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dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

Hello everyone,
I am new to this forum but not to this great site.
Please pardon me if this is a naive question...

I recently obtained a baby graphic that I love, but has one issue that is bugging me.
I bought this with a graflex lens. When focused at infinity, the lens board area needs to be practically right under the front cover of teh camera (where the Graflex logo is seen). this gives me no play area for adjustments.

Is this normal?
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Dave T.

Henry · Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2016 12:05 am Post subject:

Are you focussing on the ground glass or through a rangefinder? Is yours a Baby Speed Graphic or, like my Century, just a Graphic? Normally on my Century with the 103 Graftar lens the front standard is against the infinity stops and focussed on infinity with about one inch between the front edge of the camera box and the plane of the lensboard. And indeed, at that point it is only possible to retract the bellows another scant 1/16". But if your infinity stops are placed accurately, I'm not understanding why you're so far back in the box.

dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

It is indeed a baby speed graphic.
I'm guessing that this is not the original lens as the infinity stops are in what I would call a,normal position, but if I pull the lens to the stops, the focus is useless.the stops are roughly 1/3" in front of where the current lens actually focuses at infinity, which is actually right over the gap in the focusing rail which is preventing usage of any movement of the bed and just where I can't raise the lens as it hits the top of the box interior.
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Dave T.

Dan Fromm · Joined: 14 May 2001 Posts: 2144 Location: New Jersey

(1) Please answer Henry's question. Are you focusing with the rangefinder or on the groundglass? Which?

(2) 103 mm sounds like a Graflar or Graftar. Is this correct?

dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

focusing on the ground class
Be after lens.
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Dave T.

dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

Pardon the typo's in my previous post. I need to learn NOT to post from a phone as this always creates trouble.

Meant to say that this is using a Graftar lens (F4.5 103mm)
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Dave T.

45PSS · Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2016 7:23 pm Post subject:

I have a Miniature Speed Graphic. It has a 101mm lens. It focuses infinity with the front standard just in front of the bed hinge leaving just enough room to raise the front standard a small distance.

Do you have a Miniature Speed or a 2x3 Pacemaker Speed?
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The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

This is a Baby Speed Graphic (2x3 mini)
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Dave T.

dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

...and yes, it seems to hit infinite at the same point as yours, although it would be very impractical to try and use any movements on mine.
So it would appear that this is normal?
If I want to be able to use any of the movements, I would need a longer lens?
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Dave T.

45PSS · Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2016 7:53 pm Post subject:

Miniature Speed Graphic, Pacemaker Crown and Speed Graphic in 2 1/4 x 3 1/4 (2x3) format and Century Graphic in 2x3 format are all called Baby Graphic. Each has a different build and it is important to know which model to solve problems.

You might look for a 105mm or maybe Dan will give you a list of lens that work on 2x3 Graphics.
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The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

peter k · Joined: 26 Dec 2009 Posts: 207 Location: Sedona Az

Here is the first of three references to lenses on 2x3 .. aka Dan

http://www.galerie-photo.com/1-lens-6x9-dan-fromm.html

"Unlikely lenses on 2.25x3.25 Graphics"

dtankersley · Joined: 16 Mar 2016 Posts: 7 Location: Anaheim, CA

Thank you Peter. Looks like I have some homework to do. That is an excellent article!
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Dave T.

Dan Fromm · Joined: 14 May 2001 Posts: 2144 Location: New Jersey

In the article I didn't mention likely lenses for 2x3. When I was accumulating lenses I was, um, bottom feeding, looking for good-quality inexpensive lenses.

There are, though, some very likely modern normal lenses (100 - 105 mm) for 2x3 from, in alphabetical order, Fuji, Nikon, Rodenstock and Schneider. They have better coverage than "classic" (triplets and tessar types) normal lenses for the format, not a great advantage on 2x3 Graphics because of the cameras' limited movements.

I also didn't mention modern telephoto lenses for 2x3, in particular Schneider's Tele-Arton.

When 2x3 flourished most 2x3 cameras were fixed lens pocketable, more or less, folders fitted with a triplet or tessar type normal lens. Interchangeable lens 2x3 cameras (press, technical and view) were much less common and relatively few lenses were made specifically for 2x3.