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Karl.t1965

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Karl
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Some may have seen that I wasn't happy with my current 4x5, it will be heading to eBay shortly, so I was looking for a replacement, I have handled Wista 45DX and quite like them and was looking forward to this year's Photography show so I would get the chance to see the Intrepid and Chroma, well that didn't happen. Steve who makes the Chroma was kind enough to loan me his own pre production version of the Chroma Carbon Adventurer. All I can say is what an incredible piece of engineering.
The camera has a great range of movement that will more than satisfy most users, the front and rear tilt and pivot all work through the centre line saving on refocusing. The production version can handle lenses down to 58mm on a flat board, with the bag bellows, so more than likely even the 47mm will fit with a recessed board.
Front and rear standards can both be moved forward and back so even with a wide angle lens fitted there is no danger of getting the front of the camera in shot. Fine Focus is by a screw that moves the rear standard.

I'm sold on it, anybody interested in starting out with large format couldn't go far wrong. Any questions about it let me know.

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Thanks a lot for the feedback Karl, I really appreciate it and am looking forward to building your Adventurer soon (y)

As Mark has posted above, if you'd like to see the history of Chroma, back to September 2016 when @Carl Hall forced me to design it while I was in the pub, it's a pretty thorough thread :)

Cheers
 
Yes, if it wasn't for alcohol Steve wouldn't be the man he is today...:beer::ROFLMAO:
 
I designed and printed a magnetic frame to secure my Pixl-Latr to the film back of the Chroma today.

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There will be bellows fitted on the final build, but I wanted to test it out quickly this evening. I need to draw up a lens board tomorrow which will secure my OM Zuiko 50/3.5 lens (attached to my Sony A7) and allow me to mount them, rear-facing into the front standard. I can then use rise/fall to shoot multiple images of the film then stitch it afterwards.

I’ve just taken 3 very quick handheld shots, just resting my A7/lens on the cutout in the front standard, and stitched them. I’m pretty happy with the result for a first effort. It will be much sharper when the camera is solidly mounted.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/lioldldn7ll1q92/Untitled_Panorama1.jpg?dl=0

(Slide shot on my Polaroid 110 4x5 conversion, with standard Yashinon lens)
 
When I saw the first photo, my immediate thought was that you were making a 5x4 slide projector...
 
I was just projecting my ideas...
 
@stevelmx5 could you drop a comment about using the pixl-latr into the big scanner thread sometime, Steve? Not necessarily just in this combination, though it does in fact look great!
 
Busy day in the workshop today, working on the carbon fibre parts for 5 Adventurers, ahead of the printed ABS parts arriving some point next week.

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I now need to restock my bolts/nuts, as well as pick up some more countersink bits as Carbon really does make a mess of them!
 
stevelmx5 said:
countersink bits as Carbon really does make a mess of them!
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Might be worth countersinking a chunk of brass and using that countersunk "hole" and some valve grinding paste to redress the bits by running them in the pasty hole backwards. Best done in a pillar drill. Got them sharp enough for ply but maybe not for CF...
 
Nod said:
Might be worth countersinking a chunk of brass and using that countersunk "hole" and some valve grinding paste to redress the bits by running them in the pasty hole backwards. Best done in a pillar drill. Got them sharp enough for ply but maybe not for CF...
Click to expand...

Cheers for the idea. I've got a pile of bits next to my pillar drill so might give them a go down the line. For the time being, I'm being lazy and have bought another few instead ;0)
 
It was many years ago that Dad told me about the "trick". The grinding paste particles get embedded in the brass more easily than in the bits so are more effective. At the time, he would have been getting through a couple (or more) per week and the costs were adding up so he tried the above method and it worked. Like I said, it might not get them sharp enough for CF but it's probably worth a try (unless you buy them by the pallet load!)
 
Alongside building a batch of Adventurers, Advanced45’s and Snapshots this week, I’ve also been working on some new designs for replacement rear standards on the Adventurer. As the design is completely modular, it’s possible to interchange the three main components (front standard, rear standard, focusing bed).

I’ve been tinkering with a new 612/617 rollfilm back for a while, and decided to start sketching a replacement dedicated 617 rear standard. This would allow for the 617 rollfilm back to be used without needing to space the film plane back by around 35-40mm, as with standard 6x17 backs for 4x5 cameras (the plane has to be stepped backwards to increase the image size, and allow it to ‘fit’ through the standard 4x5 cutout on the back). As a result, I would be able to retain the 53-280mm standard range of the Adventurer, along with the 380mm extended range using the focusing bed extension I’ve designed.

I’m 90% through the rear standard design for 617, and somewhere similar with the rollfilm back.

At the same time, I drew up a 5x7 rear standard, with rotating magnetic back, which will also be a direct replacement for the 4x5 rear standard.

carbon adventurer range.JPG

carbon adventurer range rear.JPG

All three of the rear standards use the same magnetic zero design, and they also all match up with the original front standard zero points, which is why fall on the 5x7 back is pretty much zero. I decided that it would be better to mount the 5x7 standard in the same central position as the 4x5 standard, and retain the zero stops, than mount it higher and lose them.

Both the 617 and 5x7 rear standards will also have their own dedicated bellows.
 
steveo_mcg said:
I'll put myself down for a beta tester, will this work with the early chroma?
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Sorry mate, its only the Adventurer that has an easily replaceable rear standard. The original Chroma has fixed uprights on the rear standard so isn't easily swapped out. Once I've got one built here though, I'm happy to ship it up to you if you want to do some testing and feedback for me?
 
stevelmx5 said:
Sorry mate, its only the Adventurer that has an easily replaceable rear standard. The original Chroma has fixed uprights on the rear standard so isn't easily swapped out. Once I've got one built here though, I'm happy to ship it up to you if you want to do some testing and feedback for me?
Click to expand...
Maybe it's time I invested in a lens with enough coverage at the wider end
 
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