Posted by Les on May 06, 2001 at 19:51:02:
In Reply to: A lot of questions about the crown graflex posted by Alex on May 05, 2001 at 20:52:07:
: I do not know too much about 4 x 5 cameras, but would
: very much like to have one to start LF photography. I
: like this Crown Graflex 4 x 5 camera. I would
: appreciate very much if someone can help me with the
: list of questions:
: 1. Can I go to any new photo dealers and buy new Large
: Format Lenses for this camera which will fit the
: supplied lens board? Or I got to stuck with all
: factory supplied lenses and boards.
There are two things that define what "fits' on a crown. 1) the
coverage of the lens. It needs to cover 4x5 at least, and
preferably a bit more than that. However you don't need a lens that
can cover 5x7 since the movements on a Crown won't use that kind of
movements.
2) Phyisical size. a lot of those lenses that cover 5x7 have very
large pieces of glass in the front and back. This can make it
difficult to fit the lens onto the camera, and once on, not allow
the bed to close. So the answer to your question is yes SOME new
lenses will fit.
: 2. What NEW lens boards are avaliable for this camera?
yes Midwest Camera Exchange (www.mpex.com) sells very nice ones
with a #0 hole for $19
: 3. Can I buy and use any new universal 4 x 5 film
: holders for this camera or I have to use the factory
: ones?
Any new 4x5 film holder will fit, most of the older ones will
fit too. The ones to stay away from are GRAFLEX holders, (you want
GRAPHIC holders) and very old holders that hold glass plates, not
film.
: 4. Is the frensel lens and focusing ground galss
: universal? Can I get them replaced with new parts
: easily with photo dealers in NY? Or I have to search
: all over the used market to find them?
I'm not sure they are universal. I doubt the fresnel screen is,
but maybe Beatie would say differently. The trick is to get the
same thickness so the film plane hasn't moved.