Toyo View 45E

[PBimages]

Not sure if this has already been covered, but I am rather new to the site, and after reading quite a few of the previous threads, I could not find what I was looking for!

The question I have relates to the Toyo View 45E Camera, which appears to have been manufactured around 1977.

I have just loaned one from a friend, for a college assignemt I need to complete ASAP, I do intend on buying the camera from him but only if I can afford the price he is asking as he plans on putting it on Ebay.

But when I inspected the camera, I found that the Light Seal has badly deteriorated and is covering everything, but what worries me me is that the glass or plastic focusing screen appears to have a water mark on it, as this is how it appears but I very much doubt that it is water, unless for some reason it has got trapped somewhere!

Does anyone know a way I can repair the damge, especially if I were to purchase the camera, and do you think it would effect it's operating performance?

Any assistance on this matter would be greatly appreciated!

[IanG]

A mint Toyo 45A sold 2 days ago for £310. So that gives you a UK ballpark value.

Not sure what you mean by the light seal, do you mean the bellows. Most cameras can be restored fairly easily but it depends on how much damage there really is.

Ian

[PBimages]

No!

You know where you slide in the dark slides in, the section the lifts up to accept the darkslide, under there is what appears to be some form of light seal, it looks like degraded black foam, that's rather sticky and is sticking to almost everything it comes in contact with!

[IanG]

OK, never seen anything like that in 30 plus years of using LF. None of the LF cameras I've used or own has any kind of seal.

It should be relatively easy to remove & replace, turps or white spirits is quite good for cleaning these things without damaging the camera itself.

Ian

[j.e.simmons]

I have a 45E and I've never noticed any such light seal. I'd check closely for some previous damage that may have necessitated the addition of a seal. The camera has a graflock back, so it is easy to remove the ground glass - I'd try washing it in plain water first, then maybe a mild dish soap.
juan

[PBimages]

I wounder if it's something the owner of the camera has added to the camera, it is literally where you slide the Negative plate into!

Nothing else it could be!

[Dave Parker]

That seal that is degenerated is something an owner along the way added, I have owned several of these cameras, including new ones back in the day and none of them had a fabric or foam light seal in the area you are describing, it should be pretty simple to clean up with some mineral spirits, then you can figure out what is going on with it. As far as cleaning the ground glass, if it is the original, with the grids on it, be very careful as they are screen printed onto the glass and by this time, could be quite fragile. I would not use anything but a bit of warm water and a bit of mild liquid dish soap, then let air dry.

Dave

Dave

[PBimages]

Thanks for this Guys!

I have now finished building the darkroom, so I am at the stage of trying a couple of Negatives through the camera, to see if it is fully working!

I did notice one of the lenses appears to be very loose on it's fittings to the back plate, is a special tool required to tighten the lens or is it just hand tightend?

[PBimages]

OK...

I stripped down the focusing screen, and luckily for me it did split into two sections, I took each section and carefully placed them in a bowl of warm water & washing up liquid.

I then carefully dried them on kitchen paper, and re-assembled the focusing screen!

I think I have assembled it correctly, and hey presto the stain has gone and I am able to focus the image correctly!

So I have just ordered some Ilford FP4 5" x 4" Film, and cannot wait to try it out!

Just need a few more days to finish off the darkroom then it's a case of let the fun begin!

Just a quick reminder question, are the darkslides loaded with the notch in the paper on the Right Hand Side?

[Dave Parker]

Yup, notches on the right hand side if your holding the holder vertically, if your holding horizontally then it would be on the bottom.

Dave

[PBimages]

Thank you Dave, nothing more embarasing than taking a load of images on the wrong side of the negative!

Did it once on the Bronica, and photographed onto the paper!

[raucousimages]

I have had several 45Es. They have one major design problem. The little "ears" where the rod for the geared rise and fall connects to the standards are very weak. They will break easly. If you are carefull you will not have a problem but I have built 7 of them from parts of broken cameras and sold 5 of them for between $100 and $150 each, 2 that I knocked off of a shelf just shattered.

I have seen 45Ds for under $150 and I feel it is a beter built camera but you will be giving up the geared rise/fall for a friction knob. Rail cameras just don't hold value like a field camera but with a little work they are still very portable.

[Peter Mounier]

I would take the spongy (light seal) stuff out too. It may very well affect the focus. When the film holder is inserted, it is held tight against the camera body. If there is any spongyness there, the focus may change from the time you check the focus with a lupe to when the film holder is in the camera.

Peter

[PBimages]

Well the Darkroom is now completed, and once the Film has arrived today I'm in a postion to test the camera!

I have now taken advice from everyone on this thread, and the camera has now been cleaned up and is ready for action, I have been in discussion with another member from this site, and plan on having a day out to photographer some architecture, I just cannot wait!

So I would like to give everyone who helped a big "THANK YOU"