Graflex.org

[P. Lynn Miller]

OK... I am just all excited because I bought my first Speed Graphic, or rather two Speed Graphics! Bruce aka 'bruiser' warned me about the Speed flu, but somehow I managed to become seriously infected.

There is Black Speed -



There is Silver Speed -



I do not have any serial numbers, but both cameras have 'speed bumps', so that should help one of you experts be able to date them.

The Black Speed will be outfit with a Aero-Ektar 7" f2.5 mounted on a JoLo lens board. This is perfect timing as Jo is doing his first run of lens boards to fit the wartime Speeds. I am on the hunt for the Aero, searching for a good sample without breaking the bank. So if you know of a source of supply, let me know.

The Silver Speed will be fit with this lens -


Carl Meyer Speedex 5" f2

If this lens performs well, I will have someone, maybe S.K. Grimes, fit it with an aperture. Will be a bit of work in getting this outfit up and running. This lens really gets me excited, this focal length will give the same angle of view as my Leica M5 fitted with a Nokton 35mm f1.2. I am only losing a stop and a half and getting a negative that is 10 times larger. I have been pushing 120 Tri-X to ASA 25,600, imagine what you can do with a 4x5 neg!

I am looking to get a half-dozen or so Grafmatic's that will fit these cameras and a working Polaroid back that will let me shoot the current Fuji instant film.

So a couple of questions...

Can either or both of these cameras be fit with Graflok backs?

Do I need to fit them with Graflok backs or can are Grafmatic's and Polaroid back readily available that fit this version of Graphic back?

Does anyone have a source for the Kalart Focuscopes? I need one for the Black Speed.

These Speeds will be working cameras, used for portrait and street photography. I am really looking forward to seeing those big negatives on the light table!

Thanks for tolerating my 'newbie' excitement!
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P. Lynn Miller
Sydney, Australia

http://plynnmiller.com

[bruiser]

Just judging from appearance the all black Anniversary is 1942-45 and the chrome one is late 1945 to early 1947. Pacemakers first appeared in 1947.

Both can be fitted with Graflok backs but both can be used with Grafmatics and Polaroid 545 and 545i backs as is. The Graflok will allow 120 rollfilm backs to be fitted but that is about the only advantage.

Cheers,
Bruce

[mopar_guy]

If you want to find the serial numbers, set the standard inside the camera body, turn the camera upside down and look for a stamped number on the inside of the top of the camera.
Dave

[glennfromwy]

You can use Grafmatics with your spring backs by putting some washers under the springs, so that it raises them up an 1/8" or so. It may need longer screws (2). They vary in length occasionally.
_________________
Glenn

"Wyoming - Where everybody is somebody else's weirdo"

[Les]

Here's my question, I know it's a bit early,as the Speedex has barely left the States, but why would you want to spend the big $$$ putting an aperture in the Speedex lens?
The Speedex is a 5" lens
The Ektar on the camera is a 5" lens
The biggest benefit of the Speedex is it's fast.

Once you've stopped down to f4.5 you'll have the same effective lens as the ektar only 10 times heavier, and you'll have spent the money on the lens instead of film.

just a thought.

I went through the same thing with my Aero Ektar. Since I was a blonde at one time (when I had hair) it took me a while to realize the folly of lugging around an aero ektar and shooting it at f11 when I had any number of lenses that could do that job at a fraction of its weight.
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"In order to invent, you need a good imagination and a lot of junk" Thomas Edison

[P. Lynn Miller]

Thanks everyone for the advice...

Dave,

When the Speeds hit our sunny shores, I will add the serial numbers to the list.

Glenn,

Thanks, I picked up two Grafmatic's locally, so I am a getting ready...

Les,

Regarding the Speedex...

Speed is the advantage and a variable aperture would be very handy for stopping the lens down a stop or two...

1. To be able to stay keep the same shutter speed in brighter shooting...

2. To gain a bit more depth of field when needed...

I have no issues with using slower lenses, but most of my shooting is in available darkness. On the Leica M5, the Nokton 35mm f1.2 or Nokton 50mm f1.1 are my most used lenses. For medium format... the Norita 66 live with the Noritar 80mm f2.0 on it.

If the Speedex fails to perform on 4x5 because of too much fall off, I will mount it in a battered Noritar and use on the Norita 66, a 125mm f2.0 would be great!

Still looking for an Aero-Ektar 7"... will have one soon. Also been looking at the Aero-Ektar 12" f3... yes, I am slightly demented!
_________________
P. Lynn Miller
Sydney, Australia

http://plynnmiller.com

[Les]

[P. Lynn Miller]

Les,

You seem to know alot more about the Speedex than I do. Did you see the listing on eBay or do you know the seller?

Hopefully my set of Speeds will soon leave the US as well.
_________________
P. Lynn Miller
Sydney, Australia

http://plynnmiller.com

[Les]

I did see the lens on ebay, even had it bookmarked, but funds have to go toward the book, so I didn't bid.

Don't know the seller or the lens. Googled a few things, looked it up in the lens Vade Mecum with no info at all.

Just from physics, an f2 5" lens is going to be big and heavy--that's a 2 1/2" hole* going through there when it's wide open, so I"m guessing this thing is around 3" dia.

from the pics it looks like a double gauss type lens. It will be interesting to see what it can do wide open.

*Yeah I know front lens magnification could allow it to be smaller than 2.5"
_________________
"In order to invent, you need a good imagination and a lot of junk" Thomas Edison

[P. Lynn Miller]

Les,

It was an interesting find for me...

After learning about the Aero-Ektar 7", I was like, 'Wow! This lens actually will let me shoot a Speed on the run, on the streets at night using pushed Tri-X or HP5+.'

But the 7" Aero is actually a telephoto(Ok, maybe a long focus) which would be similar to using a 60mm or so on a 35mm. And I do most of my street work from the perspective of a 35mm focal length, whether shooting 135, 6x6 or 6x9.

So I was thinking I would really like to find a fast 5" lens with a maximum aperture of f2.5 or so. Was even thinking of contacting Zeiss for a quote on a custom lens(yes, I am crazy), even though I am sure I would never be able to afford it.

Then the Speedex shows up on eBay with a maximum aperture of f2.0, so there was no second thoughts, just make sure the seller would ship to Sydney.

It really depends how the lens performs, if flares unmercifully or just too soft to be workable for what I want to do, then it will be back on the auction block.

But if it performs well, in a few months, nights will find me prowling the streets of Sydney with a Speed and Speedex with plenty high-speed B&W film.

Curious what you know about the Uran-10 100mm F2.5, which is a Russian aerial lens...
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P. Lynn Miller
Sydney, Australia

http://plynnmiller.com

[Les]

Curious what you know about the Uran-10 100mm F2.5, which is a Russian aerial lens...


Not a thing, besides, being fast, short and Russian. I once knew an exchange student that fit the same description.
_________________
"In order to invent, you need a good imagination and a lot of junk" Thomas Edison

[P. Lynn Miller]

Just received confirmation that my Speeds left the USA today!

Impatiently waiting... Christmas seems like a long way off!
_________________
P. Lynn Miller
Sydney, Australia

http://plynnmiller.com

[IanG]

[Les]

Ian,
I think Bruce was referring to the second camera. It's a post war Anny, and they were around until 1947, when the Pacemakers arrived. He's not saying these are Pacemakers, both are actually Annies, not Pre-Anns as he states.

Les

Here's a photo of my Pre-Ann.

_________________
"In order to invent, you need a good imagination and a lot of junk" Thomas Edison

[IanG]

My mistake, the picture of the first obe isn't very clear. Apologies Bruce.

The Speed & Crowns sort of evolved their changes bits at a time

Ian