Just the samllest suggestion for wooden cameras. Inserting a holder into the back on my lovable but willowy burke and james 8x10 was getting increasingly difficult. I used furniture wax on the inside of the back and on the holders and now they slide in easily. I would think even candle wax will do the trick. Much less frustrating.

-- jim ryder (j.ryder@verizon.net), February 24, 2002

Answers

Thanks, Jim. That worked GREAT for me! Takes a great mind to think of something so simple.

-- Alec (alecj@bellsouth.net), February 24, 2002.

Hmmmm. seems too easy to be true. Ive been lamenting the tightness of my old Ansco back lately, and more than once its helped ruin a carefully framed shot.

-- Wayne (wsteffen@skypoint.com), February 24, 2002.

Hi Jim, I had the wax idea some time ago, tried it, and fould I got a lot of wax shavings. I had slicker results with Silicone Spray Lubricant. Best, David

-- david clark (doclark@yorku.ca), February 24, 2002.

A friend recently suggested using crumpled up waxed paper to "lubricate" the dark slides on larger film holders. It seemed to work well for that purpose, perhaps it would do the trick for this application.

-- Robert A. Zeichner (info@razeichner.com), February 24, 2002.

Give Johnson Paste Floor wax a try, I use it on the metal parts of my Shopsmith and it works great. No wax shavings either. I would rub a small amount into a cloth well and then rub it lightly on the parts.

-- Garry Teeple (gteeple@coin.org), February 24, 2002.

Ken Hough is the guy that restores Deardorff cameras. He has said for some time that wooden cameras require maintenence just like cars. His recommendations are for Deardorff but should be applicable more widely. He says that Lemon Pledge can be used on the entire camera except the ground glass. Each year, the gear racks should be lubricated with LUBRIPLATE #630 brand grease. Lubriplate can be bought at a hardware store. Get the thickest, Like peanut butter. If you can not get Lubriplate use a thick white lithium grease. Wood to wood surfaces get waxed with a block of Candy making wax available at the grocery store.

-- Tom Keenan (tmk@earthlink.net), February 24, 2002.

A stub of candle rubbed over the sliding parts is the time-honoured 'lube' for wooden cameras.

-- Pete Andrews (p.l.andrews@bham.ac.uk), February 25, 2002.