I just purchased a Bender 8x10 camera, and I'm favorably impressed. For being a simple build, it's quite sturdy and not given to vibration. The one that I purchased is made from cherry, and the rails are brass or "gold" anodized. So, it has a nice appearance. It's also light-weight.
Of course, for the price of these cameras, there are some compromises.
>> The camera's rear standard attaches directly to the rail via two (not one) bolts with black knobs on the end. But, attaching the rear standard in this way makes it more sturdy. This camera has greater stability, and is tighter, than a Kodak 2D that I once owned.
>> There's very little rise built in to the front standard. That's OK; the front and rear standards tilt.
>> There's definitely no RACK AND PINION focusing. Focusing is accomplished by sliding the front standard back and forth on the rail. (Recall, the rear standard is locked in place.) But, the wood function carrier against the rail moves very smoothly, so I don't see this as a problem. I think this will be sufficient for 8x10, but I'm not sure that I would want this kind of manual focus for 4x5.
>> The ground glass carrier "locks" into place using twist locks like one finds on film holders to keep the darkslides in. But, this seems to work well enough.
>> The same is true for "locking" in the lensboards. If I were using this camera, I would probably "permanently" mount a reduction lensboard.
On the positive side, there're multiple raiis of different lengths, and the bellows can easily accommodate a 24" lens. But, the weight of my 610mm Repro Claron might be a little too much for the rails. I'll have to check this out.
If anyone has experience using an 8x10 Bender, I would be interested in your observations and impressions using this camera.
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