Fotofix - Vintage Cameras
Old bellows camera restoration
History
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W. Butcher and Sons Ltd. was a British camera maker, formed as a pharmacy business by William Butcher in Blackheath (in south-east London) in 1887. Photographic items were manufactured from c.1897 by sons of William, W.E. & F.E. Butcher. The name "Primus" seems to belong to this early company. By February 1902, the company had a headquarters at Camera House, Farringdon Avenue, London EC (East Central - much closer to the centre of London). Whilst manufacturing some of their own stock, much came from other makers, such as Hüttig and Ica in Germany.
In 1914, war prevented Butcher's German imports, and they joined forces with Houghton (very nearby in High Holborn) in 1915 to form the Houghton-Butcher Manufacturing Co. Ltd. The two companies continued to sell their own brands until their full merging on 1 January 1926 to form Houghton Butcher (Great Britain) Ltd., which became Ensign Ltd. in 1930.
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The Cameo is a fairly well-constructed example of a typical plate camera of its time: leather-covered wooden body, with a metal drop bed, removable wooden back for the ground glass screen. It has a large brilliant finder and a focus scale with an infinity lock.
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I bought this camera recently in an auction and it became my next restoration project
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Restoration
The camera was in very poor condition, with bad corrosion in the metal, the leather was wrinkled and peeling in some parts and there was mold in the bellows and fungus on the lenses.
First I had to disassembly the camera and address all the parts separately...
... peel the front door leather so I could glue a big crack in the wood
All the parts cleaned and restored. New light seals...
... bellows restored... no mold...
... and new light seals, at the back.
Camera Restored
Final result...