Graflex Rollfilm Holder Without Tiny Spools?

[neil poulsen]

Has anyone used a Graphic or Graflex rollfilm holder that DOES NOT have the little (about) one millimeter spools on each side of the film opening?

If so, have you noticed a difference between holders with and without? Do they make a difference in sharpness?

I'm considering purchasing a 6x9 holder (8 exposures) for a medium format camera, and I noticed that it doesn't have these small 1mm (or so) spools.

[jnantz]

i have a graflex 23 and a 22 that i use all the time.
neither of them have the little metal rollers and i don't
have problems with sharpness &C.

john

[BrianShaw]

The rollers seem to make the film wind smoother, but not necessarily contrilbute to flattness.

[Dan Fromm]

Neil, what you call "tiny spools" are called "pin rollers" in Graflex-speak. Wander over to www.graflex.org and search on "pin rollers" to get more conflicting reports on their usefulness and on Graflex' roll holders' ability to hold film flat enough.

Cheers,

Dan

[Glenn Thoreson]

I use both kinds, along with RB-67 roll holders, and don't see any significant difference. There are those that would argue otherwise, though.

[Kuzano]

Has anyone used a Graphic or Graflex rollfilm holder that DOES NOT have the little (about) one millimeter spools on each side of the film opening?

If so, have you noticed a difference between holders with and without? Do they make a difference in sharpness?

I'm considering purchasing a 6x9 holder (8 exposures) for a medium format camera, and I noticed that it doesn't have these small 1mm (or so) spools.

I have one of the Graflex 23 Knob rollers WITH the pin rollers for 4X5 Graflok back cameras. I posted a pic of it here one time to explain the location of the pin rollers.

There has always been kind of an urban myth about the lever wind backs being better for film flatness, whereas my finding was that there is no real internal difference on the lever wind inserts, other than they came into the market about the same time the pin rollers started being installed in the housings at the ends of the openings.

My personal opinions are:
1) I don't like the lever winds.. too often the return springs get weak and the lever hangs out in the wind, grabbing clothing and such.
2) The increased film flatness attributed to the lever wind back was, I think, undue and rather an attribute of the pin rollers.

That said, I am thinking about selling my Graflex 23 6X9 - 4X5 back with pin rollers. I sold the 4X5 camera I was using it on, and all my 120 shooting is being done with my G690bl, GSW690III and GA645Zi Fuji's.

The back hasn't had film in it for a long time. I recall the film spacing to be correct.

I will put it up on the forum or on eBay unless someone is interested and contacts me.

I did keep my Graflex Super for large format. I had to buy another one to get a good bellows since I could never run down the fellow in Hawaii that took my money and never sent the new bellows that he sent finished pictures of. KRAPP!

[neil poulsen]

Thanks for the information. I like the knob configuration, but I guess that these come without the pin rollers. (Unless, a knob wind has been exchanged for the lever wind in a more recent roll-film holder body.

[Michael N. Meyer]

My Graflex 23 roll back is knob wind and has the pin rollers. The few times I've used it it seemed to hold the film flat enough for my needs.

[Glenn Thoreson]

The nice thing about the knob wind version is it doesn't make the camera move when you wind it. Set up on a tripod and all focused, ready to go, if you have to wind on with the lever it will invariably jiggle your camera off the spot you set it at.

[neil poulsen]

I think that's why I prefer the knob wind. Plus, it seems to me there's less to go wrong, gears stripping, etc. (Not that I've ever had that problem.)

[BrianShaw]

I think that's why I prefer the knob wind. Plus, it seems to me there's less to go wrong, gears stripping, etc. (Not that I've ever had that problem.)

Never had that problem exactly, but I can imagine that it is a possibility. I have had broken return springs on the lever that have made the holder unusable until repaired.