Broncolor Flash Pack Bonanza

[Daniel Unkefer]

Excellent Snag dxp!

Sinar Norma 4x5 Handy Super BubbaPack HV Battery Handy Bubble Level by Nokton48, on Flickr

A Friend built me this "Super BubbaPack" high voltage rechargeable Battery, for my Vivitar 365 Flash Units. Recycles LIKE NOW, no delay. This fires automatic exposure thyristor out to SEVENTY FEET, good for any situation, really. Shown on my homemade Sinar Norma Handy. My latest embellishment on the Handy, is a modern Sinar Handy Bubble Level/Mirror Unit, attached atop the Mamiya 7 43mm Viewfinder. Useful for "Hail Mary" shots, not looking through the viewfinder. Initial test shooting coming up soon.

This digiphoto shot with my 1600J Octobox 150. Notice the lovely specular reflections.

Sinar Norma Handy Test 65mm F8 No 4 by Nokton48, on Flickr

Sinar Norma Handy 4x5 Test Ilford HP5+ 65mm F8 Super Angulon at Fll. Kingwood Gardens Mansfield Ohio, waiting for the Solar Eclipse to occur. HANDHELD camera focused hyperfocally. The cosine effect causes corners to be darker, could be improved with my 65mm F8 Schneider Center Filter. Silver image 8x10 print Omega DII 180mm Rodagon laser aligned, Arista #2 RC paper processed in Dektol 1:2. Print copied with Sony Nex 7 30mm Nex Macro Lens.

Eclipse 4 08 24 by Nokton48, on Flickr

[Daniel Unkefer]

Use Dremel cutting wheels

Make the USA hangers a bit smaller

solder them back together

I spent years cutting SS very difficult, thin metal

wear goggles

Thanks TC! I have cut up 5x7 Kodak Hangers and reconfigured to hold two 6.5x9cm Jason Lane Dry Plates. Works great, used dremel wheels. Used SS Bolts and SS thin metal strips from Ebay. Need to figure out best way to make some in 18x24cm. How do you solder SS?

6.5x9 Dry Plate Developing Rack Hack from 5x7 by Nokton48, on Flickr

[Mal Paso]

Thanks TC! I have cut up 5x7 Kodak Hangers and reconfigured to hold two 6.5x9cm Jason Lane Dry Plates. Works great, used dremel wheels. Used SS Bolts and SS thin metal strips from Ebay. Need to figure out best way to make some in 18x24cm. How do you solder SS?

6.5x9 Dry Plate Developing Rack Hack from 5x7 by Nokton48, on Flickr

Silver Solder which is actually Brazing. The best is 67% silver if I remember right. As stainless can be difficult that's what I use. Oxy Acetylene is preferred but Oxy anything will work.

The custom hangers I built were made from styrene hobby extrusions, I beams, square tube and angles. Unfortunately they burned in the 2016 fire. The Evolution hangers I found while rebuilding are even better with 2 thin rails that hold the film. I'll post a pic later, they are very cool.

I also hold a FR Adjustable Developing Tank as a threat. Never used it but it holds every sheet film size to 4x5.

[Mal Paso]

Ok I got a drain plumbed to the new darkroom sink, water plumbed and tested and I found and installed my Kodak Tray Siphon Print Washer and it All Works! I had to get that done before I started new projects otherwise I get nothing finished. I needed some tractor time as well.

This is the best 4x5 film hanger made by Tomorrow Inc and the rack I made for them. They are spot welded but could be silver soldered.

If you have trouble visualizing 3 this is the operating position. lol

[Daniel Unkefer]

Nice work! Perfectly executed machining.

Two 1 Gallon SS 8x10 Deep Tanks Combiplan System 10 Liter Deep Tanks 8x10 Kodak Siphon Wash by Nokton48, on Flickr

Two stainless steel 1 Gallon 8x10 Deep Tanks with Floating Lids. Complete Combiplan Mini-Basket Line 4x5, Two 10 Liter 8x10 Tanks plus Wash. Kodak Siphon and Patterson 11x14 good for washing RC prints. Looking forward to start using this more.

[Mal Paso]

Cool! I just found my Kodak Tray Siphon.



Then found the ZoneVI washer I totally forgot about. Odd as I've only had it 5 years. They say the mind is the first thing to go. After that it's .. um ...

[Daniel Unkefer]

All Good stuff.

Does that Zone VI 4x5 Neg Washer work good? I've looked at them cheap, do you use the insert? Have thought about getting one, there were a bunch of them at the time. Ever get any scratches?

I happen to like Zone VI stuff myself, or I wouldn't have bought it at the time! Their timers were from Lektra Labs, I run all my Omega Omegalites through the Zone Vi timers. All have foot switches, mostly I push the timer button to print in "bursts". My Zone Vi small tripod is still my fave for Norma travelings. I used to tell my Architect friends that I could fire a gun emplacement off of it. Don't tell Drew. LOL Also it's been submerged in three different oceans, and still usefully kicking. Kinda does have a lot of venerable battle scars, never babied it, threw it around a lot.

[Mal Paso]

I've only used the Zone VI for print washing, don't have an insert. Water is distributed across the top and is drawn from the bottom on exit. Old thinking was since hypo is heavier ....... But whatever hypo there is, is in solution and it doesn't make much difference. I just use it as a deep print washer and shuffle the prints every few minutes since they float to the top. Pretty sure it came with the Beseler. I grew up on Ansel Adams and was set in my ways by the time Zone VI came along. Never met Ansel but he lived a few miles from here. His son Michael is very nice. The Weston place is right on the highway, Kim still lives there. Brad Pitt moved in across the street. Property values are high enough I hesitate to wash my car. There's at least $1,000 of Real Estate on it right now!

[grantflanagan]

Hello everyone,

just caught up on a few months worth of posts on here. My ascor sunlight kit is still out of order, can't seem to locate a power supply or a repairperson. In other news, I've been consolidating fifteen years worth of lighting gear I've had scattered across the country at friends and family homes. In addition to the ascor kit, I've now got a full Norman kit with a P2000D and 40/40 (liberated from the industrial department at Brooks Institute when I graduated), a Dynalite kit with Altman spot, a 6" fresnel ala 1k Moles, and a pencil/sticklight. I've been spending my late nights on ebay searching for a wide scope of photo-flash related esoterica.

I was lucky to score 2 large Balcar Variable Prism Light boxes from a photographer here in Manhattan who never used them! While I have an AlienBee I can use now, I've got two additional speedrings for the VPLBs coming from eBay this week, planning to dremel them out so I can fit larger flash heads inside. I also just brought my Broncolor Impact kit home from my dad's house upstate, the only way to get a fibrelite for less than $1000!

[Daniel Unkefer]

Hey Grantflanagan,

Welcome back and thanks for the report. This thread is about LF Strobes of all kinds. I happen to like olde Broncolor myself. But whatever works in my book. I would love to have a FIBROLITE IMPACT you are right it is way "spensive. But WOW useful.

SONY DSC by Nokton48, on Flickr

My CFV16 Hasselblad Fat Pixel Digital Back 36x36cm 60mm T* Distagon 500C/M 25th Anniversary P&F 200J Ringflash with Hasselblad Adapter. I used to use this Ringflash for Fashion Photography, back in the day. LOL. Now the CFV16 Digital Back gives me instant gratification. The Flash and Norman 200B pack (two packs actually) went to New York City Flash Clinic (sadly gone SNIFF). They Hot Rodded it to the Norman pack, everything needed adjusting by them, so the flashtube didn't "sparkle" after firing. This until runs off on 12V Dry Cell Batteries, trickle charged. I've replaced the batteries several times, just solder 'em right in. This works great and is an UBER HOOT to shoot with. Many more uses for this thing up ahead. Maybe buy some more cheap batteries, they are available on Amazon.