[W&B] My New W&B web site

Sun Feb 3 16:41:41 EST 2008

Marcel,
            For a large part of my life, I had an excellent memory, now I haven't. The result is I think I can still remember things, when I can't. 
    You are right of course, I have mixed up my 8s and 9s. I checked with C&D; 1889 it is, though I actually think I got the wrong figure (1898) from somewhere else; don't ask me where, I can't remember that, either. Takes me till 12 o'clock to remember my name, some days.......
    The propensity to crack baseboards is a side effect of using the central tripod screw, it seems. We just can't win, can we?
Regards,
.....er.....Eric.
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Marcel Safier 
  To: 'Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &amp;Photographica' 
  Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2008 8:56 PM
  Subject: RE: [W&B] My New W&B web site

  Eric

  Firstly my cutting and pasting did Larry an injustice. His Field Cameras of the US: 1879-1930 website URL for those who don't already know it is http://www.fiberq.com/cam/index.htm. 

  With respect to Watson, did you mean 1889? Channing and Dunn cite a Photographer's World report of April 15 1889 stating "up to a little more than a year ago all the work except sawing was done by hand but now most is done on specially developed machinery". C&D do not give Watson's name.  I believe it is George William Watson. Can you or anyone else please confirm this? (Michael?).

  I have certainly seen wooden discs or even complete new bases attached by screws to camera bases containing a screw thread added to a camera, but nothing as neat as this aluminium disc that fits into the brass turntable ring. Isn't that the wonder of collecting W&B that there are always so many new things to discover? I've also seen small brass threaded lugs inset in the solid wooden bases to allow a threaded tripod head to be connected and consequently the leverage generated by camera movement and use has caused splitting of the camera's wooden base.

  Cheers!

  Marcel

  -----Original Message-----
  From: woodandbrass-bounces at kjsl.com [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces at kjsl.com] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
  Sent: 03 February 2008 23:41
  To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &amp;Photographica
  Subject: Re: [W&B] My New W&B web site

  Hi Marcel, (And Gerald, Lew, Clarence, two Peters, Ross, Steve, Holger and Ake),

  Don't know if this is a very "newby" thing to do, but I am a newby, and I appreciate all of your kind remarks re. the web site. If in the excitement of the moment I have missed anybody off the above list, I apologise, it was unintentional.

      It's my first venture into anything to do with computers, apart from the occasional e mail, and I'm delighted to know that it is actually getting out there to people who are interested. I have been in Education at all sorts of levels, all my life, and I think the purpose of a collection is to be available for the information of others; that's why I did it. 

     That and bragging..........

     Lew, I tried to e mail you on your own address but had it returned as undeliverable, so Bom Dia and Muito Obrigado.

      Marcel, did you know that Watson would have no machinery in his works, apart from a circular saw, until 1898? Everything was done by hand, and looking at some of his stuff, I find that wholly unbelievable. The sites you cited (!) have been on my favourites list for ever and I greatly respect them, as you do. 

      I have seen tripod turntables replaced by brass, aluminium and wood discs with the object of being able to use a standard tripod screw. Some ingenious ones I've seen were removable to still enable the turntable to be used, if required.

      Let's face it, those turntables weren't such a great invention, when it came to struggling to support the camera, in the field, while you tried to get the tripod legs onto one; I believe most of the old-timers (and some present day users) left the legs on, once they were fitted, and carried the whole outfit as a "lump" over the shoulder, with consequent danger of damage. 

      Not one of Mr. McKellen's better ideas, IMHO, but it certainly made waves in its day.

  Thanks and regards to all,

  Eric.

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