New Camera, It Came

[Two23]

The tailboard I bought a week ago finally showed up. As you might recall, the eBay photos were very poor, and I took a chance on it. First, the bad. It's missing one knob and I'll have to have another one made. Second, it has three cracks in the base that threaten its stability. I'll have to get those repaired by a pro, I think. Third, the front standard leans backwards, probably because of the base cracks and maybe a warp. The lens has about 20 pinhead sized air bubbles in it--seems to be in the balsam. They are clustered in the center. I'll see how it shoots. Iris is stiff but works. Finally, all in all it's in a bit rougher shape than I was hoping.

Now the good. The bellows don't leak. The wood is very pretty. The lens dates to 1900, and I think the camera is actually older as it looks like another lens was once on it. The two holders that came with it look functional although one needs light repair. The ground glass is in good shape. I'm pretty sure this is a Watson & Bros. camera, with a Dallmeyer Stigmatic Series II No. 4 lens (correct for half plate.)

At first I wasn't real happy to see the cracks in the base and bubbles in the lens, but hey I took a chance here. I'm guessing that there will be some issues with most 100+ yr. old cameras I might buy, and I'm only out about $525 for it. I think I'll have some work done on it, get a brass knob made, and try to figure out the holders. I think they have sheaths in them but am not sure. I'll save that for a later post. Final shot--the camera did pass the inspection given by our resident inspector. Some photos:


Kent in SD

[Steven Tribe]

The base looks comparitively solid, in spite of the cracks!
This "tiger stripe" mahogany must have been difficult to work with as the lengthwise crack show irregular the grain is. The 2 cracks across the grain are more serious though.

Does the tiger pattern alternatively follow and cross the wood grain?

[goamules]

Son, you have a cat stuck in your camera....!

It looks great to me, they always have some small issues. It's over 100 years old. Have fun.

[Joseph O'Neil]

Son, you have a cat stuck in your camera....!



Well duh! How else are you supposed to dust the inside of your bellows if you don't have a cat? Just make sure you rub his back several times with a good glass rod to build up the static - that attracts the dust better. Then the cat just washes himself off afterwards. Great system if you never tried it.

:D

[Two23]

The cat is the resident inspector for anything new that comes into the house. She seemed to like the camera. Attached are a couple more shots. After looking over the website "Wood & Brass," I'm pretty positive this is a Watson & Sons camera. It has a few less pieces of brass trim, but otherwise is exact. The first photo gives a close up of the wood and how the camera was constructed. It's made up of panels with grain perpendicular, on the bottom as well. I think this gives it more strength. I'm also thinking of having a second lensboard made and attaching a T-P rollerblind to it.

http://www.woodandbrass.co.uk/detail.php?cat_num=0030

Who could I take the camera to, with the idea of fixing the cracks etc.? Would a local furniture restoration place be my best bet, or is there a guy somewhere who specializes in these cameras. How about Ken Hough here? The wood has a pretty patina and I'm not sure I want it totally refinished, but I think it could use some help.


Kent in SD

[Richard Rankin]

The cat is the resident inspector for anything new that comes into the house. She seemed to like the camera. Attached are a couple more shots. After looking over the website "Wood & Brass," I'm pretty positive this is a Watson & Sons camera. It has a few less pieces of brass trim, but otherwise is exact. The first photo gives a close up of the wood and how the camera was constructed. It's made up of panels with grain perpendicular, on the bottom as well. I think this gives it more strength. I'm also thinking of having a second lensboard made and attaching a T-P rollerblind to it.

http://www.woodandbrass.co.uk/detail.php?cat_num=0030

Who could I take the camera to, with the idea of fixing the cracks etc.? Would a local furniture restoration place be my best bet, or is there a guy somewhere who specializes in these cameras. How about Ken Hough here? The wood has a pretty patina and I'm not sure I want it totally refinished, but I think it could use some help.


Kent in SD


You might ask Scott Perry here on the forum. He does a lot of woodworking stuff and has refurbished/rebuilt several cameras and described them thru his blogs. His username here is "Scott --"

Richard

[fenderfour]

I might have a knob that will match. Post some detail photos of the knobs you have with some rough dims and I will check.

[TheDeardorffGuy]

Bubbles in the glass? No big deal. Goerz use to say it was a hallmark to have them. The grain structure in that wood is always going to let it crack as it ages. Since I know the enviorment you are going to use it let me give you a hint for a quick fix. Give me a call. 219-462-0281 any weekday afternoon after 2pm.

[Two23]

Ken--

Will call you later today. Here's a couple of close ups of the three cracks.

Fenderfour--
Will take a few photos and get some measurements later today and PM you on the knob.

Kent in SD

[Steven Tribe]

These look a lot like drying out cracks through the decades rather than stress/usage cracks. The way the separate pieces are put together means that the base will still have considerable resistance to "bending". The perimeter wood frame has held up well.

[Two23]

Yes, I was thinking it was shrink/drying too. I'll ask Ken (and anyone else) if rubbing some kind of oil into the wood (e.g. tung oil) will help prevent this. The wood does feel dry.


Kent in SD

[Two23]

I might have a knob that will match. Post some detail photos of the knobs you have with some rough dims and I will check.


Here's a few photos and measurements. There seems to be two lengths of knobs on this camera. They are exactly the same except one is a little longer. This is the shorter one; one with longer threading cut easily be cut down.

Kent in SD

[Adamphotoman]

Hi It is a beauty,
I am on the wet west coast. A suggestion. The cracks are there and you could humidify but trying to reintroduce moisture needs to be done slowly. If you have time you can, but if you live in a dry climate you won't be able to reverse it and keep it stabilized. You are North Dakota? I recently relocated from Saskatchewan, so similar climate. The west coast uses a lot of maple, yew, and other woods. We fill cracks with a black epoxy. Show it off instead of hiding it.
Don't change the rest of the finish though. Beautiful!!!
Grant

[Two23]

I live in South Dakota, which is very dry in winter. Camera just came from Florida so I'm guessing the problem won't get any better for me! I need to fix the cracks and see if there's a way to oil the wood or otherwise stabilize it. I checked the top of the bed and see the cracks go all the way through. I'm planning on buying a big QR plate for it, to better support the base and spread the pressure. The tripod screw on this 19th century camera fits the Arca/Swiss plates I use on my modern cameras. I find this amazing!


Kent in SD

[Steven Tribe]

The size of the cracks show that the original wood used to make this wasn't completely matured before it was used. It is not just changing humidity. The makers can't be blamed as it was probably the first time they were working with this timber instead of the usual Spanish mahogany. This wood is obviously a slow dryer with lots of internal stresses due to its irregular growth rings. In fact, it was a really deviant/sick tree that supplied this pattern!
It won't get any worse and I don't think oil will either penetrate or help. You could change the tripod thread with a back plate which reaches beyond the cracked area.

[RichardRitter]

I would leave the crack along if you fix it, the base will crack some where else.

The best way to devalue a camera that is on some collectors list is is to do a bad job of repairing the crack with glues that can not be reversed. That would be most of the glues available on store shelves. I would not oil it either. I would not use wood filler. Leave it alone.

I worked on camera that had been repaired badly and the value was cut by 80% because of a bad repair job that could not be undone.

[RichardRitter]

As to the knob a new one can be made. If I were doing it I would need a knob to match. The threads on cameras of that age are sometime nonstandard.

[fenderfour]

I have a similar knob, but it is internally threaded, and the non-knurled section is a bit different. Sorry.

[GPS]

I would leave the crack along if you fix it, the base will crack some where else.

...

I agree with Richard. But not everything is lost - if you want to use the camera as-is safely put a larger flat sheet (aluminum) on your tripod head to make a larger attachment surface and rejoice taking pictures. The camera will tell you - thank you...:)