MFlenses - A new life in a digital age
MFLenses 2026

Manual Focus Lenses Forum

Explore the world of vintage lenses through repair notes, real test shots, and detailed archive threads packed with images.

Explore the world of vintage lenses through repair notes, real test shots, and detailed archive threads packed with images.
logovectorizer.com
Spotlight

Featured partner placement for the forum front page.

Welta 9x12 with Trioplan 15cm f:3.5
Post new topic Reply to topic
View previous topic :: View next topic  


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 5:40 pm
Post subject: Welta 9x12 with Trioplan 15cm f:3.5
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 5:40 pm
Post subject: Welta 9x12 with Trioplan 15cm f:3.5
Reply
They say size isn't everything, but it sure helps.

Welta 9x12cm with Meyer Gorlitz, Trioplan 15cm f:3.5 in Compur shutter.
This must have cost somebody an arm and leg when new.





And handily enough, the Rada rollfilm back I bought for the other one (and didn't fit), fits this, although I had to trim away some of the leatherette covering to reduce the thickness of the back sliderails. The Rada back was obviously meant to fit the metal-backed cameras like this, so I imagine many owners had to do similar.



It's a bit dog-eared at the moment, but will clean up nicely and I look forward to getting some pics out of it. It came with two plate holders, minus film inserts, but that's not a major problem now that I can run some 120 through it, as soon as tomorrow.

Last edited by Farside on Tue Jul 20, 2010 6:09 am; edited 1 time in total


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 5:57 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 5:57 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Dave, 'tis a handsome beast, looking forward to those 120 shots!


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 6:41 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 6:41 pm
Post subject:
Reply
That's a great looking camera, with a nice fast lens.


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 7:25 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 7:25 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Hot dog! What a beauty, that is very intresting indeed.

How do you arrange focusing with the 120 back?


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 7:42 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 7:42 pm
Post subject:
Reply
How cool Dave! I can't wait to see it's result!


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:03 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:03 pm
Post subject:
Reply
What a gem!. It's very well conserved, hope the performance will be as good as it's nice looking!.

Enjoy it!


Jes.


Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 9:05 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 9:05 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Thanks all, it's verra verra nice. I've been exercising the shutter and it's freed up beautifully, but the slowest marked speed of one second is remaining stubbornly fast at 1/4 sec- but if I turn the camera on its side it's ok. Confused

Nesster wrote:
Hot dog! What a beauty, that is very intresting indeed.

How do you arrange focusing with the 120 back?

I can use it on a tripod with the ground glass, or use the scale focus at the side - which I'll have to check the accuracy of.
One thing I've found is the min aperture is f:12.5, seems very odd. Maybe there's a good reason for that.


Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 8:14 am
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 8:14 am
Post subject:
Reply
So it goes from f3.5 to f12.5? Perhaps the "speed" of the plate emulsion in those days was so slow that anything darker than 12.5 was useless.

Do you know how old it is? It looks pre-30s.


Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 1:19 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 1:19 pm
Post subject:
Reply
I'd assumed it was slightly later than the other wooden-bodied Welta, which I'm fairly sure is c.1928, and that has stops from 5.4 to 36. Then again, that's a much smaller lens, a mere 24mm in diameter.
I suspect the restricted aperture range is to do with the oversized nature of the whole assembly, it perhaps being difficult in those days to make a reliable wide range of apertures with the shape of the blades being dictated by the throat size, in this case 44mm dia.


Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 1:48 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 1:48 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Spying the Compur serial# 47xxxx I look up the years 1920-22 as the manufacture year.

Re the stops, if this is such an old camera (I'm in awe) the stops may be indicated in some other system:



Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 3:09 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 3:09 pm
Post subject:
Reply
PaulC wrote:
So it goes from f3.5 to f12.5? Perhaps the "speed" of the plate emulsion in those days was so slow that anything darker than 12.5 was useless.


Film was not that slow back then - it was no accident that they already had shutters reaching down to 1/200 to 1/500s. Fast films post WWI were in the ISO 100 range, and more than f/12.5 would have been quite desirable even with the then regular ISO 12 films.

On many plate folders of similar construction the aperture is offset from the optical node of the lens for reasons of better collapsibility - and offset apertures cause a focus drift which limits the practically useful aperture range.


Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 10:38 pm
Post subject:
Reply
Post
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 10:38 pm
Post subject:
Reply
I love this camera. It's wanderfull. Like a beautyfull woman.

And love the lens too.

Where are these cameras ?????

Congratulation, lucky man! Confused

Enjoy Wink
Post new topic Reply to topic
Page 1 of 1