Low cost 67 bodies = the chance to make alterations perhaps?

With the market for our beloved 67 bodies falling in value in recent times, has anyone attempted to look at ways to modify their camera body? The cost of making any mistakes are now more bearable perhaps?

If anyone has/would like to, what mod would you do/have done?

For example - is it possible to remove the back & fit a deeper, angled back to widen the 7cm width to 9cm...12cm? Would a 67 lens cover a wider attached back & how would the film rollers need altering to route the film correctly & tightly enough?

Valerie Singleton & Blue Peter would be proud!

I think you'd run into problems with focusing (if the film was further back, it wouldn't be on the same plane as the viewfinder screen) and composition, as the viewfinder would only show part of the image.

Dan

Hi Dan,

You do have a few points there - it's perhaps a better route for me to mount a Copal shuttered w/a lens on a 6x12 back...align it & focus it using 'spacers' between it and the film plane. Then a few rolls of film to test should arrive at a viewfinder. None of which, sadly, would involve a single Pentax item

Back to the drawing board for me.

A few years back there was an incredibly talented Chinese landscape photographer,..unfortunately I can't remember his name but he hit the 'photonet' forums like a bolt of lightening! He used the '67' to fantastic effect and I read a very interesting item about his method of aquiring several 45mm lenses and after testing to find the best performer, modifying the mount by adding his specially made assymetric shim to give a permanent down tilt for increased depth of field. The bloke was a scientist and had recently moved to the USA where he was making 'Chinese landscapes' of the Arizona desert and Virginian autumn etc. If anyone knows his name I would love to have another look at his superb work.

The '67' had/does have some very serious users,....it is much used by Met. police, one of whose photographers told me that he was waiting fairly desperately for a body with interchangeable backs as it would make his life a lot easier,.....that and better flash sync. which is only 1/30 for the non shutter lenses if I remember(?)

Viewfinder,

Your guy has hit the proverbial on the head. What a great idea! You use the term 'shim' for his means of creating tilt...what did the shim look like? Did it have mechanical links through to the body & how 'thick' was it?

My Brother-in-Law can work magic on a lathe etc. If there is a description I could give him I'm sure he could let me know what he could do...

After a long 'brain bending' session and an hours detective work on the web I have managed to find the Chinese photographer......by name, Leping Zha. You will have to work thru the links for his tech info.....you won't be sorry to look at his work. It looks like he is still with the P67 kit.

http://www.google.com/custom?q=Leping+Zha&domains=www.photo.net&sa=Searc...

Try contacting him thru his site which i have now found here;

http://www.lepingzha.com/

Look at these;....!!!?!!

http://photo.net/photodb/member-photos?user_id=53127&include=all

Brilliant! Thank you for emailing me with those links - the gallery is very good... If I get a reply from him I'll post what I can here as feedback.

All the best for now & thanks