for a long time I have wanted a 4x5 super D and finally got one
but need some guidance please

q1 the ground glass side and fresnal lens are facing each other, is this correct? I thought the textured sides of both should face the lens?

q2 the flash sync does not work, this camera has been sitting most all it's life in a box and not touched, so I assume the contacts need cleaning. do I simply remove the cocking lever plate and do the work? or are springs going to come unwound??

q3 how do I check if the speeds are correct?

q1. the assembly order is fresnel ribbed side against the ground glass ground side with the fresnel closest to the lens.
q2. I assume you have read the instruction manual for the camera. The early Super D has the flash sync on the left, the later has it on the wind plate, I assume yours is on the wind plate.
The H lever is attached to the mirror shaft with a taper pin that has to be driven out. With the camera upside down, a support block under the H lever/mirror shaft, drive the pin out with a hammer and punch. At some point assumed to be in the 1950's the taper pin was replaced with a roll pin but drives out in the same manner. The pin seizes in place and can be difficult to remove. Soaking the pin with penetrating oil for a day or two before attempting to remove is a good idea. Lay the camera on its left side and coat the end of the mirror shaft at the H lever with penetrating oil.
The curtain should be in the closed after open position before removing the wind plate.
q3. build a shutter speed tester or shoot some film at sunny 16 and metered for the same scene and compare the negatives for equal density.
https://graflex.org/helpboard/viewtopic.php?t=6105

Your such a wealth of knowledge. Thank verry much !!!!!!

I wanted to say thanks again for the help but also wanted to add that once I got the plate off, cleaned the contacts and replaced the plate, I was still having issues with the contacts not working, but when I tested the contacts before reinstalling the plate they worked just fine. I figure out that there must be some rubbing happening. there is brass holder for the curtain rod, it looks kind of like a washer with a tab that has a screw attaching it to the wood body. it has some rubbing showing shiny brass where it is normally blackened. using a small hammer I tapped the edge down that was sticking up and causing the rubbing and walla it works fine
https://ibb.co/mtRCPJ

hopefully this might help some one else

That's the light trap for the top roller. I would have dressed it with a needle file.

45PSS wrote:

That's the light trap for the top roller. I would have dressed it with a needle file.

remember im new so please excuse the ( what to you ) is probably a silly question lol
so filing it down would have been better than tapping it down with a nylon tipped hammer? I only ask because it looked very thin. I have jewelers files I use all the time on model building but just would not have thought of using them.
next time I will ask before altering anything. i dont want to mess this camera up


thank you

So, it was the light trap not the screw that holds it in place that was up. Tapping it down was a good move.
Adding a .010 to .020 shim under the plate is sometimes necessary.
While the Mahogany the body is made from is dimensionaly stable it does swell 1/128 to 1/64 after 50+ years and sometimes causes a problem.
The thickness of the leather, 1946 and earlier, and Naugahyde, 1947 and later, was calculated into the fit of the controls and plates. When it shrinks it affects the operation of the camera.

shutterfinger wrote:

So, it was the light trap not the screw that holds it in place that was up. Tapping it down was a good move. Adding a .010 to .020 shim under the plate is sometimes necessary. While the Mahogany the body is made from is dimensionaly stable it does swell 1/128 to 1/64 after 50+ years and sometimes causes a problem. The thickness of the leather, 1946 and earlier, and Naugahyde, 1947 and later, was calculated into the fit of the controls and plates. When it shrinks it affects the operation of the camera.

awesome ! thank you