Send pictures of your adventure.Originally Posted by joshuawhite
Send pictures of your adventure.
I made 3 new frames with a free old router and hobby wood already the right size, cut to length with a tiny hobby saw
Pretty easy and I had never used a router. 1/2 lap square corners
I blacked them all with a wide marker, no paint
I got new German brass color wood screws to install the rear frame only in the original holes
I am sure Custom Bellows can make very nice ones, shipping one old bellows with frames or all 3 as sample is a good idea
OE had wide square corner folds
I documented my effort long ago, it's somewhere in the forum, but where...
Tin Can
I didn't want to send Custom Bellows the frames to refit because I wanted to keep them as they are. Of my three sets of bellows, two are still functional. Unfortunately they are shorter than the original (22" rather than 26") and very stiff, so I do need to replace them eventually. I don't know how long they will last, but I see no point in throwing them out. So I just need to make the frames myself or have the frames made. Probably not a big deal. Richard Ritter said he is happy to do it and I may try if feeling adventurous.
I kept my thread bare bellows, I never throw out any part when restoring and after
Tin Can
Went and picked up the stand today. Four of us loaded it into the truck, but I had to unload it myself. We took the lead weights out, so it wasn't too bad.
I have mostly disassembled the stand, but the upright posts are still in their flanges. And seem to maybe be threaded in there? I bought a 21' long pipe that matched the posts and had it cut down so I can use the stand in my garage, even the 8' posts are too tall once the base and casters are factored in.
So, has anyone actually changed the posts? Are they threaded into the flanges?
I just cut mine to a good length. Never tried to remove from flange
I doubt threading. I would weld them in a jig, maybe a couple of spots
I just stuck my thumbnail into something soft on the top flange joint, maybe old putty to make it look nice
Tin Can
Mine had the threads too, but I couldn't get them to move. I tried solvent, heat, and force. In the end I just cut the existing posts down, figuring that I would likely never have a studio with 12+ foot ceilings.
I left my flanges alone. I think it's tubing, not pipe, if that makes any sense? ?? Feels lighter gauge than standard iron pipe. Some prior owner had cut mine down on the base mine is about 4 inches shy of 8 feet.
Be careful with the weights. They bend, and if the free fall when you stand it up it will break the aluminum castings. That's why my table was on upside down, the fellow before me broke off one of the ears. I found a Wise Man machinist who crafted me a fix. A good tradesman is worth more than all the financial geniuses on Wall Street put together. (Well maybe not all of them)
When cutting to height for YOUR studio, consider, a SC11 camera is bolted down fore and aft with two big bolts. The entire plot can be turned upside down and tilted at the ceiling. Straight down or up at 75" bellows in possible.
Which may mean you want the tallest pipes possible or shorter as the camera itself is quite tall
A good machinist can easily cut threads in new pipe or tubing, even a long one in a big lathe.
Freshman year of HS I learned on a massive auto taper lathe, that could turn 20 ft cannon barrels
Tin Can
I wish I had taken the flanges off and noticed the threads before buying some replacement pipes at a steel shop. They were $$$ and likely now just scrap. Was trying not to cut down the original posts, but guess I'll have to.
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