More about Ground glass screens.

[Eric Evans-4]

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Group,

              More about ground glass screens. I have been pushed into this line of thinking, having yesterday received a W&B camera whose screen had had some TLC from the Post Office.

    Never noted for my lateral thinking, or any other kind, really, it did however occur to me that there might be a better way than the way we've done it since 1066.

    This always involved using two equal sheets of glass rubbed together with grinding paste, until either a) they broke or b) they cut your fingers, or c) the flow of bad language became intolerable to anyone else in the house.

    Now, some years ago Southern Comfort did a promotion which comprised of giving one, just one, rather decent quality tumbler away with each bottle. You may infer my consumption of Southern Comfort from the fact that I had just the one of these tumblers in the cupboard; said tumbler having a nice shiny flat bottom, if you'll forgive the expression.

    So, sheet of glass, (a half-plate cleaned of emulsion), on some paper padding on the table, fresh grinding paste on the glass, seize tumbler firmly in right hand and rub bottom of tumbler on glass for ten minutes. Make sure you do the corners well. Wash off and fit glass to camera. QED.

    Anyone who has tried the old method will find the ease of holding the tumbler as a grinding tool a bit of a revelation, compared with juggling two sheets of glass in contact. A lot quicker, and safer, too.

Regards,

Eric.

[Milan Zahorcak*]

Some parts of this message have been removed. Learn more about Nabble's security policy.

I whole-heartedly agree . . . except for the Southern Comfort thing.  But modern valve grinding compound is a joy to use.  Makes for a very impressive mess.  There are even water-based versions, but they tend to migrate a bit.

 

It used to be that glass wasn't quite as flat as our modern float glass.  Rubbing two sheets of glass together would wear both down to a flat surface, but took absolutely forever because whatever down force you were able to apply was spread over many square inches.

 

Like you, I found the answer to be a small contact area, more force, and better grinding grit.  Works far better.  I now use two fingers and a tiny stainless steel bowl - more flex and less brittle than my wife's Baccarat crystal.  4x5 GG in maybe 20 minutes and for some reason very satisfying.

 

 

Single weight picture frame glass works well, but crappy old plate negatives - or boxes of unexposed plates still found at camera shows - are perhaps the best source of glass.

 

If you have a much larger sheet of thicker glass underneath as your work area, you can use a few drops of water to moistened the underside of your work and it'll stick like glue while you're grinding.

 

Nice tip, fun topic.

 

mz

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 7:01 AM
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Group,

              More about ground glass screens. I have been pushed into this line of thinking, having yesterday received a W&B camera whose screen had had some TLC from the Post Office.

    Never noted for my lateral thinking, or any other kind, really, it did however occur to me that there might be a better way than the way we've done it since 1066.

    This always involved using two equal sheets of glass rubbed together with grinding paste, until either a) they broke or b) they cut your fingers, or c) the flow of bad language became intolerable to anyone else in the house.

    Now, some years ago Southern Comfort did a promotion which comprised of giving one, just one, rather decent quality tumbler away with each bottle. You may infer my consumption of Southern Comfort from the fact that I had just the one of these tumblers in the cupboard; said tumbler having a nice shiny flat bottom, if you'll forgive the expression.

    So, sheet of glass, (a half-plate cleaned of emulsion), on some paper padding on the table, fresh grinding paste on the glass, seize tumbler firmly in right hand and rub bottom of tumbler on glass for ten minutes. Make sure you do the corners well. Wash off and fit glass to camera. QED.

    Anyone who has tried the old method will find the ease of holding the tumbler as a grinding tool a bit of a revelation, compared with juggling two sheets of glass in contact. A lot quicker, and safer, too.

Regards,

Eric.

[Eric Evans-4]

Some parts of this message have been removed. Learn more about Nabble's security policy.

Milan,

            Your wife won't let you use her Baccarat Crystal? What sort of a wife is that? (Just kidding Mrs Zahorcak, just kidding.)

    On the Southern Comfort thing, I was being modest. Talisker and Islay distilleries never gave tumblers away, or I would have had lots of theirs..

   The old "wavy" glass leaves shiny patches for days if you use the flat sheet method; the tumbler method (or stainless steel bowl - haven't tried that -) gets them out fast.

    The very thin sheet glass is measured in ounces in Britain.......something to do with the weight per square foot or metre, I believe. Something like 20oz. for the sort we use, 32oz. for window glass, but I'm open to being corrected.

    The bad news is that owing to Health and Safety regulations, glaziers here no longer stock the thin glass; it's quite dangerous stuff to handle, apparently. I did have a friendly supplier who went to some trouble to get some in for me, and he would cut and grind it too, but he was put out of business by a new road scheme that kept customers from his door for about three years while it was being re-routed. He had to move away; left his new phone number on his old premises, but I can't read it when I pass, PASS being the operative word: no one can stop there any more! The times we live in...............

    I wonder how they used to cut the thousands of Half-plates, Quarter-plates, etc. that were sold exactly to size? And grind camera back screens? I believe "Ground Glass" today is produced using hydrofluoric acid?

Regards,

Eric.

----- Original Message -----

From: milan.zahorcak@...

To: woodandbrass@...

Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 2:42 PM

Subject: RE: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

I whole-heartedly agree . . . except for the Southern Comfort thing.  But modern valve grinding compound is a joy to use.  Makes for a very impressive mess.  There are even water-based versions, but they tend to migrate a bit.

 

It used to be that glass wasn't quite as flat as our modern float glass.  Rubbing two sheets of glass together would wear both down to a flat surface, but took absolutely forever because whatever down force you were able to apply was spread over many square inches.

 

Like you, I found the answer to be a small contact area, more force, and better grinding grit.  Works far better.  I now use two fingers and a tiny stainless steel bowl - more flex and less brittle than my wife's Baccarat crystal.  4x5 GG in maybe 20 minutes and for some reason very satisfying.

 

 

Single weight picture frame glass works well, but crappy old plate negatives - or boxes of unexposed plates still found at camera shows - are perhaps the best source of glass.

 

If you have a much larger sheet of thicker glass underneath as your work area, you can use a few drops of water to moistened the underside of your work and it'll stick like glue while you're grinding.

 

Nice tip, fun topic.

 

mz

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 7:01 AM
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Group,

              More about ground glass screens. I have been pushed into this line of thinking, having yesterday received a W&B camera whose screen had had some TLC from the Post Office.

    Never noted for my lateral thinking, or any other kind, really, it did however occur to me that there might be a better way than the way we've done it since 1066.

    This always involved using two equal sheets of glass rubbed together with grinding paste, until either a) they broke or b) they cut your fingers, or c) the flow of bad language became intolerable to anyone else in the house.

    Now, some years ago Southern Comfort did a promotion which comprised of giving one, just one, rather decent quality tumbler away with each bottle. You may infer my consumption of Southern Comfort from the fact that I had just the one of these tumblers in the cupboard; said tumbler having a nice shiny flat bottom, if you'll forgive the expression.

    So, sheet of glass, (a half-plate cleaned of emulsion), on some paper padding on the table, fresh grinding paste on the glass, seize tumbler firmly in right hand and rub bottom of tumbler on glass for ten minutes. Make sure you do the corners well. Wash off and fit glass to camera. QED.

    Anyone who has tried the old method will find the ease of holding the tumbler as a grinding tool a bit of a revelation, compared with juggling two sheets of glass in contact. A lot quicker, and safer, too.

Regards,

Eric.

---

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG.
Version: 7.5.519 / Virus Database: 269.21.7/1327 - Release Date: 12/03/2008 13:27

[Milan Zahorcak*]

Some parts of this message have been removed. Learn more about Nabble's security policy.

Eric,

 

Same issues with glass here.  Very difficult to find new thin sheets - but the old plate negatives work well except that you have be thinking about it when you're at a show - and the larger sizes - 5x8 and larger - are hard to find.

 

Picture frame glass is 2mm thick and can usually be found in most framing shops.

 

I think early GG was sandblasted, no?  Modern is acid etched.

 

There are a few sources of modern etched GG - but in many cases, etched GG has such a fine "tooth" that I find it hard to use.  No doubt why I started collecting ground glass magnifiers.  Recent update:

 

 

 

mz

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 10:27 AM
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: Re: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Milan,

            Your wife won't let you use her Baccarat Crystal? What sort of a wife is that? (Just kidding Mrs Zahorcak, just kidding.)

    On the Southern Comfort thing, I was being modest. Talisker and Islay distilleries never gave tumblers away, or I would have had lots of theirs..

   The old "wavy" glass leaves shiny patches for days if you use the flat sheet method; the tumbler method (or stainless steel bowl - haven't tried that -) gets them out fast.

    The very thin sheet glass is measured in ounces in Britain.......something to do with the weight per square foot or metre, I believe. Something like 20oz. for the sort we use, 32oz. for window glass, but I'm open to being corrected.

    The bad news is that owing to Health and Safety regulations, glaziers here no longer stock the thin glass; it's quite dangerous stuff to handle, apparently. I did have a friendly supplier who went to some trouble to get some in for me, and he would cut and grind it too, but he was put out of business by a new road scheme that kept customers from his door for about three years while it was being re-routed. He had to move away; left his new phone number on his old premises, but I can't read it when I pass, PASS being the operative word: no one can stop there any more! The times we live in...............

    I wonder how they used to cut the thousands of Half-plates, Quarter-plates, etc. that were sold exactly to size? And grind camera back screens? I believe "Ground Glass" today is produced using hydrofluoric acid?

Regards,

Eric.

----- Original Message -----

From: milan.zahorcak@...

To: woodandbrass@...

Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 2:42 PM

Subject: RE: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

I whole-heartedly agree . . . except for the Southern Comfort thing.  But modern valve grinding compound is a joy to use.  Makes for a very impressive mess.  There are even water-based versions, but they tend to migrate a bit.

 

It used to be that glass wasn't quite as flat as our modern float glass.  Rubbing two sheets of glass together would wear both down to a flat surface, but took absolutely forever because whatever down force you were able to apply was spread over many square inches.

 

Like you, I found the answer to be a small contact area, more force, and better grinding grit.  Works far better.  I now use two fingers and a tiny stainless steel bowl - more flex and less brittle than my wife's Baccarat crystal.  4x5 GG in maybe 20 minutes and for some reason very satisfying.

 

 

Single weight picture frame glass works well, but crappy old plate negatives - or boxes of unexposed plates still found at camera shows - are perhaps the best source of glass.

 

If you have a much larger sheet of thicker glass underneath as your work area, you can use a few drops of water to moistened the underside of your work and it'll stick like glue while you're grinding.

 

Nice tip, fun topic.

 

mz

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 7:01 AM
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Group,

              More about ground glass screens. I have been pushed into this line of thinking, having yesterday received a W&B camera whose screen had had some TLC from the Post Office.

    Never noted for my lateral thinking, or any other kind, really, it did however occur to me that there might be a better way than the way we've done it since 1066.

    This always involved using two equal sheets of glass rubbed together with grinding paste, until either a) they broke or b) they cut your fingers, or c) the flow of bad language became intolerable to anyone else in the house.

    Now, some years ago Southern Comfort did a promotion which comprised of giving one, just one, rather decent quality tumbler away with each bottle. You may infer my consumption of Southern Comfort from the fact that I had just the one of these tumblers in the cupboard; said tumbler having a nice shiny flat bottom, if you'll forgive the expression.

    So, sheet of glass, (a half-plate cleaned of emulsion), on some paper padding on the table, fresh grinding paste on the glass, seize tumbler firmly in right hand and rub bottom of tumbler on glass for ten minutes. Make sure you do the corners well. Wash off and fit glass to camera. QED.

    Anyone who has tried the old method will find the ease of holding the tumbler as a grinding tool a bit of a revelation, compared with juggling two sheets of glass in contact. A lot quicker, and safer, too.

Regards,

Eric.

---

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG.
Version: 7.5.519 / Virus Database: 269.21.7/1327 - Release Date: 12/03/2008 13:27

[Eric Evans-4]

Some parts of this message have been removed. Learn more about Nabble's security policy.

Milan,

              Bottom row, numbers five and six, I have one of each. Probably English?

    I'm finding that shows, or fairs as we call them, are now having so very little in the W&B genre that I don't bother going any more, but yes, the larger plate sizes always were the rarest. Same on e bay: quarter plate downwards, no problem; half-plate and upwards, zilch. Mind, if you score one packet, that's twelve backless cameras to collect before you've used them all for screens.

    Sorry about the "tailback" of previous on this, I don't know how to stop it..

Eric.

----- Original Message -----

From: milan.zahorcak@...

To: woodandbrass@...

Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 6:49 PM

Subject: RE: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Eric,

 

Same issues with glass here.  Very difficult to find new thin sheets - but the old plate negatives work well except that you have be thinking about it when you're at a show - and the larger sizes - 5x8 and larger - are hard to find.

 

Picture frame glass is 2mm thick and can usually be found in most framing shops.

 

I think early GG was sandblasted, no?  Modern is acid etched.

 

There are a few sources of modern etched GG - but in many cases, etched GG has such a fine "tooth" that I find it hard to use.  No doubt why I started collecting ground glass magnifiers.  Recent update:

 

 

 

mz

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 10:27 AM
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: Re: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Milan,

            Your wife won't let you use her Baccarat Crystal? What sort of a wife is that? (Just kidding Mrs Zahorcak, just kidding.)

    On the Southern Comfort thing, I was being modest. Talisker and Islay distilleries never gave tumblers away, or I would have had lots of theirs..

   The old "wavy" glass leaves shiny patches for days if you use the flat sheet method; the tumbler method (or stainless steel bowl - haven't tried that -) gets them out fast.

    The very thin sheet glass is measured in ounces in Britain.......something to do with the weight per square foot or metre, I believe. Something like 20oz. for the sort we use, 32oz. for window glass, but I'm open to being corrected.

    The bad news is that owing to Health and Safety regulations, glaziers here no longer stock the thin glass; it's quite dangerous stuff to handle, apparently. I did have a friendly supplier who went to some trouble to get some in for me, and he would cut and grind it too, but he was put out of business by a new road scheme that kept customers from his door for about three years while it was being re-routed. He had to move away; left his new phone number on his old premises, but I can't read it when I pass, PASS being the operative word: no one can stop there any more! The times we live in...............

    I wonder how they used to cut the thousands of Half-plates, Quarter-plates, etc. that were sold exactly to size? And grind camera back screens? I believe "Ground Glass" today is produced using hydrofluoric acid?

Regards,

Eric.

----- Original Message -----

From: milan.zahorcak@...

To: woodandbrass@...

Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 2:42 PM

Subject: RE: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

I whole-heartedly agree . . . except for the Southern Comfort thing.  But modern valve grinding compound is a joy to use.  Makes for a very impressive mess.  There are even water-based versions, but they tend to migrate a bit.

 

It used to be that glass wasn't quite as flat as our modern float glass.  Rubbing two sheets of glass together would wear both down to a flat surface, but took absolutely forever because whatever down force you were able to apply was spread over many square inches.

 

Like you, I found the answer to be a small contact area, more force, and better grinding grit.  Works far better.  I now use two fingers and a tiny stainless steel bowl - more flex and less brittle than my wife's Baccarat crystal.  4x5 GG in maybe 20 minutes and for some reason very satisfying.

 

 

Single weight picture frame glass works well, but crappy old plate negatives - or boxes of unexposed plates still found at camera shows - are perhaps the best source of glass.

 

If you have a much larger sheet of thicker glass underneath as your work area, you can use a few drops of water to moistened the underside of your work and it'll stick like glue while you're grinding.

 

Nice tip, fun topic.

 

mz

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 7:01 AM
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Group,

              More about ground glass screens. I have been pushed into this line of thinking, having yesterday received a W&B camera whose screen had had some TLC from the Post Office.

    Never noted for my lateral thinking, or any other kind, really, it did however occur to me that there might be a better way than the way we've done it since 1066.

    This always involved using two equal sheets of glass rubbed together with grinding paste, until either a) they broke or b) they cut your fingers, or c) the flow of bad language became intolerable to anyone else in the house.

    Now, some years ago Southern Comfort did a promotion which comprised of giving one, just one, rather decent quality tumbler away with each bottle. You may infer my consumption of Southern Comfort from the fact that I had just the one of these tumblers in the cupboard; said tumbler having a nice shiny flat bottom, if you'll forgive the expression.

    So, sheet of glass, (a half-plate cleaned of emulsion), on some paper padding on the table, fresh grinding paste on the glass, seize tumbler firmly in right hand and rub bottom of tumbler on glass for ten minutes. Make sure you do the corners well. Wash off and fit glass to camera. QED.

    Anyone who has tried the old method will find the ease of holding the tumbler as a grinding tool a bit of a revelation, compared with juggling two sheets of glass in contact. A lot quicker, and safer, too.

Regards,

Eric.

---

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG.
Version: 7.5.519 / Virus Database: 269.21.7/1327 - Release Date: 12/03/2008 13:27

---

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG.
Version: 7.5.519 / Virus Database: 269.21.7/1327 - Release Date: 12/03/2008 13:27

[Marcel Safier]

Some parts of this message have been removed. Learn more about Nabble's security policy.

Milan, Eric

 

I also have the 5^th on the bottom row and got it with an English full plate camera. I have seen a similar “plain” one on a dealers stand at a fair. I picked it up and the dealer said he didn’t know what the fine TTH initials around the rim stood for. I said probably Taylor Taylor & Hobson and before we could even discuss price he took it from my hands and refused to sell it. Funnily he died about a year after that. Maybe he used it to read the fine print on his will or had it buried with his corpse?

 

Cheers!

Marcel
--
Marcel Safier (Photographic Historian)
PO Box 239
Holland Park 4121
Queensland Australia
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~msafier/index.html

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: 14 March 2008 05:23
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: Re: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

 

Milan,

              Bottom row, numbers five and six, I have one of each. Probably English?

    I'm finding that shows, or fairs as we call them, are now having so very little in the W&B genre that I don't bother going any more, but yes, the larger plate sizes always were the rarest. Same on e bay: quarter plate downwards, no problem; half-plate and upwards, zilch. Mind, if you score one packet, that's twelve backless cameras to collect before you've used them all for screens.

    Sorry about the "tailback" of previous on this, I don't know how to stop it..

Eric.

[Milan Zahorcak*]

Some parts of this message have been removed. Learn more about Nabble's security policy.

I'm sorry, I should have given the names.  If you are also collecting GG viewers, please send me any that I don't have.  I will accept graciously.

 

 

This is where Steve will send me a private email, suggesting that I seek help, and offering to take these off my hands as an act of kindness.

 

I should point out, however, that I am a RPI graduate and our motto is "Knowledge & Thoroughness" - and I'm just trying to live up to the old alma maters expectations.

 

mz

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Marcel Safier
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 3:03 PM
To: 'Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica'
Subject: RE: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

Milan, Eric

 

I also have the 5^th on the bottom row and got it with an English full plate camera. I have seen a similar “plain” one on a dealers stand at a fair. I picked it up and the dealer said he didn’t know what the fine TTH initials around the rim stood for. I said probably Taylor Taylor & Hobson and before we could even discuss price he took it from my hands and refused to sell it. Funnily he died about a year after that. Maybe he used it to read the fine print on his will or had it buried with his corpse?

 

Cheers!

Marcel
--
Marcel Safier (Photographic Historian)
PO Box 239
Holland Park 4121
Queensland Australia
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~msafier/index.html

 

-----Original Message-----
From: woodandbrass-bounces@... [mailto:woodandbrass-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Eric Evans
Sent: 14 March 2008 05:23
To: Collectors of 19th Century Cameras &Photographica
Subject: Re: [W&B] More about Ground glass screens.

 

Milan,

              Bottom row, numbers five and six, I have one of each. Probably English?

    I'm finding that shows, or fairs as we call them, are now having so very little in the W&B genre that I don't bother going any more, but yes, the larger plate sizes always were the rarest. Same on e bay: quarter plate downwards, no problem; half-plate and upwards, zilch. Mind, if you score one packet, that's twelve backless cameras to collect before you've used them all for screens.

    Sorry about the "tailback" of previous on this, I don't know how to stop it..

Eric.