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Hi everyone,

Well my Red MPP MKVII arrived today and it looks ok other than the metalwork could do with a sympethetic clean.... havent checked the belows yet. Ive checked shutter speeds and lens apertures on the lens, and have found the mechanical self timer on the lens, however, I was expecting there to be a means of locking the lens iris open to focus but can see anything on the lens itself (which I assumed it would be....)

can anyone advise?

hiya keith, I have an older lens with an old shutter on which you have to use a locking cable release to hold the shutter open on the B setting for composing etc. sounds like it could be the same with this one. cheers, john

Usually the Compur shutter has either a self-timer or the lock to hold the shutter open. On older Copmurs it's a silver button directly behind the shutter speed indicator mark, you push it back and fire the shutter (any speed) and it locks open. You just re-cock the shutter to close it ready for use.

Ian

Hi, I suspect I may have to hold the shutter open with a cable release as suggested.... the self timer appears to work, but the same button does not lock shutter open...

The 120mm Angulons had a few variations with regards to the Compur shutters used, some had a push in Preview button to the right of the speed indicator/self timer (looking at the front).

It's a bit of a pain when there's no preview button, most of the early 65mm f8 Super Angulons in Compur 00 shutters have no preview and the very early 90mm SA (same shutter).

At least you have a cable release socket, my one Compur has no preview or cable socket . You could keep your eye out for a Compur 1 shutter any rimset type from 1928 onwards would work as long as it has the preview feature, you'd just need to transfer the lens cells & the aperture scale, they cane be found quite cheaply with uncoated pre WWII 135mm.150mm Tessar lenses and are very reliable.

Ian

When I bought my first LF camera in the 1980s it was an MPP Mark V and a Ross lens mounted in an early Compur shutter (speeds: B, 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 300). To open the shutter for viewing I had to use the lock on my cable release then recock the shutter.

When I bought my current outfit a few years ago I was very impressed that modern shutters had a lever to open the shutter!

On a positive note Ian, theres no chance of me forgetting Ive left the shutter open and fogging film...

Update also.... Ive taken the ground glass off, extended belows and had a brief peer inside. I was concerned that the bellows may have been split as there is a crack in red leather in one place, but the internal black bellows material looks fine.
I bought half a dozen DDS which are a bit dusty but will clean up and a Wista 6x7 back at the same time.

The plan is:

1. Clean the body with a damp cloth and a little cif... its a bit dirty
2. Buy a short cable release with a locking ring
3. Buy a tripod bush adapter (I'm wondering if 1/4 to 3/8 will do... the MPP book says its a "Whitworth 1/4"
4. Put a roll of film through using the Wista back.... this will be cheaprer than going out and buying 25 sheets of 5x4 only to find that the bellows ARE actually buggered or that the lens/shutter isnt accurate....

Thingy.....

I thought the MK IV and MK V was never released for sale?

Keith Atkinson wrote:3. Buy a tripod bush adapter (I'm wondering if 1/4 to 3/8 will do... the MPP book says its a "Whitworth 1/4"

Whitworth (i.e. BSW - British Standard Whitworth) is the normal type of thread on all tripod sockets (both 1/4" and 3/8") so you've got no worries there.

I had a 105mm symmar that was in one of those miniscule 00 shutters with no press focus. Using a locking release wasn't that much of a pain really. More of a pain was trying to use my sausage fingers to adjust anything!

Keith Atkinson wrote:Thingy.....

I thought the MK IV and MK V was never released for sale?

Mine came in a large heavy box complete with (Ross) lenses and was labelled Mk.V, and was a snip at £500 for the lot. Sold it later for £500! I would have preferred a Mk.VIII but they were too expensive at the time and the one being sold hadn't got any "free" lenses included in the purchase price.

Perhaps I should have kept in and sold it on to a collector?

Keith,

A cheap way to do a good practical test for light leaks is to put a piece of photo paper into a film holder and then put the camera in the light for a few hours with the darkslide out. I had an old cameo that the bellows looked fine, however it turned out the shutter blades did not close fully and all I wasted was a sheet of photo paper. Interestingly, sometimes if there is a pinhole in the bellows, you can get some rather interesting images develop!

Best regards,

Evan

well, today my cable release arrived....
surprise surprise.... the thread on the lens socket is smaller than the tread on the cable release....

Keith Atkinson wrote:well, today my cable release arrived....
surprise surprise.... the thread on the lens socket is smaller than the tread on the cable release....

There's some dodgy cable releases around, I bought a pair from Jessops (own brand) 2 or 3 years ago and they were too large to fit all but one of my cameras/lenses. Send them back.

I get one of my nieces to get most of mine, a camera shop sells then S/H for £1 each to me but less to her

Ian