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Thread: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

  1. #1
    Scott Davis
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    renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    I finally got my Century studio camera and stand all set up and fully rehabilitated. First it was rebuilding the platform on the stand (the original had broken and been repaired enough times that it was beyond salvage). Then it was getting the Packard shutter in the camera to sync with my flash. Then it was trying to repair the Packard shutter (the pin that goes through the pneumatic cylinder broke off the flap in the body of the shutter). After I realized that the lens board for my Kodak 405mm Portrait lens was an exact match for the Century camera, and it had a matching Packard shutter already installed, I got that cleaned up and the flash sync leads attached, and tested out the camera/lens combo. And coincidentally this weekend a friend emailed saying he had an 8x10 back for a studio camera, was I interested? He brought it over and we tried it out and it fit perfectly on my camera, so I got a new 8x10 back for it, so now I have the trifecta- 5x7, 6.5 x 8.5 and 8x10 backs!

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Click image for larger version. 

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    As you can see, that 405 Kodak is a beast of a lens. The curly wire coming out of the body of the camera is the modern flash sync (there previously had been a Household flash sync with lamp wire, which was too ratty and unreliable for words.

  2. #2

    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Beautiful and Amazing
    Flikr Photos Here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/18134483@N04/

    “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”
    ― Mark Twain

  3. #3
    Tin Can's Avatar
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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Good!

    There is a slight mismatch threaded yellow filter I keep on my 405

    and a spare RED KODAK Bullet Safe Light retaining ring makes a slip-on lens cover, with a matte board disc

    I forget, 122 or 123mm from BH
    Tin Can

  4. #4

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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Beautiful camera! Your camera seems darker in color, dark walnut color. Mine has mahogany color. Do you know when your camera was made? I could not find any information to determine when my Century master studio camera was made.

  5. #5
    Scott Davis
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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Quote Originally Posted by diversey View Post
    Beautiful camera! Your camera seems darker in color, dark walnut color. Mine has mahogany color. Do you know when your camera was made? I could not find any information to determine when my Century master studio camera was made.
    I don't know when mine was made - I suspect between 1900-1920. You can narrow the date range down a little by the Century Master label, if it says "Folmer & Schwing", "Folmer Graflex", or "Division of Eastman Kodak", but I forget which one is what period, other than ones that mention Kodak being later. While my stand is more walnut-y, in part because I stained it with Minwax walnut stain, the color of the camera itself could be just the varnish having aged. But it definitely is dark brown now. I wonder if they sold them in different finishes concurrently, or if they just changed the color over time. In a perfect world I'd take the whole thing apart, strip the wood and re-stain, get all the cast-iron parts for the stand sanded and painted black, and put new bellows on, but I lack the facilities and the spare time to do such a thing. Most importantly right now, it works.

  6. #6
    Tin Can's Avatar
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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Tin Can

  7. #7

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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Mine was made by Graflex, Inc. with a serial number 4674xx on camera.

  8. #8
    Scott Davis
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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Quote Originally Posted by Tin Can View Post
    There's something wrong with your link- it won't open.

  9. #9

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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Davis View Post
    There's something wrong with your link- it won't open.
    It opened for me... very slow but eventually opened.

  10. #10

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    Re: renovation of my Century Master studio camera.

    I could opened it too. It is about Kodak 10A studio camera with dark finish, like yours.

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