my 4 x 5 speed (anniversary) has 2 or 3 tiny pinholes in the front corners of the bellows.
Can this be repaired ? I was thinking of some sort of epoxy paint?.....Or is replacing them the only way to go?
thx

I haven't tried this on a bellows, but Neoprene paint would stick and be flexible, or a silicone product in a tube. Possibly need to paint the silicone -(if it is 'paintable') - should it not be opaque.
Even a rubber Sundeck coating may do. As the repair would be on the inside, color should not be important.
Look at the products in a Paint store or Hardware....sure something will work for this.

Quote:

On 2002-03-09 17:19, ajvin wrote: my 4 x 5 speed (anniversary) has 2 or 3 tiny pinholes in the front corners of the bellows. Can this be repaired ? I was thinking of some sort of epoxy paint?.....Or is replacing them the only way to go? thx

From what I've seen this past year, ask this question to a dozen people and you'll get 13 different answers. I've repaired two of my bellows recently and I'll let you know what I used and how it worked...
For pin holes, I use "liquid electrical tape". It's sold under many different brands & names, but it's all just liquid vinyl. But it's black & flexible and works. Just a tiny dab on the outside. But the bellows have to be extremely cleam and free of any wax or oil or it won't stick. And it takes at least 24 hours to completely dry. I leave mine open for 2 or three days.
For the larger holes, I patched first from the inside with "shutter curtain material" or "bellows patch material", the same thing from Fargo Enterprises. (www.micro-tools.com). I cut a little piece about 1/2 inch by 1/4 inch and glue it to the inside corner. This material will temporarily hold a shape, so I pre-bend it to fit the bellows corner, then apply the glue. Now I'm sure there's all kinds of glues that would work, but what I have on hand and works very well is "Leather Weld" from Tandy Leather Company (I work with leather). It doesn't say on the bottle, but it's water based, sets up fairly fast and seems to be a latex product. Stays very flexible, holds anything together and dries very clear. So far I like this a lot to do bellows repair. But for just small pin holes, a dab of Liquid Tape on the outside fixed mine... I would stay away from the epoxy paint as it would probably be too brittle for the bellows...

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: 45PSS on 2005-12-24 20:20 ]</font>