In article <4781e61b$0$16276$822641b3@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>,
David Nebenzahl <nobody@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> Just got finished rebuilding my old Rochester Optical shutter; seems to
> be working about as well as it was when new. But I have a few questions
> about it, directed to those who know a lot more about these old units
> than I.
>
> First of all, let me ID the shutter: it's a pneumatic shutter that says
> "R. O. & C. Co/Rochester, N.Y." on the top. On the bottom, on the
> aperture scale is "VICTOR". Speeds are 1-2-5-25-100 plus T & B. The lens
> says "SYMMETRICAL 5x7" on the side of the front element. Marked
> apertures are 8-16-32-64-256 (!!).
>
> My questions:
>
> 1. As I said, I think I got this working about as well as it ever did.
> The "slow" speeds (those below 1/25) seem extremely dependant on the
> condition of the (right-hand) pneumatic cylinder. With the cylinder (&
> piston) clean and dry, the speeds are noticeably much too fast. When I
> applied a little bit of oil, they slowed down appreciably. Seems as this
> is simply a fact of life for these types of shutters; sticky oil, dirt,
> or cold weather is likely to have major effects on shutter speeds. Was
> the photographer expected to keep his or her shutter "in tune"?
>
> 2. Speaking of pneumatic cylinders, the shutter has two, one on each
> side. But the one on the left does absolutely nothing! There's even a
> hole at the bottom of the cylinder. Were there other models that
> actually used both cylinders? If so, perhaps they wanted to keep the
> appearance the same, so they kept the left cylinder even though it is
> non-functional. Can't think of any other reason to have it there.
>
> 3. The operation of the shutter--that is, how the operator uses
> it--leaves much to be desired. There's no provision for a cable release.
> The same lever is used for cocking (push up) and shutter releasing (push
> down). So the only way one would get good results with long exposures
> would be if one had a very steady hand (or a massive tripod, or both).
>
> The thing that doesn't seem right is that the shutter doesn't work
> correctly unless one keeps the lever held down until the shutter closes.
> If you release the shutter but then let go of the lever before the
> exposure ends, the shutter will stay open until you press the lever
> again. Is this the way these were supposed to work? (I guess I've been
> spoiled by modern shutters.)
Don't know anything about these shutters, sounds interesting. I wonder
if a dry lubricant like graphite might be a better choice than oil.
--
Reality is a picture perfected and never looking back.
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