first-aid for broken Acute-Matte screen

[Joel Silverman]

I sadly cracked the top thin glass layer of my Hasselblad Acute-Matte
focussing screen. The screen itself is unscathed, however I just learned
the hard way that the focus of the lens depends on the extra thickness of
that glass layer. It seems a shame to have to buy a $300 screen to replace
a $5 piece of glass. A call Hasselblad USA was a dead end.

Does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks!

Joel Silverman

SILVERMAN BROS. STUDIO
Portrait and Commercial Photography
www.silvermanbros.com
Atlanta, Georgia

[David Meiland]

"Joel Silverman" <joel_si...@hotmail.com> wrote:

Yes, instead of paying $300 to Hasselblad for a new screen, buy one on
eBay for $150 or so....
---
David Meiland
Oakland, CA

**Check the reply address before sending mail

[Bruce McLaughlin]

Joel Silverman wrote:

> I sadly cracked the top thin glass layer of my Hasselblad Acute-Matte
> focussing screen. The screen itself is unscathed, however I just learned
> the hard way that the focus of the lens depends on the extra thickness of
> that glass layer. It seems a shame to have to buy a $300 screen to replace
> a $5 piece of glass. A call Hasselblad USA was a dead end.
>
> Does anyone have any ideas?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Joel Silverman
>
> SILVERMAN BROS. STUDIO
> Portrait and Commercial Photography
> www.silvermanbros.com
> Atlanta, Georgia

Since you're in Atlanta, have you tried sources of used equipment such as
Quality Camera in Atlanta? I think a used item which you can inspect prior to
purchase may be your best bet. Trying to fool around with it yourself seems a
bit foolish if the focus is so dependent on precision thickness. Using a many
thousand dollar piece of equipment with a jerry rigged screen which ends up in
pictures about as sharp as a Holga doesn't seem very cost effective to me, not
to mention the damage to your reputation, etc. Trying to have a repairman work
on it would probably end up costing as much as the Hasselblad asking price if
it can even be done.

I'm sure there are decent used screens out there. If you can't find any in
Atlanta, perhaps the more reputable New York dealers who have significant used
equipment stocks might be able to help. I'm thinking of Lens & Repro, etc..