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ataim
25-Jul-2011, 10:55
How do you store your gear and why

lens: cocked or un-cocked
Bellows: extended, closed or ?

Scotty230358
25-Jul-2011, 11:05
All my lenses are left uncocked and either cased or wrapped. My camera lives in its case folded up.

lilmsmaggie
25-Jul-2011, 11:16
All my lenses are left uncocked and either cased or wrapped. My camera lives in its case folded up.

I have photobackpacker cases for my camera body and each of my 4 lenses. The lens cases also hold the shutter releases which I leave attached to each lens.

Everything resides nicely in a backpack along with meter, loupe and room for about 4-6 film holders.

Bob Salomon
25-Jul-2011, 11:31
We are the Rodenstock distributor. The factory sends the lenses to us uncocked, press focus closed, aperture at the largest opening and the shutter speed at the fastest shutter speed. If you buy a new lens that is also how it is sent by us to your dealer and how the dealer delivers it to you (unless it has been opened somewhere along the way).

We are also the Linhof and Wista distributor for the USA. Every Linhof and Wista, in factory packaging, Technika, M679, Techno, Kardan, TechniKardan, every Wista field, metal and 810 are packaged with the bellows fully compressed. That is also how we ship them to your dealer and how your dealer delivers it to you, in factory packaging). The cameras would not fit into their packaging any other way.

Mark Woods
25-Jul-2011, 12:13
Well stated Bob. My LF cameras live in different places. The Sinar in it's case. The V8 in a back pack with room for 4-6 film holders. And the Chaminox 11x14 lives below my dry matt press in my matting area. All with their bellows closed and lenses uncocked.

GPS
25-Jul-2011, 13:50
How do you store your gear and why

lens: cocked or un-cocked
Bellows: extended, closed or ?

Search for "Bellows care tips" LF forum thread and enjoy reading it. You'll find some original methods there too...;) ;)

Jim Graves
25-Jul-2011, 14:28
We are the Rodenstock distributor. The factory sends the lenses to us uncocked, press focus closed, aperture at the largest opening and the shutter speed at the fastest shutter speed. If you buy a new lens that is also how it is sent by us to your dealer and how the dealer delivers it to you (unless it has been opened somewhere along the way)..... .


That's interesting ... I've always been told to set the shutter to the lowest speed before storing ... supposedly to save the spring mechanism. Is this a false old tale? Why the highest speed ... is there some benefit? Does it make a difference if it is a self cocking shutter? Is there a type of shutter where the speed setting would make a difference?

BrianShaw
25-Jul-2011, 14:54
I think the only shutters where it makes a practical difference are those old Compurs and Grafexes that have a booster spring for the 400 speed.

Jim Graves
25-Jul-2011, 17:14
Here's a quote from Flutot's Camera Repair:

"Q What's the best way to store a shutter?

.... Best to set the speed dial on 'T' or 'B' and uncocked so there is no tension on the springs."

ataim
26-Jul-2011, 05:17
In the past I've left my shutter un-cocked and at what ever f-stop it was at from the last shot. :) I'll open up the fstop now. The bellows I generally leave in the 1/3 to 1/2 open and will start to the rotation on them as well.

Thanks to all.

Bob Salomon
26-Jul-2011, 08:36
That's interesting ... I've always been told to set the shutter to the lowest speed before storing ... supposedly to save the spring mechanism. Is this a false old tale? Why the highest speed ... is there some benefit? Does it make a difference if it is a self cocking shutter? Is there a type of shutter where the speed setting would make a difference?

Jim,

I can't tell you why, I never asked the factory. I expect that one of the world's largest view camera lens manufacturers knows the proper way to package their shutters and lenses so we follow along. We do so because I can not remember any instance of a consumer or a dealer ever returning a lens or even calling about a lens that had a problem because of the way that the factory packaged the lens. Had we received acomplaints about damage or an improperly functioning shutter we would have questioned the factory.

domaz
26-Jul-2011, 14:38
That's interesting ... I've always been told to set the shutter to the lowest speed before storing ... supposedly to save the spring mechanism. Is this a false old tale? Why the highest speed ... is there some benefit? Does it make a difference if it is a self cocking shutter? Is there a type of shutter where the speed setting would make a difference?

I'm not sure new Copal shutters even have a high-speed booster spring which is probably what you are referring to. Synchro-Compurs and older shutters certainly have them. I can't remember if the booster spring would be engaged if the shutter wasn't cocked though.

Bart B
27-Jul-2011, 05:35
I can't tell you why (shutters are shipped set to fastest speed), I never asked the factory. I expect that one of the world's largest view camera lens manufacturers knows the proper way to package their shutters and lenses so we follow along.Well, I'd ask the factory. Knowing why things are the way they are is the backbone of intelligence.

When I worked at Hewlett-Packard, we oft times were asked why some things were the way they are. A Boeing Aircraft rep at an HP computer repair training class told a bunch of us that "Knowing why things are the way they are is the backbone of intelligence." We always told folks. Except for proprietary company secrets, naturally. Lens and shutter settings for longevity when stored surely are not company secrets.

BrianShaw
27-Jul-2011, 07:53
Knowing why things are the way they are is the backbone of intelligence.

In general I can understand this sentiment. This question, though, is "way down in the weeds" and probably doesn't warrant too much investigation... unless one really has a lot of free time or is absolutely intent on knowing each and every nit of potential information associated with a question.

Every answer to this question that I've read (the numerous times it has been broached on this and other boards) results in lots of opinion but very little engineering facts. In one past discussion I recall an engineer discussing the physics/engineering of springs and basically concluded that springs can't "wear out" from being tensioned. Other than that it has been lots of folk wisdom, etc.

What Bob Salomon offers is an industry best practice. In the absence of credible engineering or physics data, reliance on "proven engineering best practices" is a reasonable approach, and an approach often used by the engineering community.

Steven Tribe
27-Jul-2011, 08:24
Lens Vade Mecum has a large section on general LF storage.

tom thomas
29-Jul-2011, 15:28
Should one leave the lens caps on or just store it safely with the camera.

Tom

BrianShaw
29-Jul-2011, 15:36
Should one leave the lens caps on or just store it safely with the camera.

The original lens caps should be safely stored in a bank vault. Storing with the camrea may be too risky. Resale value plummets when replacement caps are included.

Frank Petronio
29-Jul-2011, 18:47
Seems like extending the bellows and giving it a little air circulation, especially when they are new and still off-gassing, makes sense. When you open up an old camera they can feel pretty sticky.

tgtaylor
29-Jul-2011, 19:59
Seems like extending the bellows and giving it a little air circulation, especially when they are new and still off-gassing, makes sense. When you open up an old camera they can feel pretty sticky.

That makes a lot of sense to me.

My 3 rail cameras are stored in fitted aluminum hard-cases with the bellows slightly extended eliminating the possibility of forward and backward movement during transport. Since the 360mm lens is primarily a lens for the 8x10 (it also works on the other monorails), I leave it attached to the camera, shutter uncocked, blades closed and both caps on.

Both 4x5 field cameras are flat beds that close up with their bellows necessarily tightly closed and are also stored in aluminum cases. Their lens are also stored uncocked and shutters closed in Seagram’s Crown Royal cotton sacks in the hard-cases.

The Medium Format cameras - both Pentax's - are also stored in aluminum hard-cases with their lens uncocked and B&W UV filters and both lens caps attached. Rather than resorting to the Seagram’s sacks for them, they are stored in Pentax soft lens cases except for the 300mm and 400mm which are stored in their respective hard-cases.

I like the above idea of setting the shutter to Bulb and will adopt that idea.

Thomas