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Thread: Bellows Material

  1. #1

    Join Date
    Oct 2019
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    19

    Bellows Material

    Hello Everybody,

    This is my very first post on this most interesting site. A heads up on material for making your own bellows. Whilst researching this seemingly easy task (finding material) and about to give up in disgust I dropped upon this site

    Thorlabs
    (I cannot find an email address to link)

    An (almost) worldwide company

    They offer material:- ] 5' x 9' (1.5 m x 2.7 m) x 0.005" (0.12 mm) Thick for around £40 (GBP if you don't know what that funny
    symbol is before the 40)

    If you already know that's lovely.

    If not check it out!

    Well, that's all folks

    Tim

  2. #2
    Tin Can's Avatar
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    22,386

    Re: Bellows Material

    Tin Can

  3. #3

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    Oct 2019
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    19

    Re: Bellows Material

    Yes, that's the bad boy. What I forgot to include in the thread was is it any good?

  4. #4

    Join Date
    Jan 2011
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    123

    Re: Bellows Material

    yes, it's good. Used in two layers, it's lightproof.
    Glue the ribs on with 3m transfer tape, or 77 spraymount, on the shiny side of the fabric.
    As it's very thin and flexible, bellows larger than 8x10 will sag.
    Good luck.

  5. #5

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    Oct 2019
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    Re: Bellows Material

    Hello All,

    Great news, guys. Many grateful(?) thanks to Tin Can and Radii. I know it is going over old ground and boring but it is a new venture for me. i have already made a couple of 5x4 pinhole cameras that work rather well and thought it was time to build a proper 5x4 whilst I can before my joints wave the white flag. It might clear the doldrums as well, there again............!

    Happy Tim (for 5 mins)

  6. #6

    Join Date
    Mar 2014
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    104

    Re: Bellows Material

    Quote Originally Posted by radii View Post
    Glue the ribs on with 3m transfer tape, or 77 spraymount, on the shiny side of the fabric.
    You might want to test glues before committing to building the full bellows. As noted here and here, Super 77 may not work so well.

    I built a bellows a little over a year ago from a changing bag and Super 77, and the glue is failing. I'll be building a couple new bellows over the next weeks with BK5 fabric, and have some HH-66 vinyl cement to test gluing with.

    My last bellows glue started failing after getting wet in a light rain, so I suggest that as a test condition.

  7. #7
    Les
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    Ex-Seattlelite living in PNW
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    Re: Bellows Material

    Since no one addressed the IR film.....will this material work for that ?

    Les

  8. #8

    Join Date
    Oct 2019
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    19

    Re: Bellows Material

    A changing bag! I had never thought of that one. Well done, alan b. Presumably somewhat water tight as well which I was going to ask in my original enquiry but forgot (an inherent affliction, those naughty neurons).

  9. #9

    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    123

    Re: Bellows Material

    Quote Originally Posted by alan_b View Post
    You might want to test glues before committing to building the full bellows. As noted here and here, Super 77 may not work so well.

    I built a bellows a little over a year ago from a changing bag and Super 77, and the glue is failing. I'll be building a couple new bellows over the next weeks with BK5 fabric, and have some HH-66 vinyl cement to test gluing with.

    My last bellows glue started failing after getting wet in a light rain, so I suggest that as a test condition.
    I've used both glues on the bk5 fabric, and they haven't failed, 2-3 years later.

  10. #10

    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Posts
    19

    Re: Bellows Material

    Hello,

    This tread has given me food for thought and I have another question. Has anyone,using BK5 material, have something shiny on the inside to enhance the amount of light (I have just taken delivery of half a pound of pontefract cakes, mmmmmmmmm) inside the bellows?

    yours (gobbling liquorice like it's going out of fashion)

    Tim

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