Posted by Henry on March 11, 2001 at 07:35:25:
In Reply to: Lenses for Speed graphic posted by David Schmidthuber on March 11, 2001 at 06:52:24:
....Also, any reasonably priced lens options would be appreciated.
TIA
David,
Though some may disagree, you will do very well indeed to seek out
the line of Optar lenses which Graflex designed for use with their
cameras. The more recent the manufacture, the better. Optically
they are quite competent and also affordable, though prices are
rising. For example, I acquired the 203mm Optar in Graphex [no. 2]
shutter with full M-F-X synch for $169---it is a gem: tack sharp; I
will go out on a limb and state that one could not do better at any
price. On the other hand (and this is somewhat heretical advice!)
avoid Synchro-compur and Kodak shutters. While the optics may be
fine, mechanically these are problematical, not as convenient to
work with in the field, and likely to be expensive to fix, if
possible (I speak from experience). As with any lens, check out
glass on potential purchases for obvious scratches, fungus, etc.
Slow or sticky shutters can often be brought back to spec by
removing the front and rear optics and flushing the works with a
combination of lighter fluid and powdered graphite. You may find
that the flash synch is dead, necessitating a not too difficult (if
you're at all handy) tear-down of the first one or two shutter
layers to clean and adjust the contacts---reprints of official
Graflex shop manuals are available for this procedure. Main sources
for Graflex/Optar stuff: camera shows and ads in Shutterbug
magazine. Good luck! Henry