film holders

[mcguireek]

I just got a Crown Graphic with no film holders. I have been looking to find some on ebay and other sites and I found a wide variety of brands that say they are compatible with the crown graphic. Is there any difference between them all (assuming they are in the same shape)? Any brand/model reccomendations?

[JRFrench]

4x5 film holders are pretty much the most universal part in the LF world. As long as you get a standard double sided one, they are basically all the same except for differences in materials (old = wood, new = plastic).

[eddie]

i would suggest you buy the plastic holders with the plastic pull dark slides. they are the most recently made ones and will fair better.

if you are buying on e bay be sure to ask if all the holders come with 2 dark slides and ask about the tape on the flap end......just to be sure.

hang out here for 30 days and you can see the classifieds. there are plenty there to buy...and from good community members as well.

have fun.

eddie

[Toyon]

I suggest you buy 4 brand new holders from freestylephoto.biz. Older holders are fine for more experienced photographers, but someone new to large format should get new ones. LF photography is all about learning from mistakes. There are operator errors, and then there are equipment faults. It will make life a lot easier when starting out if you can eliminate most faulty equipment errors, by using new or barely used equipment. So go ahead and splurge on some new holders and fill them with film that has the best quality control (Kodak, followed by Ilford). Use a single shot developer like Xtol or Rodinal - then you can focus your attention on learning from operator errors.

[tgtaylor]

The price for new Toyo holders sure has shot up. $82.95 a pair compaired to $52 or $56 that I paid for mine just a couple of years back.

[Toyon]

$68.99 per pair at Freestyle.

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/180903-Toyo-4x5-in.-Double-Cut-Film-Holder-Twin-Pack

Note: B&H photo no longer has the best prices on real (analog) photographic materials. They are using analog material sales to subsidize their low-margin sales of digital cameras.

[tgtaylor]

That's good to know. With the value of the yen increasing against the dollar, I expected a price increase but $83 sounds too much.

Incidentially, I've been noticing dark slides showing up on E-bay and saw them on B&H's site this morning. Do they wear out? I would think unless you lost one, they will last as long as the holder.

[venchka]

I like to keep Freestyle in business. However, I started a few years ago with 5 used holders that came with the 1953 Speed Graphic I bought. I added a few more used holders when I bought a used Zone VI camera. I bought some used holders from a member here. My total is now 24. All brands. Some look new. Some look like they hit Omaha Beach during the invasion. They all work. I have made most every mistake known to man and a few originals of my own. Used holders never entered into the cause of my mistakes.

Conversely, ebay is the last place I would trust for used holders. All of mine came from folks I knew.

[Toyon]

That's good to know. With the value of the yen increasing against the dollar, I expected a price increase but $83 sounds too much.

Incidentially, I've been noticing dark slides showing up on E-bay and saw them on B&H's site this morning. Do they wear out? I would think unless you lost one, they will last as long as the holder.

The dark slides can develop little star-shaped cracks on impact. I've never had a light leak from one, but I can understand why you might want to replace a slide. Even with this, I prefer them to fidelity type holders.

[Lachlan 717]

I've had no issue with the ones that I have purchased on eBay.

Frankly, I doubt that there is any reason to expect issues. It is not as if duplicitous folks think, "Hmmm, what can I scam with today?" and decide on selling dodgy film holders (they seem more intent on selling non-existant 6x17 or 6x24cm cameras with the condition of "Contact me before bidding").

In other words, it is like any other eBay purchase: do your diligence on the Buyer and the product.

Stick to well known brands (see other threads about this elsewhere on this site).

Ask for more photos and/or specific condition.

Use PayPal.

[J_Tardiff]

With some frequency boxed (often "new old stock"), unused 4x5 film holders show up on Ebay-- worth looking for.

JT