The Holslo Wide Project...

stevelmx5

stevelmx5

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Thanks to @joxby, I've got another project sitting on my shelf waiting for some love and affection :0)

While I'm waiting for some new material to build my 4x5 bellows, I thought I'd start the mildly destructive process of stripping the camera down to remove the lenses/shutters and all electronics so I'm left with a basic shell and film transport. Apart from a few seized screws and one spring pinging across my desk somewhere (I need to find it later!) it was relatively painless.

New project day! 35mm HolgaWide :0) by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

New project day! 35mm HolgaWide :0) by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

New project day! 35mm HolgaWide :0) by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr


I quite like the feel of the original skin because it's a cushioned vinyl so I'm planning on re-fitting that again once the Holga 120 lens is in place;

New project day! 35mm HolgaWide :0) by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

My other plan is to blend the Holga 120 viewfinder into the top plate of the Nimslo so, with a bit of masking top/bottom, I'll have the proper field of view for composing. Now I just need to find a donor Holga 120!

Cheers
Steve
 
I have a Holga 120 you can have if you like! It's been sitting in my drawer for bloody ages, and it'd be good to give it a home. PM me an address if you'd like it :)
 
Nah, it's simple now ;0) After removing the 4 lenses and all electronics I'm basically left with a 35mm body that winds on the film around 76mm for each advance. Originally, the camera would shoot four separate half frame images across the 76mm width, each a few mm apart to create the lenticular results. I just need to cutout the original 'tunnels' to leave the camera with a single film gate that's 22x76mm. The lens from a Holga 120 fits onto the front of the body then and covers (roughly) the full width of the new film gate with a bit of light falloff either side.

The original shutter mechanism has been removed now so the new lens will be tripped using the Holga shutter release on the side of the lens. The shutter in the Holga is a very basic single speed 1/125th second that's controlled by springs like a Polaroid Square Shooter so it's very basic. There are only 2 aperture choices on the lens, Sunny and Cloudy which are roughly F8 and F11.

A guy I know on Flickr has converted a few Nimslo's into "Holgawides" and the results look pretty good (in a Holga sort of way!)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dirkfletcher/albums/72157675522753255
 
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mothdust said:
I have a Holga 120 you can have if you like! It's been sitting in my drawer for bloody ages, and it'd be good to give it a home. PM me an address if you'd like it :)
Click to expand...

That would be fantastic, thanks a lot! I'll pm you my details now.

Cheers
 
I've now removed all the frame dividers and marked up the rest of the surround to be cut, ready for the new lens. Once I've removed the surround, I'm going to use black card to build a baffle around all four sides to the back of the lens to keep light leaks under control.

I've also received the donor Holga 120 today, kindly donated by Charlotte @mothdust so will update the thread later on with some more images. I've also had the idea of incorporating the original Holga 120 viewfinder into the Nimslo top plate so I've got the proper 120 field of view in the 35mm body. I reckon with a bit of hacksawing, glueing and a carefully placed shoe horn it will fit together nicely ;0)

Edit: Forgot to say, I'm going to remove the aperture selector lever on the lens because if anyone's ever looked through the back of a Holga they will see that it does absolutely nothing! The fixed aperture ('sunny' setting) is around 4mm diameter. When selecting the 'cloudy' setting, a wider aperture drops in behind the fixed aperture hence it does nothing :0)

I'm also looking at possibly using the original shutter button linkage but connecting it to the Holga lens so I can trip the shutter using the Nimslo shutter button instead of the large trigger on the side of the Holga lens. I;m not 100% sure I can physically do that yet but I'll check it out.
 
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Yep, that will fit;

Nimsolga Holslo HolgaSlo ongoing project. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I've removed all of the linkages that were in place to open/close the lens shutters and just left the shutter button linkage/springs

Nimsolga Holslo HolgaSlo ongoing project. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I still need to cut out the middle section of the plate but I'll be able to make an extra linkage to trip the shutter in the lens using the original Nimslo shutter button.

Nimsolga Holslo HolgaSlo ongoing project. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

Rather than modify the shape of the Nimslo top plate to accommodate the Holga viewfinder, I'm going to cover the original viewfinder and build a hotshoe mounted finder like I did on my Polaroid 110 conversion which will mount to the existing top plate.

Nimsolga Holslo HolgaSlo ongoing project. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I reckon the finished camera will look pretty neat :0)

Nimsolga Holslo HolgaSlo ongoing project. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr
 
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Sorry Charlotte but your donor Holga has gone to the darkroom in the sky!

IMG_7067.JPG

I've roughly cut the front of the Holga off to the shape of the Nimslo opening. I'll finish it off by hand once I've finished cutting away the film surround.
 
Well, I think the Holga lens is getting pretty comfortable on its' new body :0)

WIP HolgaSlo NimsHolga Wide project by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I've taped a piece of ground glass into the film gate to test out the lens alignment. I'll need to fit a small 2mm thick plate between the Nimslo body opening and the Holga lens board to get it aligned and sharp (in relative Holga terms anyway!). Once I've got the lens board mounted I'll complete the removal of the original film opening, fit new black card baffles to neaten the edges and work on making the new linkage to combine the original Nimslo shutter button and Holga shutter mechanism.
 
Lots of progress today :0)

Last night I drew up the internal cone to fit between the lens board and film gate.

IMG_1485884467.898452.jpg

This is a cardboard surround that keeps the lens and film light tight, regardless of the camera body, and makes a nice straight finish to the image frame. While I'm sure my finished camera will be light tight, it saves me hunting down any tiny gaps!

I drew it up in Sketchup then exported a flat image which I could print and cut out of black card.

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After creasing/folding/glueing the cone I tested it for fit around the original Holga cutout to make sure it doesn't obscure the ultra-high quality lens optics..

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After sorting out the lens cone, I broke out the Dremel and cutting discs to get on with removing the rest of the original metal lens surround. Working on a small camera and trying not to cut anything that needs to stay (mainly the large plastic cog that winds the film on and is right in the way!) is a pita but eventually I cut back as much metal as I could. I left a small lip around the film gate so I could bond the card lens cone to the camera body.

IMG_1485884851.360915.jpg
 
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Once the glue has gone off completely, I just need to trim the edge of the card back slightly to make it flush with the film plane and clean off the excess glue.

IMG_1485884968.837723.jpg

After fitting the lens cone I had to trim back the bracket for the shutter button mechanism to make that fit again so back to the Dremel!

IMG_1485885046.326468.jpg

Next job is to finish shaping up the spacer plate to match the lens board and look at making a new mechanism to trip the Holga shutter with the original Nimslo shutter button.

Once the mechanics are finished I'll start working on the top and bottom plates. I need to smooth over the missing battery cover on the bottom place and replace the original "Nimslo" and "3D" logos with something else.
 
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Is it not now a Minolga.....Pan.....:p

Nimolga would probably be closer but its a one letter change rather than 3 in a decal that already exists...lol

If you're gonna do one from scratch, it can be anything
 
I'm nearly at the end of the mechanics now. I'll be moving onto the top plate and printing a new hotshoe viewfinder using the original Holga lenses.

I spent a bit of time last night thinking about the mechanical linkage to connect the Nimslo shutter button with the Holga lens and was looking at the internal space (there isn't much!). I must have carried on thinking about it when I went to sleep because I woke up this morning and figured out a much simpler method. I was originally looking at making an internal linkage that connected to the shutter mechanism behind the lens but connecting it up when I mount the lens board would be a nightmare as the back of the camera is sealed with the internal cone. Instead, I'm mounting a simple flat linkage direct to the sprung metal Nimslo shutter bracket and then having an 8mm bolt at 90 degrees which comes through the lens board and goes into a hole in the back of the plastic Holga shutter button. Pictures make explanations much simpler!

Simple bracket made from one of the Holga rear panel locking clips (I like to recycle!)

More Nimsolga work by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

Bracket will be epoxy'd to the shutter button bracket and then slides up/down with it.

More Nimsolga work by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

Minimising any cock ups with some paper planning first!

More Nimsolga work by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

Slim bolt fits through the lens board and into the back of the plastic Holga shutter button on the side of the lens.

More Nimsolga work by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I haven't drilled the plastic button yet but it will fit over the bolt when the lens is installed.

More Nimsolga work by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

Apart from keeping the Nimslo looking as original as possible, keeping the original shutter button also means I can use a cable release as it's threaded. I can also use the Holga shutter release if I'd rather use that :0)
 
The end is in sight! After fiddling with the linkage between the Nimslo shutter button and Holga shutter for ages, I've decided to scrap it. The travel on the Nimslo shutter button was a couple of mm too short so it was never going to be a smooth shutter motion and using a remote release cable was proving to be unreliable too. I might leave the original Nimslo shutter button on the top plate though to keep it looking relatively stock and the spring mechanism is still in place inside the camera so it springs back when pressed. Alternatively, I can remove the plastic button and just smooth over the top plate if I change my mind.

After bonding the spacer plate to the camera body and then the internal lens cone to it, I then bonded the Holga front panel to it and filed the plates smooth around the edge. Once that was all dry, I used the original slightly padded Nimslo skin to recover the camera and hide the edges of the new lens board/spacer. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the finished appearance. There are still a few bits of glue that need to be cleaned up once it's dried completely;

Nearly finished now, just need to print a new hotshoe viewfinder. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I've also covered the original front viewfinder window on the top plate with heat-wrapped black sticky-back plastic (going all Blue Peter..)

Nearly finished now, just need to print a new hotshoe viewfinder. by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

The last job now is to make the hotshoe viewfinder using the original Holga lenses/top plate. I was going to print one from scratch but it makes more sense to re-use the Holga plastic wherever I can.
 
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I was going to do that a few years ago. I never got around to buying a Nimslo camera though.


Steve.
 
I've done the first rough cut of the viewfinder housing to test it on the HolSlo hotshoe. Looks like it will fit well :0)

IMG_1486409374.375911.jpg

View attachment 95306

I need to square the cuts to even out the shape then fit two new sides to the finder. Once that's done I'll either take a foot off an old flashgun or make a new foot so I can slide the viewfinder on. I've used black tape to narrow the viewfinder down to match the new field of view so it should give me a good indication for framing.
 
And I'm ready to shoot!

A combination of Holga lenses/surround, Olympus 35RC hotshoe cover plate (thanks @wontolla ;)), strong black card and foamboard, and the result looks like a removable hostshoe viewfinder!

Building the removable hotshoe finder for the HolSlo 2D. Combination of original Holga 120 lenses/surround, hotshoe clip from an Olympus 35RC and strong black card. Just need to let the glue dry then clean up the leftovers. I quite like the result! by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I'm waiting for the glue to dry now before I clean up the leftover adhesive and trim a couple of edges but it's good to go. I've also narrowed the field of view using black tape so I can setup the composition properly too.

Building the removable hotshoe finder for the HolSlo 2D. Combination of original Holga 120 lenses/surround, hotshoe clip from an Olympus 35RC and strong black card. Just need to let the glue dry then clean up the leftovers. I quite like the result! by Steve Lloyd, on Flickr

I'm looking forward to loading a film tomorrow and firing off some shots. I think I should get 12 images from a 24 shot roll of Vista so at lease it should be quick to get through a test roll!
 
Could get through them even faster if you managed to fit a motor drive to it!!! :P
 
A combination of Holga lenses/surround, Olympus 35RC hotshoe cover plate (thanks @wontolla ;)), strong black card and foamboard, and the result looks like a removable hostshoe viewfinder!

Pleasure Steve! Just a small payback for what you did for me mate!
(The RC is still getting admiring views and comments!)
 
Love the end result! A professional-looking frankencamera :) Can't wait to see the shots that come out of it - I loved my Sprocket Rocket and XPan, panoramic is such a fun format.
 
Thanks Charlotte. I'm about to head out for a walk with the HolSlo now to fire off a roll of Vista. The lack of sunlight isn't great for 1/100th @F11 but it will have to do :0)
 
Wahey, it works :0)

IMG_1487013671.362150.jpg

The shots were a bit underexposed as I expected due to me using Vista 200 on an overcast day with a fixed 1/100th @F11 lens but I'm happy with the sharpness (in Holga terms!).

I need to edit the pictures properly, this was just on my phone, but fair play again to FilmDev. Posted to them on Friday and got a call today at 17:30 for payment and the link.
 
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