Graflex.org

[jerryg]

I have a few cameras in need of curtains. 4x5 and 5x7

What is the current best cloth beings used ?

[45PSS]

First read https://graflex.org/helpboard/viewtopic.php?t=5624

For new material find a player piano repair supply and get some .007 thick bellows cloth with nylon backing. There is a cotton backed cloth but it is grey in color not black on the cloth side. For curtains with bad backing cloth I've considered getting black rip stop nylon and coating it with Golden heavy Body Artist Paint #1040 carbon black diluted 1:1 with water and painting on in thin layers until light tight.
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The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

[jerryg]

Thanks for the reply

I did see that thread. It did inspire me to try and recoat one of my curtains. So far the test's i did yesterday are working, not real pretty, but i have another test im going to try.....spraying it on
When i tried brushing it on with a delution of 1:1 it left pin holes...yes it can be re coated, but it also blead through to the other side. I dont want this as it may cause sticking down the road.
As i looked at the original coating, i found it was not soaked into the fabric but was laying on top of the fabric. So this could have been done in a couple ways, sprayed on, or a thin sheet of this coating could have been heat aplied and pressed on. Im thinking sprayed would have been the easiest considering the available technologies in the 20's.
I will be posting all my findings good and bad to help others in thier endeavors.

[45PSS]

I did the inside of Sinar bellows with Tulip Fabric Paint and it had a tendency to stick to itself but was easy to separate.
I have done several shutter curtains with the Golden Heavy Body paint, 2 to 3 thin coats to get it light tight and have never had any sticking to itself issues.
_________________
The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

[jerryg]

here is a pic of the first tests.
1 bristle brush
2 towel / rub in
3 using a scraper for screen printing

the only one that would work sufficiently was the screen printing scraper....the buggers are not cheep ! but it did do a nice job !

https://ibb.co/VHq1tD9


I went to harbor freight for an inexpensive / CHEEP ! sprayer
after two coats, im VERY happy with this ! the sprayer cost $30 and was easy to do. keep note, ive been using sprayers since the 80's . you may need to practice some depending on your skills but this is NOT rocket science.

the tests were done very quickly, i did not strain the liquid once i mixed it 50/50 so there is tiny pin tip size bumps...not a big deal. but after i clean off the tests and start over for the complete job, i will be using a filter either bought from an auto paint store or hand made using panty hose.... these work great for straining.

https://ibb.co/5GbdPbs