Absolutely. When I bought a pair of these cameras back in ~2004, they came with the flash handles. I sold one of those flash handles for about the same amount of money that I bought the entire set for on eBay. The buyer was a cosplayer/Star Wars collector. I kept one of the handles and I even have a set of flash bulbs (circa 1960) for it.
Thanks, man! I've been trolling eBay for this camera literally years waiting for the right combination of condition and dirt cheapness haha It finally happened :)
Absolutely. However, there are a few long term considerations that might come into play regarding my decision to do the conversion. I'm not unhappy with it by any means, but I do wish I hadn't sold my original back. Also worth mentioning is that I don't think this adapter is available anymore.
nice! I have the same model that I've cleaned and used for about a year now. Mine has a graflock back though, it's kind of odd that yours does'nt as pretty much all of the newer post war graflex's had them
That's awesome! Yeah I would have preferred the Graflock back but I'm planning on switching out (maybe) the Graphic back for a Toyo 45 rotating back. I've already got the adapter which I hope works. But I just will really...really miss the metal glass shroud haha Question if you don't mind: how much cleaning did you do on yours? This one is in great shape but there are a few things I'm going to clean up and was wondering if you disassembled the focal plane shutter by chance.
@@AdamWelch I dont mind. mine was in amazing condition when I got it, probobly because it was stored in the original carrying case this whole time. The shutter curtain worked fine but I did end up just taking the back off and re-lubing it a little bit, I also greased up the focusing rails.
Good review, I own a Baby Graflex and the 4X5, and 100 years old brass lenses, also I have started to make my own lens boards. Zip ties is my solution to hold the lens attached to the boards.
Hey Adam, nice video of this wonderful camera. Question: where did you source that adapter to use a Toyo rotating back from? I would like to get one. Does it crop when rotated? Thanks.
I'm glad you liked this! And from your name...you should check out the video where I took Marcus to Oatman, AZ haha Anyway, I purchased the adapter from a seller on eBay. This is the exact one I have ebay.us/B0wBg7 Believe it or not, the price has actually went down since I ordered mine. All that being said, I still haven't put the back on the Graflex. As it turns out, I'll need to drill and tap the rotating back in order to attach the adapter. It's not much, just more than I'm willing to tackle right now all things considered. The adapter seems well made and fits the back of the Speedgraphic perfectly, it also matches with the Toyo back perfectly. The few people I've heard that have adapted the backs don't speak of any cutoff while vertical and the seller claims the same. I just don't see how it's possible not to have a bit of cutoff but then again I've haven't personally tried it yet.
It's been a while since I searched for videos but there didn't appear to be any. I intend to go by this/these articles www.graflex.org/speed-graphic/kalart-adjustment.html#:~:text=Focus%20the%20camera%20to%204,retighten%20screws. and the Kalart manual found here www.pacificrimcamera.com/rl/rlKalartMisc.htm The procedure depends on your model (naturally) as well. I will of course likely film the pain I experience when I finally do adjust mine. I'm hoping it's not going to be as horrible as I think it will be.
Stephen, how many times have I asked you to stop biting the cameras?! 😁 That's very good to hear and I absolutely believe it's still functioning. I've had the Speed Graphic in storage for over a year since I moved onto the road full-time but I miss that camera. I never recalibrated the rangefinder after I did the Toyo back swap and I've been thinking about putting the ULF gear away for a while and travel with Marcus for a bit after I calibrate the RF.
I know the piece you're mentioning. Oddly enough it doesn't appear in virtually any of the manuals or diagrams. The times I notice it are on Graphics which don't have a lens board flash solenoid (but some do) so judging by the electrodes on top of the device I would assume it is some type of solenoid for using the flash. In any case, I don't think it is an actual viewfinder. Anyone with more definite insight on this feel free to chime in 😊
@@AdamWelch A little late but I have the exact same camera and mine has the Focuspot attachment. I managed to find a manual for it. It's made to help focusing in the dark/low light, there's a light bulb (I managed to get mine to light up at 3V) inside (meant to be connected to the flash battery) that projects two beams of light through the range finder lenses. You are supposed to adjust the focus so the two beams coincide on the subject, exactly as normally using the range finder but kind of reversed. A cool accessory for which there's not much information online. Unfortunately my range finder is stuck and I haven't gotten around to taking it apart yet as I mostly use a non-original lens so the range finder would not be accurate anyway.
It is a spring back (I may have said Graflock, but it's spring) and I actually intend to do that very thing. I've already got the adapter but I'm waiting on a good deal for the back I want.
Fun Fact: Luke's Lightsaber from 'A New Hope' was originally made from a Graflex Speed Graphic flash tube. Yes...really.
Absolutely. When I bought a pair of these cameras back in ~2004, they came with the flash handles. I sold one of those flash handles for about the same amount of money that I bought the entire set for on eBay. The buyer was a cosplayer/Star Wars collector. I kept one of the handles and I even have a set of flash bulbs (circa 1960) for it.
@@AndrewOvenden Wow, what a find. I'd be afraid to see how much those units go for now.
Such a badass camera dude, congrats on getting it!
Thanks, man! I've been trolling eBay for this camera literally years waiting for the right combination of condition and dirt cheapness haha It finally happened :)
Beautiful. I think of her more as a stately Marqueta. But I love the bumps - hope you didn't fix.
Nope. The bumps remain 😁
I had no idea you could swap the back with a rotating one. I gotta look into that!
Absolutely. However, there are a few long term considerations that might come into play regarding my decision to do the conversion. I'm not unhappy with it by any means, but I do wish I hadn't sold my original back. Also worth mentioning is that I don't think this adapter is available anymore.
This is my camera. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
great video!
nice! I have the same model that I've cleaned and used for about a year now. Mine has a graflock back though, it's kind of odd that yours does'nt as pretty much all of the newer post war graflex's had them
That's awesome! Yeah I would have preferred the Graflock back but I'm planning on switching out (maybe) the Graphic back for a Toyo 45 rotating back. I've already got the adapter which I hope works. But I just will really...really miss the metal glass shroud haha Question if you don't mind: how much cleaning did you do on yours? This one is in great shape but there are a few things I'm going to clean up and was wondering if you disassembled the focal plane shutter by chance.
@@AdamWelch I dont mind. mine was in amazing condition when I got it, probobly because it was stored in the original carrying case this whole time. The shutter curtain worked fine but I did end up just taking the back off and re-lubing it a little bit, I also greased up the focusing rails.
@@seafire820 Very cool. I'm about to do a quick clean on mine finally in a few minutes. Did you adjust the tension of the focal plain shutter at all?
Good review, I own a Baby Graflex and the 4X5, and 100 years old brass lenses, also I have started to make my own lens boards. Zip ties is my solution to hold the lens attached to the boards.
That's outstanding! What lenses do you have? I've been eyeing a few Bausch and Lombs but haven't found a good deal yet.
@@AdamWelch I am trying to attach a picture of the Brass 100 years old lenses,
I'm not sure that it is possible in the comments. Thank you though.
Thanks - I would be keen to hear how you use zip ties to attach lens’??
Hey Adam, nice video of this wonderful camera. Question: where did you source that adapter to use a Toyo rotating back from? I would like to get one. Does it crop when rotated? Thanks.
I'm glad you liked this! And from your name...you should check out the video where I took Marcus to Oatman, AZ haha Anyway, I purchased the adapter from a seller on eBay. This is the exact one I have ebay.us/B0wBg7 Believe it or not, the price has actually went down since I ordered mine. All that being said, I still haven't put the back on the Graflex. As it turns out, I'll need to drill and tap the rotating back in order to attach the adapter. It's not much, just more than I'm willing to tackle right now all things considered. The adapter seems well made and fits the back of the Speedgraphic perfectly, it also matches with the Toyo back perfectly. The few people I've heard that have adapted the backs don't speak of any cutoff while vertical and the seller claims the same. I just don't see how it's possible not to have a bit of cutoff but then again I've haven't personally tried it yet.
Why put a Toyo rotating back on the Speed Graphic camera?
Do you put a German electric Bosch motor on a Harley Davidson ?
If I wanted to shoot vertically with the Harley, then yes.
I need to adjust my rangefinder. Can you point me to a how-to video?
It's been a while since I searched for videos but there didn't appear to be any. I intend to go by this/these articles www.graflex.org/speed-graphic/kalart-adjustment.html#:~:text=Focus%20the%20camera%20to%204,retighten%20screws. and the Kalart manual found here www.pacificrimcamera.com/rl/rlKalartMisc.htm
The procedure depends on your model (naturally) as well.
I will of course likely film the pain I experience when I finally do adjust mine. I'm hoping it's not going to be as horrible as I think it will be.
@@AdamWelch Tnanks! Wow. That sounds involved! Don’t know if I’ll have the guts to tackle that 😬
Cut my baby teeth on one of those. Still have one, built around 1955. Still works perfectly. Enjoy!
Stephen, how many times have I asked you to stop biting the cameras?! 😁
That's very good to hear and I absolutely believe it's still functioning. I've had the Speed Graphic in storage for over a year since I moved onto the road full-time but I miss that camera. I never recalibrated the rangefinder after I did the Toyo back swap and I've been thinking about putting the ULF gear away for a while and travel with Marcus for a bit after I calibrate the RF.
Why don't any of the videos show the Focuspot which mounts on top of the side mounted rangefinder?
I know the piece you're mentioning. Oddly enough it doesn't appear in virtually any of the manuals or diagrams. The times I notice it are on Graphics which don't have a lens board flash solenoid (but some do) so judging by the electrodes on top of the device I would assume it is some type of solenoid for using the flash. In any case, I don't think it is an actual viewfinder. Anyone with more definite insight on this feel free to chime in 😊
@@AdamWelch A little late but I have the exact same camera and mine has the Focuspot attachment. I managed to find a manual for it. It's made to help focusing in the dark/low light, there's a light bulb (I managed to get mine to light up at 3V) inside (meant to be connected to the flash battery) that projects two beams of light through the range finder lenses. You are supposed to adjust the focus so the two beams coincide on the subject, exactly as normally using the range finder but kind of reversed. A cool accessory for which there's not much information online. Unfortunately my range finder is stuck and I haven't gotten around to taking it apart yet as I mostly use a non-original lens so the range finder would not be accurate anyway.
@@Murgoh Wow, I would never have guessed that was the function. Thanks so much for sharing that info! Is the manual you found online?
@@AdamWelch Here's a page about it: lommen9.home.xs4all.nl/focuspot/index.html
Is yours a spring back?? Mines is and I wanted to know if I can convert to a rotating back
It is a spring back (I may have said Graflock, but it's spring) and I actually intend to do that very thing. I've already got the adapter but I'm waiting on a good deal for the back I want.