LF Newbie Questions

[filmrules]

Just registered here and I'm very new to LF. However, I ran across some Linhof gear and I'm cramming trying to learn how to work with it. I have a two Linhofs. One is a 5x7, and I don't plan on using that one. The camera I plan to use is a Linhof Technika III version V. It has a 150mm cam that matches the camera. The lens that was on it is a vintage Voightlander Braunschweig Heliar 4.5 15cm Compur. I have a couple of books I've been reading and I've been looking around the internet. But there are a few things I'm confused about, like, how far to pull the bellows out for a particular lens. And, can I put different lenses on without changing the cam, as long as I use the ground glass to focus, and not use the rangefinder? And how do you know how far to pull the bellows out for a given lens? Like I said, I'm new at this but haven't found a clear answer to these questions. Please be gentle. Thank you.

[Vick Vickery]

With the 150mm lens in place and the focusing mecanism all the way back toward the ground glass, you pull the front standard out until the lens is in focus at infinity. If the lens has been in use on that camera before you got it, I would expect to find "stops" on the focusing rail at that point; if not, mark the rail at that point until you can get some stops and put them there.

You can certainly use different lenses on the camera and focus them on the ground glass. You can find a starting point on them the same way I described with your 150mm lens above. Each lens should be mounted on its own lens board to make it convenient to change them.

Have fun! Oh, by the way, try out that 5x7...its a really nice format!

Oh, almost forgot...welcome to group therepy!

[filmrules]

Thanks Vick. I tried that and there is a notch in the rail that does match the lens when I focus on a far/infinity object. The front standard seems to just lock at that point, in the notch. Now should I slide the scale infinity mark to that point for reference? My standard doesn't seem to actually stay tight at other points on the rail. So if I use other lenses, maybe I need to adjust the standard somehow to lock tighter. The other thing I forgot to mention about this 150mm lens, is, sometimes the shutter will work fine, and sometimes it will only half fire. Does it matter to cock the shutter before setting the shutter speed or after setting the speed? Thanks.

[Vick Vickery]

I haven't fooled with a Linhoff Technika in many years, so I'm talking from old memories and "typical" standards here. I would expect the lens standard to slide out and lock at any point along the focusing rail since it needs to do that to accomidate the various focal length lenses; this is also why manufacturers make "stops" to install on the rail to help position lenses of various focal lengths, most of these flipping out of the way when not in use to allow the lens standard to slide by for a longer focal length. If you have a big camera store, a camera repairman, or even an experienced LF photographer in your area, you might want to have the camera looked at to try to determine why it isn't locking tightly at other than one position.

Sounds like your shutter needs a CLA (clean, lube, adjustment)...Carol at www.flutotscamerarepair.com is very good and very reasonable, but due to family illnesses and heavy workload may be having some delays these days; its worth checking with her. If you mention where you are, some other folks here might know a good repairman near you.

As a general rule, you should set the shutter speed before cocking the shutter. This is more important on some brands than others, but I make it a habit to do it in that sequence for all shutters so I don't have to remember which ones require it.

[Brian C. Miller]

The other thing I forgot to mention about this 150mm lens, is, sometimes the shutter will work fine, and sometimes it will only half fire. Does it matter to cock the shutter before setting the shutter speed or after setting the speed? Thanks.

The shutter needs a CLA (clean-lube-adjust). Once that is done, then it all should be good.

Set the speed first and then cock the shutter. The way the older shutters work (I haven't opened up a new shutter) is that there is a cam inside which determines how long a little clockwork mechanism runs. If you adjust the time after cocking the shutter, the time can very easily be off.

[filmrules]

Once again thank you all for your help so far. Seems like a friendly place to learn at.