New Sinar - Which roll film back?

[Stoogley]

I'm finally making the leap up to LF.
The SWMBO gave the go ahead, or more specifically the "just shut up and do it already." ;)

So I bought a new-to-me Sinar F.

I'm not currently set up to process 4x5 so I'm looking to get a 120 roll film holder.

Any suggestions on which one to get that will work with the Sinar?
Preferably 6x7 or 6x9 image area.

Stoog

[rdenney]

Any suggestions on which one to get that will work with the Sinar?
Preferably 6x7 or 6x9 image area.

Congratulations!

Any of them will work with the Sinar. Here's what I have used:

- Shen-Hao 6x12 (which includes masks for smaller formats)
- Wista (6x9)
- MPP (6x9)
- Graflex RH-10 (6x7)
- Sinar Vario (all formats up to 6x12)

All of these will install on the camera using the Graflok. Remove the ground glass by pushing in and sliding the ground-glass frame clips to one side, and then the holder will insert in its place and lock in place with the Graflok tabs at top and bottom. The Vario does not require this, however.

Of these, the only one that I think is shaky is the Graflex--I would want to inspect a Graflex holder before buying one at any price. The cheapest and easiest is the Shen-Hao, which does 120 only and uses a red window to monitor frame numbers on the backing paper for film advance. But it requires clip-in masks for smaller formats, and these seemed a little dodgy for me (I only used it for 6x12).

The Wista is similar to Horseman, and both are generally based on the Linhof Rollex. It has a film-advance lever like a 35mm SLR, and automatically spaces the images. Good quality. It will not fit under the Sinar ground glass and you must use the Graflok feature. It uses a reverse-wound insert similar to the film holder in a medium-format box SLR like the Hasselblad.

The MPP is also a copy of an early Linhof, and this is the only one that doesn't fit happily on the Sinar. The problem is the dark slide. It's probably so rare here that you won't see one anyway.

In terms of film flatness and general quality, the Sinar is the best by far. Even well-used, it will cost two or three times what the others cost. But it will handle all rollfilm formats. It also puts the rolls to one side, and will slide under the ground glass rather than using the Graflok. (It will also use the Graflok--your choice.) It supports all formats so it's a little funky in that it reports remaining film in centimeters, so you have to do the math. But the advance is fully automatic. The later Zoom models allow you to change the format mid-roll, but my earlier Vario model requires you to use the same format for a whole roll.

The used Wista was under $200, the new Shen-Hao under $300 (from Badger), and the used Sinar is usually in the $500-700 range.

I plan to put the Shen-Hao on a 4x5 point-n-shoot project. I keep the Wista and the Sinar in my Sinar camera bag so that I can switch between 6x9 and 6x12 easily.

Rick "who uses a Pentax 6x7 for that format" Denney

[dave_whatever]

I've used Horseman, Wista and Linhof backs in 6x7. By far the best was the Linhof Super Rollex. Single stroke advance and built like a brick privvy. Also a generous frame size compared to most others.

The Horseman and Wista are pretty similar, decent build though noticeably less overbuilt compared to the Linhof, but this oes make them a fair bit lighter to carry. My horseman gave reflections onto the film from the edge of the film gate with was a bit of a pain. The only annoyance with the Wista was that with a wide lens would shine light around the edge of the film gate (what with the short back focus) and across the rollers and hence you'd lose the distinction between one frame and the next. Didn't effect the 6x7 film area, just meant on sucessive wideangle shots I'd have little or no black rebate between shots.

[Helen Bach]

...
- Sinar Vario (all formats up to 6x12)
...

There are two other variable format Sinar backs worth consideration: the Zoom and the Zoom 2. The Zoom has Graflok grooves but the Zoom 2 does not, although they can be machined in if you wish. It's not particularly important because they fit under the ground glass on most cameras. There are also 6x7, 6x9 and 6x12 fixed format Sinar backs. I have the Zoom 2, 6x12 and 6x9 backs and find them to be OK.

Best,
Helen

[Stoogley]

Thank you all for the input.

Not sure I can afford the Sinar backs, unless I find someone who is just tired of theirs...
But it looks like I have some good choices to hunt down.

Much appreciated!