Bellow Repair

spazoid1965 · Post by **spazoid1965** » Fri May 15, 2015 11:02 pm

This is my first post on this website. I have a question about repairing bellows. My Nikon F bellows has sprung a few small leaks. I'm still using it. But I'm having to wrap dark cloth around the bellows to keep the light out. Does anyone have any tricks or suggestions about how to fix my equipment?

Charles Krebs · Post by **Charles Krebs** » Sat May 16, 2015 12:09 am

Welcome!

My Nikon F bellows has sprung a few small leaks

f it is just a few you can usually close them up in a variety of ways.

-- "Liquid electrical tape" (lots of brands out there, and inexpensive. Just do a web search)
-- Black gaffer tape or masking tape.
-- Black fabric paint (craft, fabric or art supply store)
-- http://www.bostick-sullivan.com/cart/home.php?cat=16

If you have a few then there's a fair chance the bellows will develop more if the leather/fabric/coating are deteriorating. (At least that was my experience back in the view camera days). So keep an eye on it.

To track down the leaks, extend the bellows in a dark room with a rear lens cap attached. Find a small flashlight (bare-bulb is best) that you can insert into the front. Move it around and look for the leaks.

spazoid1965 · Post by **spazoid1965** » Sat May 16, 2015 5:28 pm

Thanks for the great info.

Peter De Smidt · Post by **Peter De Smidt** » Mon May 18, 2015 7:26 am

Or have Custom Bellows in England make you a new one. They were/are the OEM maker for Sinar, Linhof, Canham, and many others.They have the bellows from my Century No. 7 as we speak. Turner and Western Bellows in the US aren't making bellows anymore.

spazoid1965 · Post by **spazoid1965** » Mon May 18, 2015 3:32 pm

Peter De Smidt wrote:Or have Custom Bellows in England make you a new one. They were/are the OEM maker for Sinar, Linhof, Canham, and many others.They have the bellows from my Century No. 7 as we speak. Turner and Western Bellows in the US aren't making bellows anymore.

Hey Peter, Do they have a website?

Peter De Smidt · Post by **Peter De Smidt** » Mon May 18, 2015 6:05 pm

http://www.custombellows.co.uk/

austrokiwi1 · Post by **austrokiwi1** » Tue May 19, 2015 1:19 am

I am currently in the process of making and folding a new bellows. I am practicing with photocopy paper to begin with. Getting the folds right is the biggest challenge. When I have succeeded I will post what I did

austrokiwi1 · Post by **austrokiwi1** » Fri May 22, 2015 2:52 am

I gave up trying to make my own replacement bellows, making the template was time consuming. The major problem was as I expected folding the bellows; I am sure a jig of some sort is necessary. I contacted Custom Bellows. They quoted GBP 88.00 for a replacement Mamiya 645 bellows. This quote excludes VAT and postage, and I was required to send the old bellows and mounting plates to them( already with the courier) Quoted turn around time is 2-3 weeks.

austrokiwi1 · Post by **austrokiwi1** » Tue Jun 23, 2015 11:00 am

Just an up date I received the replacement bellows from Custom bellows a good couple of weeks ago. Its very impressive much higher quality the the original material.

Peter De Smidt · Post by **Peter De Smidt** » Tue Jun 23, 2015 11:37 am

That's great to hear. I'm happy with the bellows that I recently got from them as well.