Will my 4x5 Turner-Reich screw into another shutter?

[Darin Boville]

A while ago I posted about my malfunctioning Turner Reich:

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?t=67037

At the end I asked about using another shutter but I think the question got lost--so here it is again in its on thread.

Can these cells be screwed directly into another shutter? (I don't plan on using the lens in converted form so the scale issue isn't that complicated.) I'm wondering of I could buy some cheap but working shutter and get this lens going.

I tried Carol Miller but she doesn't know what the problem is and couldn't offer an estimate. Sounds like it might be expensive...

Ideas are welcome!

--Darin

[Fotoguy20d]

Darin,

I have a 4x5 TR triple. Mine is in a Kodak ball bearing shutter - I'm pretty sure that's not original. I can measure and see if mine has the same size threads as yours. I can also see what else it might fit into. Maybe you can drop those into another Rapax/Graphex shutter. Unfortunately, they aren't always standard. I have one with Ektar 127 cells in it - the same shutter will not take a 135mm Optar, nor will those Ektar cells fit into a Supermatic.

I use my TR converted - you just need to wing the aperture a bit, lacking the extra scales.

Dan

[Fotoguy20d]

Darin,

Do you have a photo of the shutter without the lens elements? Is there some sort of spacer/adapter ring to fit the glass into the shutter? What's the diameter of the threads?

Thanks,
Dan

[Darin Boville]

Darin,

Do you have a photo of the shutter without the lens elements? Is there some sort of spacer/adapter ring to fit the glass into the shutter? What's the diameter of the threads?

Thanks,
Dan

I don't have a good way to measure the threads precisely--I can't even find a ruler with metric markings (the kids have seized/lost them all) but holding up a wooden school ruler to it it looks like something very close to 1 1/4 inches.

Photos attached.

--Darin

[Fotoguy20d]

You might get lucky and find its a "standard" #2 shutter - someone here is selling a 135mm Optar in graphex shutter for under $50. I'll try mine in one of those tonight (But no guarantees that yours and mine are threaded the same). Have you used the lens? Reason I ask - if you haven't - since this shutter isn't original to the lens (being at least 20 years more modern), you don't know if the cell to cell spacing will be correct in that shutter.

Dan

[Nathan Smith]

Rapax shutters are pretty common, and Carol has certainly worked on plenty of them, so you have a good chance of either repairing it, or replacing it. I think it would be well worth it to send it to Carol and let her check it out.

Dan asks a great question: have you used it in the past? Assuming that it works in this shutter (when the shutter works) then I think you're best off just repairing or replacing the Rapex.

[Fotoguy20d]

Darin,

Mine does not fit a supermatic (ektar 127) or a graphex (from 135mm optar). But, it did fit into an Ilex Universal (old style) from a 170mm f6.3 kodak anastigmat (off some EKC folder or other) - whether the spacing is right I don't know but they threaded in. It also fit a B&L compound from another EKC folder, which holds a f6.3 TTH Cooke Anastigmat of unknown focal length (but I bet its also 170). It also fit the balll bearing shutter which holds a B&L RR on a No 3A Folding Autographic Brownie. Any of those was a pretty cheap acquisition - but, EKC folders come with a dizzying array of lenses/shutters so its a lucky thing if you get one that works - but, it seems that one of the larger models with 170mm-ish lens might get you there.

Dan

[Fotoguy20d]

It's weird that mine won't fit into a Rapax or Graphex shutter (I just tried it in a Rapax made for Kalart which houses a 127mm Dogmar) but will fit into any number of older shutters and yours seems to fit into a Rapax.

[Darin Boville]

CCHarrison supplied this link in an earlier thread where I as trying to ID the lens:

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=44163&d=1281659818

From that chart the lens looks to have a 1 1/4 inch thread (same as I measured, however crudely). However, I'm puzzled by the chart. It says that both cells equal a 6 1/4 lens. About 160 mm. But in shooting test shots it is clearly closer to 185 or more. That may be relevant here....

--Darin

[Vick Vickery]

Darin, by all means send your shutter to Carol if she hasn't personally inspected it...she would never give an opinion on a problem without actually looking at the shutter. She is very good and very reasonably priced; Rapax shutters are common and usually easily fixed when something goes wrong. My bet is a CLA will solve your aperature problem.