Missing Pin On 8x20 Film Back - Help!

[Bruce E. Rathbun]

Fate has now caught up with me. I leave in the morning for a 5 day trip to the Smoky Mountains. As I was packing my 8x20 I noticed that the bottom pin on the film back was missing. I found the pin....now the pickle. The top piece has broken off and the pin is too darn small to fit back into the wood properly. Now what in the heck can be done? I can always have a new pin sent to my hotel and lose a few days of shooting time.......not worth that. A screw into the wood could be very bad. Any ideas for a short term fix? Maybe a trip to the hardware store?

[sanking]

Bruce,

You need to provide more details. I would like to offer some advice but don't have a real clue as to your problem.

[Bruce E. Rathbun]

Sandy, The camera is a Wisner. There are four pins on the 8x20 film back that hold the back in place. There are two pins on the top and two on the bottom. The two pins on the bottom fit into the bracket mounted on the camera. One of the pins on the bottom broke off. I still have the pin but without the top piece the pin is way too short to fit. Does this make any sense?

[RichardRitter]

Sounds like you could be missing some wood where the pin goes. If you are leaving in the next couple of days I would invest in a roll of black tape and tape that area of the back. Since it is an 8 x 20 you really don’t have to take the back off. Go and enjoy photographing and when you come back think about getting it fix.

[RichSBV]

If you're missing the surrounding wood, you can make an easy permanent patch to hold the pin.

Just use some epoxy. Place the pin in position, then use the epoxy on top of thet. I use a product called PC-7. Comes in two small paint type cans. Thick, and very strong stuff that sticks to anything once cured. But this will be _pemanent_! You can always shape it and sand it to make it look better but it will never match the surrounding wood. Don't use the liquid epoxies that come in the syringe type dispensers. It drips and doesn't hold a shape...

Or you could use something like duct tape for a temporay fix and have it permanently fixed later if you prefer the patch to match the wood... It wouldn't be difficult to carve out a hole and apply a 'dutchman' type patch in matching wood for a good looking repair, but from the sound of it you don't have the time to do this before your trip...

[sanking]

OK, as I now understand the situation the issue is keeping the back on the camera. If that is the case, then just follow Richard Ritter's advice and tape the back to the camera with black photograhic tape, black electrical tape, or even duct tape. As Richard mentioned there is no reason to remove the back of this camera when making negatives so securing it with tape should work fine as a temporary measure.

[Bruce E. Rathbun]

Man oh man did I LUCK OUT! As I was looking for some tape (per Richard's advice) it occured to me that the missing pin was the same as the pins in my 11x14. So I easily removed one of the pins and it fits like a glove. So lucky. Now I will have some more pins sent after I get back. What would be good to use for adhesive? I do have some Weld Wood glue that I use for bellows pathces. Any advice? Thanks to all for a speedy response. I was thinking tape but was not sure if that would work.

[Michael Kadillak]

Your experience makes me think that I do not want to find myself in the same situation.

When you get back and order replacement pins, I would love to join in with you on getting some.

Have a great trip!

[Bruce E. Rathbun]

Thanks Michael, I am sure that I will have a good time now. This is not the first time that the pins have come out. Only the first time the night before I leave. If there is anyone else that needs any pins for an 8x10/8x20 or an 11x14 please let me know. I will be ordering some extra pins as soon as I return. Again thanks to all.

[Ralph Barker]

Bruce, if you're thinking of using glue to hold the pin in place, I'd suggest just a tiny dot of carpenter's glue at the point where the pin enters the wood frame of the back. Getting glue down inside the hole might make future repairs far more difficult.