Realist Mounts

[Derek Gee <73157.2172@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Paul wrote:
>A retired gentleman bought the machinery from Realist and went into
>production in CA again, marketing the mounts under the trade-name
>Sigma.  It sould have been Omega, because after a few runs, he, too,
>has apparently given up.  It's a shame, because these mounts were the
>best, and there is no equal substitute.
>The mounts are of thin Al folded precisely so that the film chips fit
>between folds at the top[ and bottom.  The chips are free to move
>sideways for proper positioning, but Realist had learned that the
>edge of the film was the most reliable guide in getting the two chips
>level.  Once the film chips are in proper position (as determined by
>a mounting guage and test viewing), it was possible to crimp the Al
>so as to prevent movement of the chips - but that was seldom really
>necessary.  I store most pictures just in the Al mounts, but for
>projection or competition where handing is a problem, the best thing
>is to place the mount between glass and hold it together as a
>sandwich using Al frames, also thoughtfully sold in the past by
>Realist.
>So, what can you do?  Keep your eyes open for garage sales or other
>sources of old collections of stereo slides, some of which may be
>mounted in the "good" mounts.  If the pictures are worthless (in
>other words, unlabeled, or of somebody's wedding), the mounts may be
>scavenged.  Sometimes boxes of the good mounts (Realist or Sigma)
>show up at camera shows, but they are very scarce now.  Then you can
>just mope, knowing that the best, like that Macro-Realist you've
>always wanted, is beyond your reach.
>Who has the equipment for making these mounts?  As I mentioned, I've
>heard that the stuff is in CA, which narrows the search just a
>little.  Perhaps some young machinist would like to try rebuilding
>the vital parts of the machinery for making these peerless mounts.
>A further note: said mounts were never cut for 7-perf. Verascope
>(Belplasca) format pictures, but this would have been possible.
>There's another challenge for someone.
 
The Realist mounts were excellent.  I spoke to Dennis Sherwood (current owner
of EMDE) about the SIGMA mounts since both were owned by the same 
retiree.  As I recall, the machine that did the folding was broken
and not repairable (or too expensive to repair).  I think there was
damage to the normal mount die that had been repaired once and could not be
repaired again.  This would require a new die to be made.  If one of you intrepid
business types want to revive the SIGMA line, the retiree would be
happy to part with it for the right $$.  
 
                                        Derek Gee
                                        Vice-President
                                        Detroit Stereographic Society


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