard. This is a quite successful endeavor.

blevblev
3-Feb-2008, 15:13
Re: On most cameras you do not have a choice...

I guess my question was based on seeing both wood and metal advertised for my camera - a Zone VI. Is this one of the exceptions?

Sanjay Sen
3-Feb-2008, 16:00
I have a Zone VI (4x5) and use wooden lens boards on it. I don't recall reading about anyone using a metal board on one. All the ones I've seen (online) had wooden boards.

Alan Davenport
3-Feb-2008, 16:53
I have a Tachihara that uses Linhof-type boards; I've never tried anything but factory-made metal boards on it.

I also have a late model Calumet monorail, which uses the same 6 3/8" square boards as Cambo. I've made several lensboards for that camera from 1/8 birch plywood, as well as an adapter so I can use my Linhof boards from the Tachihara without remounting lenses. The wooden boards work just the same as the metal ones. Don't weigh as much, though.

Eric Woodbury
3-Feb-2008, 17:01
Mine are all metal, but I don't think it matters. A friend of mine used to make them out of cardboard.

blevblev
3-Feb-2008, 17:23
Re: I don't recall reading about anyone using a metal board on one

here are 2

http://cgi.ebay.com/METAL-COPAL-0-LENS-BOARD-FIT-WISTA-ZONE-VI-OTHERS_W0QQitemZ320200951233QQihZ011QQcategoryZ107928QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQtrksidZp1638.m118.l1247QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/METAL-COPAL-3-LENS-BOARD-FIT-WISTA-ZONE-VI-OTHERS_W0QQitemZ320200950681QQihZ011QQcategoryZ107928QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQtrksidZp1638.m118.l1247QQcmdZViewItem

Dave Parker
3-Feb-2008, 17:41
It is interesting, I often times, find that LF users over think things, I have been shooting LF for over 20 years now, and really with the hundreds of cameras I have owned, the least of my worries were what the lens board was made out of, as Eric said, I have also made them out of cardboard. Properly used, I really can say, I don't believe it makes a difference!

Dave

Keith Pitman
3-Feb-2008, 17:58
There are (at least) two Zone VI cameras: an early one is a rebadged Wista which takes metal, Linhof-type boards. The Zone VI manufactured cameras take wood boards. They are not interchangeable.

John Kasaian
3-Feb-2008, 18:18
Definately depends. I don't the a wooden board would work on a Kodak Masterview. A metal board for an Anniversary Speed Graphic would be a heavy sucker---even if it was aluminium.
I think some camera designs favor either metal or wood.
So it depends.
What does it bring to the party? As long as it keeps the lens on and keeps the light out, who cares? :)

Robbie Shymanski
3-Feb-2008, 19:03
DEpends on the wood/metal and the quality and use of the board. I made all the boards for my Calumet C-1 out of aircraft ply or MDF. They take primer & a coat of flat black spray really fast. Sure, I'd prefer to machine aluminium, but wood is fine. Even if it does have a slight flex if I pushed it, the work I am doing isn't affected by it. As was said before, so long as it supports the lens and is light tight..

blevblev
3-Feb-2008, 21:14
Keith,

Thanks. I have the Zone VI (non-Wista) so I guess I need wood.

Thanks for not telling me that I'm over thinking.

Bob

Photobackpacker
3-Feb-2008, 21:32
The Technika board (metal) is probably the most common lens board in use today - used by Technika, Wista, Ebony and Shen Hoa to name the most common. The most common adapter board is from Brand XYZ to Technika.

This does not make the Technika superior - just the most common. It eases the adaptability from one camera to another - and it is compact.

Bruce

Brian Ellis
4-Feb-2008, 08:10
Some of the wood lens boards I've used had a small cut-out hole in the back into which the retaining ring was inserted and then screwed in. The hole wasn't wide enough to allow use of a flat metal spanner wrench (ala Rodenstock) to tighten the retaining ring. I suppose that might be a consideration if the wood board was that type and if you use a flat spanner wrench (as opposed to the adjustable kind with pointed ends such as the one Grimes sells). I've used Technika metal boards on almost every 4x5 wood camera I've owned.

Dave Parker
4-Feb-2008, 08:25
Keith,

Thanks. I have the Zone VI (non-Wista) so I guess I need wood.

Thanks for not telling me that I'm over thinking.

Bob

Bob,

My statement was not made directly to you, it was a general observation of the Large format industry as a whole, I see a lot of it, due to my business that caters to the industry.

Again, it was not a statement about you at all. It was not to criticize, but just an observation after 5 years of making screens for LF gear..

Dave

RichardRitter
4-Feb-2008, 09:08
Wood, metal, paper and plastic. I have seem then all and have also used duct tape on one photo shot.

mrladewig
4-Feb-2008, 16:37
I made a technika style lensboard from Bubinga wood and it has worked well. Bubinga is nice because it is very hard and so far seems to be very stable. It also has a very beautiful rich red color.

Lens fitted to test the fit of the board.
http://www.ladewigs.com/Gallery/d/606-1/lensboard_03.jpg

finished board by itself.
http://www.ladewigs.com/Gallery/d/608-1/lensboard_04.jpg

I made it from wood because it is for a #00 shutter and I couldn't find any cheap #00 lensboards.

I purchased a very flat piece or 1/8" bubinga, cut it down with a table saw and then a miter saw. The hand carved the notches at top and bottom for the retaining clips. I had to sand a curve into the bottom of the board. Then I cut the center hole with a forstener bit. I sanded the board down to 600 grit. Sprayed the back matte black and then used polyurethane on the front.

It takes a bit of time, but the end product is lighter than metal and IMO looks better on a wooden camera.

blevblev
5-Feb-2008, 10:18
So...it looks like I'm going to have to transfer a lens from metal to wood. I've never mounted a lens on a lens board - is it a matter of un-screwing the front and back of the lens, and then screwing it back together through the hole in the lens board? Is this something that "everyone" does and doesn't have to be done by a tech?

Vaughn
5-Feb-2008, 11:31
I have two lens boards for my Zone VI 8x10 that I made by drymounting a piece of white 8-ply mat board to a piece of black 4-ply matboard. Funky...but a Dave mentioned...whatever works!

I do need to get me some good wood ones to replace them, though (but there are not many 5.5"x5.5" boards floating around.) As RR indicated...whatever works!

mrladewig
5-Feb-2008, 12:55
So...it looks like I'm going to have to transfer a lens from metal to wood. I've never mounted a lens on a lens board - is it a matter of un-screwing the front and back of the lens, and then screwing it back together through the hole in the lens board? Is this something that "everyone" does and doesn't have to be done by a tech?

Yes.

You need a spanner (American version of the term) or lens wrench to loosen the retaining ring from the current board and then tighten on the new board. Badger has a couple versions of this tool for $30 or less.

It really isn't difficult.

For a standard modern copal/compur type shutter:
Remove the rear cell of the lens at a minimum, but I take out both cells just to make sure nothing is accidentally dropped
Loosen the retaining ring from the back of the shutter and remove.
Place the shutter into the new board and tighten the retaining ring, making sure that the retaining ring seats completely into the lensboard.
Tighten the retaining with a lens spanner.
Replace lens cells.
Mount board on camera.
Take pretty pictures.

If you have an older lens with a mounting flange, then the process would be a little different, but no more difficult.

Mel-

Jeff Keller
5-Feb-2008, 15:55
If the retaining ring isn't easy to loosen, try grabbing the shutter and rotating it. I had a lens which had a very tight retaining ring, but the shutter could be rotated easily to loosen it.


Yes.


Loosen the retaining ring from the back of the shutter and remove.
Place the shutter into the new board and tighten the retaining ring, making sure that the retaining ring seats completely into the lensboard.
Tighten the retaining with a lens spanner.

Mel-

seawolf66
6-Feb-2008, 11:19
Could a cambo/calumet 123x123mm lens board be made of wood rather than the expensive Metal ? Just asking so maybe save some funds for other things!