Tools: Cheap and disposable vs. the best you can find/afford?

[David Lindquist]

In one of my Ansel Adams books, there's a picture of him using a Calumet C400....if it's good enough for Ansel, it's certainly good enough for me.

I've wondered if his using the C400 was in the context of a workshop. Maybe having less concern if a student were to knock it over in the course of of being walked through the use of a view camera.

For a period Adams used a 5X7 Sinar Norma (with a 4X5 reducing back). He used this when making the photographs for the book Fiat Lux, text by Nancy Newhall, published in 1968 on the occasion of the centennial of the University of California. In my notes from a 1972 workshop I have the comment from him that he had switched to an Arca Swiss; that he preferred the center tilts to the base tilts of the Sinar.

Then when he appears on the cover of the September 3, 1979 issue of Time magazine, any dedicated equipment freak can identify his camera as a 4X5 Horseman. I'm sure Calumet, Horseman distributor then, was tickled pink. Furthermore the lens is his Linhof Select 121mm Super Angulon. You can make out "Technika" engraved in red on the bezel.

David

[AuditorOne]

If I am working professionally and my livelihood relies on my tools doing the job consistently and quickly I buy what works while still having a reasonable return on my investment.

As an amateur I buy whatever I want, but I keep and use what feels right for the way I work.

As an amateur I keep and use my Intrepid because I am still in good enough shape to use it once I pack it to the top of the hill. We won't discuss the money I have wasted before settling on the Intrepid. Not sure how long it will last but it is certainly holding up quite well so far.

It also just so happens that the Intrepid works wonderfully with my Symmar 150, which is one of my most used lenses. Needless to say I paid a lot more for the Symmar than the Intrepid even though both were purchased new.

Interestingly I mount the Intrepid on top of a carbon fiber Gitzo 3541XLS tripod which cost me far more then everything else in the backpack, including the backpack itself. Funny, I have never once regretted spending that money.

But all these tools work well together and they do exactly what I want without any fuss.

As a woodworker I own a marvelous and very expensive Lie Neilsen #4 bench plane that is a beauty to behold. It works wonderfully. But when I am putting a fine, smooth finish on a table top I always reach for my old 1930s Stanley Sweetheart #3. The Lie Nielsen will certainly do the job but the Stanley just fits my hands perfectly and does exactly what I want with no fuss. I should probably sell the Lie Nelsen but it is so pretty to look at I just can't bring myself to put it up for sale.

I am a firm believer in owning the best tools that I can afford. Interestingly though 'best" can often be somewhat subjective. For some it may be the most expensive, but I find that the best for me is what fits my way of working. It may or may not turn out to be the most expensive.

[6x6TLL]

Based on a lot of research, trying things out, as well as following my own aesthetic and intuition, I finally bought a 4x5 camera.

I've had a number of eBay and other searches running (KEH, Adorama, here), looking for one of several of the cameras mentioned in this and other threads. As fate would have it, the exact camera I wanted most showed up on eBay, and the seller was willing to negotiate, so the final price was in fact very attractive and quite fair.

So now I'm familiarizing myself with an Arca-Swiss F-metric with orbix. It's an incredible camera, and I haven't even exposed a sheet of film yet. Practicing focusing and using movements to manipulate plane of focus and perspective control to get familiar enough that I feel comfortable using it in the field. Will also practice loading film holders.

Really looking forward to getting outside and shooting a few sheets!

I wouldn't have been able to find the right camera or even know what to look for without the help of the fine people here.

Thanks again for all the advice and suggestions!

[Rod Klukas]

Bob,
I just returned from 2 weeks at the Arca-Swiss factory in France. The tools issue is problem as the really good tools are hard to find. Many of the screwdrivers for instance now are only offered with plastic handles and are still somewhat expensive. Finding the great tools from the 1970-80s or earlier, is a real trial.
I hope you are well.
Rod

[Bob Salomon]

Bob,
I just returned from 2 weeks at the Arca-Swiss factory in France. The tools issue is problem as the really good tools are hard to find. Many of the screwdrivers for instance now are only offered with plastic handles and are still somewhat expensive. Finding the great tools from the 1970-80s or earlier, is a real trial.
I hope you are well.
Rod

Which Bob?

[Jac@stafford.net]

Bob,
I just returned from 2 weeks at the Arca-Swiss factory in France. The tools issue is problem as the really good tools are hard to find. Many of the screwdrivers for instance now are only offered with plastic handles and are still somewhat expensive. Finding the great tools from the 1970-80s or earlier, is a real trial.
I hope you are well.
Rod

I have two old, old-school machinist friends who boot-strapped their careers by making their own tools. What they can show are museums of over fifty years each of precious work.

[Sfroza]

I was a toolmaker in aerospace for forty years. What I had in my toolbox were a assortment of grades. There were common grade tools that I replaced a few times during my career. There were common tools that I replaced with premium grade if the common grade failed or I needed to have ultimate dependability and couldn't have failure. I had tools that were lower grade, the tools that I could modify. I could grind, weld or bend without feeling guilty that I created a one time use tool. And my precision tools, my gold standard, all treated with special care most purchased and some my design and faberication. I had duplicated some for convenience, or to have different qualities for different applications. The user needs to access the application and make a informed decision. IMHO.

Michael

[Tin Can]

Fully agree Michael. As a professional automotive engine tester for a Tier One supplier to the Big 3, I often had to make or modify tools to work on advanced engines where no tools, manuals or factory support existed.

Heat, bend, hack, saw, grind and weld a tool for the job at hand. Actually my favorite thing. As night foreman with a crew of 5 we always surprised day shift with our very out of the box results.

Our team, 3 shifts, innovated ways to accelerate engine life testing. We spent millions on deep chill capacity and built the first system of the kind. We taught Ford. We also built all control and data collection systems in house. Everything was in one large building. R&D, production, sales and warehouse.

Then the Lab became obsolete and unwanted in a suburb. The factory still churns.

R&D spent 10 years designing our Shanghai replacement. I asked to be transfered to China, but was discarded as too old, 10 years ago.

Now I enjoy early retirement!

FTW

[Drew Wiley]

Most of the people I knew who were offered severance pay if they trained their Chinese replacements went the extra mile and put in voluntary overtime -
namely sabotaging the dies and numerical control settings to the machinery also due to be sent overseas.

[Tin Can]

Not me