Replacement Bellows Toyo 810M

**chacabuco** · 28-Dec-2010, 12:46

Does anyone have an opinion on toyo 810M replacement bellows being sold from Hong Kong on Ebay for $160? I recently dropped of my camera at the toyo service center and they quoted me $550 for the bellows. I've seen western bellows mentioned on here before as good bellows replacements for the 810Ms. Would prefer to spend less than $550 if possible.

Thanks

**GPS** · 28-Dec-2010, 14:02

As in the other thread about this vendor why don't you just look at his former auctions and see for yourself what the people who bought these bellows say about it? There are comments about exactly your question.

**Neal Chaves** · 28-Dec-2010, 16:06

I have put Western Bellows on four cameras so far and they have all been of outstanding quality. I have one now on my Toyo 810M and it fits perfectly, folds up tight and is made of very tough double layer material. I think I paid around $300 for the Toyo bellows which I fitted to the frames myself, saving a few bucks.

**chacabuco** · 28-Dec-2010, 18:02

Thanks,

I had just missed that previous thread. I will be following it. Thanks also for the Western Bellows info Neal. Glad to hear you've had a positive experience.

**Michael Graves** · 29-Dec-2010, 06:39

Sorry to take so long to see this thread. Didn't catch it until today. I have purchased a bellows from one of the Hong Kong makers for a Toyo, and it was of better quality than the OEM. You do have to remove your old frames, do your best not to lose the tiny little screws, remove the antiquated glue and then glue and screw to get the new bellows back on. As long as you don't suffer from CDS (coordination deficiency syndrome), you should do fine.

**Pete Watkins** · 29-Dec-2010, 07:32

You'll be hard pushed to beat Custom Bellows here in The U.K. They made me a set of fantastic RED bellows for my 1926 Ansco just before Christmas. Great service and great quality.
Pete.

**Michael Graves** · 31-Dec-2010, 05:54

Originally Posted by Pete Watkins

You'll be hard pushed to beat Custom Bellows here in The U.K. They made me a set of fantastic RED bellows for my 1926 Ansco just before Christmas. Great service and great quality.
Pete.

I must be the only one who had a bad experience with Custom. I sent them the old bellows from my 810M. Turn-around time was fast and my initial reaction was good. But then I realized that the new bellows would not collapse correctly when I went to fold the camera up for storage. NOTHING I do allows that. With each use, the front taper on the bellows gets more wrinkled and frayed. Three years have now passed since they made it for me. I have run through maybe fifty sheets of film in that time, and I'm already looking to replace it. I am not a happy camper. Just thought I would get that out there. The Hong Kong bellows I put on the Toyo 4x5 two years ago still looks, feels and works like brand new. It has gotten much heavier usage, but you would never know it.