Graflex.org

[jerryg]

I have a 4x5 pacemaker that I can't seem to get the governor/ retarded to slow the speed correctly. I've thoroughly cleaned , I've made sure the plastic type tubes move freely, but the speeds still dont reduce enough.
All my top speeds are bang on at a consistent average of
1/1000 = 1/995
1/250 = 1/255
1/50 = 1/ 56

I'm very happy with these speeds, But the slower speeds are

1/500 = 1/650
1/125 = 1/177
1/30 = 1/42

Any help please 😁

[William Hallett]

I'm not sure that you are going to improve on these much. The speed governor depends on friction, and friction coefficients generally exhibit a lot of scatter. But I could suggest that you make sure that there is no lubricant on the ends of the little sliding shoes or on the inside of the drum that they are supposed to rub on. Any lubrication here will reduce the retarding action of the governor.
_________________
WilliamH

[45PSS]

If you're confident the governor is working its best then reduce the initial spring tension 1/2 to 2 turns in 1/2 turn increments until an acceptable balance between slow and fast speeds is achieved.

Too high of an initial tension results in fast slow speeds.
_________________
The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

[jerryg]

Thank you both for your help. After thinking on it for a couple of days i decided to give some small weights a try. So i made some from tint SS washers. I milled them down from 5mm to 3.5 which was the largest i wanted them for clearance purposes.
The very first try of the washers behind both of the tube brakes worked out perfectly. I maintained all my top accurate speeds as well as slowed the lower speeds well within spec.
Im am very happy with the results

I hope this will help others in the future

[William Hallett]

That's a brilliant idea! You're slightly increasing the centrifugal force on the weight and therefore the frictional force as well. Did you glue the washer in place or just leave it loose?
_________________
WilliamH

[jerryg]

Thank you William
I left them loose so they can move freely.