Toyo 45A and rotten bellows

[Oortti]

Hi,

Any experiences here with the changing of bellows to your Toyo Field? Bellows in my 45A are dry as a sahara and full of light leaks.

I was also wondering if the changing of the bellows requires some special knowledge or tools, apart from tearing the old ones away and glueing back the new?

The only place I've been succesful to find the replacing bellows is Camera Bellows in UK. Any other suggestions where I might find one? (I did try to search for previous threads about the issue, but couldn't find any.)

Thanks!

[Northwest]

Western Bellows in California also makes replacement bellows. The address and phone number I have for them is outdated, but they are still in business and not far from their old address. (Rancho Cucamonga)

They are a little less expensive than Camera Bellows in the UK (at least for 8x10), and they charge $25 to attach the bellows (again an 8x10).

Camera Bellows seems to have the best reputation, and shipping to and from California (from and to Finland) would likely more than cancel out what you'd save getting the bellows from Western. That could be true for any bellows you get from the US.

[Geert]

Toyo field bellows are readily available from a seller on Ebay. Search on TOYO. I don't know about the quality though.

G

[Oortti]

I did some digging up on the forums and found a quite good guide on how to change the bellows. I also ordered a fairly cheap replacement bellows from Ebay (60 usd compared to the 315 dollars from Camera Bellows UK.

I'll have to see how those cheapo-hongkong-bellows perform, but in my opinion that's not a bad price for testing it out. But thanks for the answers! Any tips are welcome.

[Ralph Barker]

Oortti - mind sharing the link for the guide you found?

[Oortti]

Ralph Barker, you and everyone else can find it at: http://www.peronvuo.fi/camera/toyo45.php

[Dave Hally]

For my 45A, I bought a replacement ellows from Toyo, about $220. IIRC.
If you e-mail me directly, I can give you the part number and phone number. Otherwise, you can go to Toyo's web sight and get their support number there.
I used a precision phillips head scredriver to remove the eight (I think) screws that hold the bellows on. I seem to recall that there was some sort of sealant between the bellows and frames, so I used a very thin bead of black silicone seal.
Dave Hally,
Zayante, California

[Toyon]

Toyo-view is serviced by Mamiya America Corporation. They'll replace the bellows for around $150. They use a nice durable material.

[Oortti]

Hello all.

I finally received replacement bellows from china. Quality seems fine, if not great and fitting for Toyo was a no-brainer. Definetely worth the 69 USD.

[Jim Bradley]

Hi,
A little late to the party but I also bought one of these Hong Kong bellows. Everything installed fine but it is thicker material and the bellows will not compress enough to let the camera close completely. For me not a big deal but I thought I'd let others know just in case.

JGB