Back in the shop with Mitchell Standard 46 this week working on some of the final parts that are missing from the camera. On older Mitchell Standard and NC cameras, there is a little slider door on the viewfinder that covers the ground glass and viewfinder optics. This slider is held in place by a very small slot machined into the face of the camera’s door casting.
The original slider was usually made of 0.012in thick brass sheet, then chrome plated, and in later cameras, was made of steel and then chrome plated. Originally, the slider was made of two parts, a tiny brass knob that was staked into the face of the slider, and the main slider. What seemed like it was going to be a very simple part to make turned out to be way more complicated than I expected. Because that’s always how it goes, right? In preparation to make a replica slider, I sat down and made a drawing of each part. Sourcing 0.012in thick material that is smooth and flat has a fair amount of lead time. Therefore, the first thing I decided to make was the knob.
As I was making the drawing, and realizing how small it needed to be, it occurred to me that I have quite a few of the smaller, more modern sliders that have the same knob on them. So instead of agonizing over machining such a teeny tiny part, I took one of the existing parts from a more modern slider, drilled and tapped a hole in the back of the knob, and then removed the knob to be installed in my replica slider. I was able to source 0.012in thick steel shim stock, which I chose because I couldn’t afford to have just one small part chrome plated. Polishing the steel was the next best option. Once the replica slider was machined and fitted to the camera, I installed the knob and am pleased with the result. One step closer to a fully restored camera.
