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Dave Gesell
24-Oct-2010, 14:55
Hello. I'm brand new to the forum, and I just picked up a Linhof Kardan Color 45S, a Sinar (Rodenstock) Sinaron S 150/5.6, two Kardan/Technika adapter boards, and a couple of Technika lens boards. My questions are:

1a) The bellows, which look to be light tight and in excellent condition, are sticky. If they get tightly compressed, they make a heck of a racket when they get stretched out. Any ideas about cleaning them?

1b) If I have to replace the bellows, am I correct in assuming that they're the same bellows that fit the Kardan E, GT etc?

2a) Are there shorter rails available? Right now I only have the 150, but will probably pick up a 90mm fairly soon. In my previous adventure in large format, the longest lens I had was a 300mm, and I'm not sure I'll go that long this time around

2b) Are the end caps on the rail supposed to be removable? On my camera, one of the caps seemed to be glued on at some point, but there is a threaded shaft inside it. If I look down the interior of the rail, the cap at the other end looks like it's screwed into the end of the rail, but didn't want to come loose when I tried unscrewing it. I didn't want to force it and risk damaging anything. As the camera will mostly be used in the field, it would be great to be able to remove both end caps so I can break the camera down more quickly, and more safely.

Thanks.

Bob Salomon
24-Oct-2010, 19:02
1a, a good shoe leather cleaner may work. Contact Linhof service at 252 652-4401 to make sure. They are expensive to replace.
1b, yes the same
2a, no accessories that mount to the rail are available.
This would include other length rails, but in the case of the 45S no accessory rails were ever made and that is why the rail end caps do not come off. To use a very short lens move both standards to the front of the rail clamp and put the front standard against the front rail clamp. Accessories that attach directly to the front ofr rear standard of the 45S are the same as the ones for the current Kardan re, GT and GTL models.
2b, correct, they do not come off. If you had the original Kardan Super Color or the B series the rails can be extended but not on your camera.

Dave Gesell
25-Oct-2010, 07:45
Thanks Bob. The camera was in storage with the bellows compressed for several years. I'm wondering if they just got damp? I've got the camera set up with the bellows at full extension in an attempt to dry them, to see if that will lessen the stickiness. If that doesn't help, I'll contact Linhof (thanks for the number), or just grab one of the bellows that show up on eBay occasionally.

My question about shorter rails had more to do with portability. My plan is to remove the standards from the rail, and with a little padding it should fit into a mid size backpack, then I'd remove the rail and strap it to the outside of the backpack, leaving the rail clamp mounted on my ball head.

Thanks again for the information.