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Thread: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

  1. #1

    Join Date
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    Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    Let me introduce another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist. Gidou-san of Toyo camera service in Tokyo has been helping me out to get my custom made flanges, mounting rings, lens caps, adjusting shutters and so on.

    http://toyocamera.web.fc2.com/

    I was told the stories of his past and allowed to share you all at LFPF today when I asked him to make the custom made mounting ring of the universal heliar 36cm f4.5 on the sinar shutter.

    He was the former assembler of Ebony company which I didn’t know until now, one of the two persons, him and his director when they started out their business. He worked for Ebony until 42 years old when he fell off at a train station in the congestion and injured his neck. He needed three years to recover from the paralysis of the left side of the body.

    Click image for larger version. 

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    At the age of 45, he started to work for Toyo camera, Sakai Machine Tool Co., Ltd. His role was a salesman then. Eventually he spinned out and still has a relationship with Toyo, being a salesman, repairman and machinist until now.

    The early Ebony cameras were assembled by him alone with accuracy and used the material Ebony as the company’s name states, but later models made by other assemblers eventually used cherry woods due to the lack of the ebony and with a bit less accuracy. They first used the ebony in Okinawa. The later ones were from India.

    He assembled the rare ebony 11x14 cameras too, it might be made by him if you have one.

    Another introduction of him is here in Japanese but you can translate Japanese to your language in Google chrome and translator combo.

    http://shuffle.genkosha.com/special/earning/9520.html

    He is old(70’s) but well and I hope
    he continues his business as much as possible.

    If you need a repair of Toyo and Ebony cameras, he is the man to send them if there is no one to ask in your country.

    His business became busy after the death of Nagaoka-san of Nagaoka camera.

    Finally, I have no relationship with him, just being a customer.
    Last edited by mhayashi; 7-Jun-2021 at 08:37.

  2. #2
    Peter De Smidt's Avatar
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    Jan 2001
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    Fond du Lac, WI, USA
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    Re: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    Thank you for the info!
    “You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
    ― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know

  3. #3

    Re: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    that's great info!!

  4. #4
    Tin Can's Avatar
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    Re: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    Thank you
    Tin Can

  5. #5
    Gary Beasley's Avatar
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    Marietta Ga. East Cobb.
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    Re: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    If you communicate with him again tell him thank you for doing such a high quality job on our cameras!

  6. #6

    Join Date
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    Re: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    Gary, yes I will tell him your appreciation when I pick up the lenses mounted on the lensboards!
    I ask his episodes every time I visit and I enjoy talking with him….
    He teaches me a lot of things. If you want to know more, I will ask!

  7. #7

    Re: Another story about a salesman, repairman and machinist, Gidou-san of Toyo camera

    Another happy customer who bought a 45Ti used more than 15 years ago and can’t find anything to complain about so I’ll give it another 15 or so.....great craftsmanship is getting very rare.

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