Restoring the Crown Graphic! (In bits again..)

Liam

Liam

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Hi,
Well I have had my large format crown graphic for about a month now, I got it from the US for about £100 off ebay.com. Today I decided that I was going to strip it down/clean and maybe take the leather off and give the wood a varnish but I haven't decided yet. It looks ok from a distance but inside she is a bit dirty and tbh I just want something to do.

Here are the images..

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As you can see the "Honduras mahogany" looks like it might be in really good shape, so I think I might have to pull the leather off and give it some love.
I will update during the day as I want to get it finished by the end of the week.
 
A bit of an update:


The leather seems to be sticking to wood more than I hoped so Its going to involve some sanding but the wood looks in good shape.

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I have removed the leather from the front / sanded it down and have applied some black "hammered" paint. It looks good in the flesh as it almost matches what the leather looks like.

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Excellent project. Looking forward to seeing the finished item.

Andy
 
Thanks, I am more of a metal guy so I am just making it up as I go but no major problems, yet. I just gave the wood a quick sand and man does it look nice!!!

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Interesting work, liam, keep the updates coming please.
Dave
 
Sweet thread - I love checking out projects like this.

Guaranteed you'll have a few nuts and bolts left over afterward and be wondering where they're meant to go - well, that always happens to me! :)
 
Morning all,
I was up early and I have now sanded the body and its looking quite good, I am going to tape it up and apply the first coat of varnish now...

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Oo - that's gonna look so sweet with varnish... (y)
 
Looks like you will have the only wood and paint finish Crown Graphic ever.
Did you manage to get the right rangefinder cam for the lens.
 
Cheers guys I am really enjoying it at the moment, but sadly a few people have done it before but it will still be rare especially in the UK.

I have the correct rangefinder but I am not sure if I am going to put it back on as I don't really like using it to be honest and I am going for a lightweight camera that I can take everywhere :D
 
Ok, I also painted the shutter button mechanism which is seriously over engineered but here is a quick preview of what it looks like..

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And the first coat of varnish is on!! I just have to wait 8 hours now :(

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Nice, rub down with wire wool between coats?
 
A great little project, can't wait for the final results.

BUT.... tut tut to the product placement in the last photo :LOL: this after mentioning "Hammered Finish" instead of hammerite :D :LOL:
 
Ambermile said:
Nice, rub down with wire wool between coats?
Click to expand...

Cheers, I have some 600 grit that I will probably use.

AndrewA123 said:
A great little project, can't wait for the final results.

BUT.... tut tut to the product placement in the last photo :LOL: this after mentioning "Hammered Finish" instead of hammerite :D :LOL:
Click to expand...

Haha, well you got me :D

Its whatever I can find in the garage at the moment, I am currently polishing the copper bolts. I think the perfectionist in me is coming out :geek:
 
Liam said:
Its whatever I can find in the garage at the moment, I am currently polishing the copper bolts. I think the perfectionist in me is coming out :geek:
Click to expand...

Its a downward spiral after that, I restored a trusty Mountain bike last year to a polished finish. Wish I'd left it as it was, this polishing lark is no fun :LOL:
 
Liam said:
Its whatever I can find in the garage at the moment, I am currently polishing the copper bolts. I think the perfectionist in me is coming out :geek:
Click to expand...


If you don't do it now you'll regret it later on!
 
Liam said:
Its whatever I can find in the garage at the moment, I am currently polishing the copper bolts. I think the perfectionist in me is coming out :geek:
Click to expand...

Whatever is'nt painted or plated must be at least polished. :LOL:
 
Update:

The wooden body has had 3 coats of varnish, I will probably give it another 2 before I re-assemble.

I decided to also paint the film holder as it was very scratched, here it is before..

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And after :D You can also see the fully finished drop bead which I am now going to reassemble.

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This really is looking great. I love stuff like this. I am starting a bit of a collection but nothing that old yet. Can't wait to see it finished.
 
Cheers Darren.

Ok the drop bead is now completely finished and I am really chuffed with it as it looks soooo much better than the leather...

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And everything together, I think it won't be complete until monday as I am busy this weekend but not bad for 2/3 days work.

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I did this to a 1/4 plate field camera I inherited from an aunt some years ago. Got a replacement ground glass screen from Kirkdale Cameras in London - sadly an estate agent now! Great sense of satisfaction once reassembled.
Let's see the finished product when it's done eh?
 
Thanks guys, its impossible to find replacement ground glass so I ground my own instead :D
 
Looks like a good job well done there Liam
 
looks great, the wood has come out really well (always a worry when stripping vinyl off something like that, you never know quite what lies beneath)
 
Lovely job... it is a very early one.

I use to have one of the last crown graphic specials with Kalrat rangefinder That projected a range finder light image. and had a rim cocked shutter.1/1000 sec and an international back. I only used it hand held. the view finder also had parallax compensation. I used a MPP monorail for tripod work.
 
Thanks guys, Terry it does have a rangefinder but I don't use it and I want a light weight field camera I can easily carry around.

I would love to know how old it is but I can't work out how as there isn't a number on the guide rail :thinking:
 
Excellent job there Liam - truly excellent, better than original I reckon (y)
 
That looks fantastic, really very well done job (y)

You must be well chuffed
 
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