Graflex.org

[ferlopezperez]

Where can I find serious information about the movements of a crown graphic special?
I would like to modify my camera in order to achieve "almost" all the regular movements. Is there a book or something I can get to do it the best way?
Thank you so much for your help.

[t.r.sanford]

Previous discussion here has established that a "Crown Graphic Special" body is, in fact, a "Crown Graphic," so the same information would apply to both.

What is it that you need to know? The service manuals, available from a variety of sources, will show you how the front is assembled. Looking at the front will suggest that you'd have to build an entirely new one in order to get additional movements.

In fact, the only thing you can't do, to some extent, with a "Crown" is swing the front. Perhaps devising a trick lensboard of some kind would be a practical way of doing that. I'm imagining cutting out a "Pacemaker" board to form a shallow frame, attaching a couple of right-angled brackets at top and bottom, pivoting a smaller secondary board or front between them, and connecting that to the frame with a short bellows.

Several 4x5 press cameras had more extensive front tilt than Graflex ever provided. Depending on what you're attempting to do; one or another of them might be a more elegant solution than performing major reconstructive surgery on a "Crown" front.