Bellows Manufacturers

[Gordon Moat]

After searching through the main page, and another search through the archives here, I was hoping to put together a more useful listing post. So, what companies make bellows, either custom or replacement?

The reason I am asking is that I am building one camera, and designing another. One uses an old bellows that is not that great. On the camera I am designing, if I could get a custom bellows, then I can keep the overall camera size very compact.

Thanks for any and all postings!

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography

[Glenn Thoreson]

Western Bellows
Camera Bellows (U.K.)
Flex Products

Sorry I don't have contact information for these. There are a couple more that I can't remember, too. These and others can make custom bellows, but I would be sure to provide the frames or something as a guide for the openings. There are numerous methods of mounting the bellows and you don't want one that's not correct.

[John Jarosz]

FLEXIBLE PRODUCTS INC 14504 60th St N, Clearwater FL 34620 (813) 536-3142

GORTITE A & A Mfg. Co., Inc., 2300 S. Calhoun Rd., New Berlin, WI 53151, (414) 786-1500
1994: do single qty replacements

TURNER BELLOWS 526 Child St Rochester NY 14606 (716) 235-4456

Universal Bellows Co. 25 Hanse Ave Freeport NY 11520 (516) 378-1264
1994: 6x6 bellows: $40 each +$7 shipping

Western Bellows
7454 HENBANE ST
ETIWANDA, CA 91739
(909) 980 0606

I don't know how current these are

John

[Ernest Purdum]

Camera Bellows in the U.K. has been very helpful to at leasty several LF Forum members, including me.

[IanG]

I went to Camera Bellows several years ago with a De Vere Monorail and the woman I dealt with just open a map drawer and instantly pulled out the original blue print for the right De Vere bag bellows. The new set were excellent.

This company has vastly more experience of making Camera bellows than any other - at one point they were making over 2 million sets a year for a very wide variety of camera manufacturers.

Ian

[Gordon Moat]

Awesome. Since I am at the stage of going from prototype to CAD (3D software), the mounting could be altered to nearly anything. I don't know if there might be an existing bellows out there that would fit better than a custom design, though that is another possibility. Many 4x5 cameras are built like a 5x5 layout, and much weight and size can be saved restricting to 4x5; then moving the camera to go from portrait to landscape orientation.

Thanks everyone, very helpful so far.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography

[Eric Woodbury]

Get samples of the bellows material before you buy. Not all bellows are equal.

[Glenn Thoreson]

I've found a bellows that's inexpensive and easy to obtain that works great for 4X5 home builts. It's the Sinar standard bellows which, I think, I paid something like 30.00 for on the auction gizmo. You can get new ones from Hong Kong for 59.95 on there, too. They're square, so using a reversible back is no problem.

[Gordon Moat]

Rather than a square, I was searching for a rectangle. To make a square design to take a square bellows adds another inch to the camera height. This is something I ran into with many designs.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography

[Kuzano]

If you are talking about a 4X5 bellows that is rectangular on the big end to meet the closer dimension of 4X5 inches... look for the earlier Graflex bellows. I found one NIB on eBay a few years ago, new-never mounted, for $25. It has the lens end sized to the Graflex front standard, which may be bigger than you hoped for, but the film end is rectangular and just clears 4X5. Great material and mounting frames on both ends. The Graflex part number is P/N 31061-G3.

It's always fascinated me how much transportability is given up to that square big end so you can rotate the back only. Do people who take the time to slow down for large format operation actually have that much of a problem with rotating the camera, at least on 4X5. The square end and rotating mechanism, whether it's revolving or replacement, adds somewhat to size and weight on the camera.