P3D Re: Twin 35mm SLR Rig

["Ray Moxom" <raymoxom@xxxxxxxxxx>]

In Digest P3D 3701 Larry Haines wrote (in response to Boris Starosta):
> For what it is worth, I am having good luck with my paired
> Ricoh XR-X3PF cameras which are identical to those in my
> RBT X3.  I plug into the electronic shutter release sockets and
> fire them with a simple momentary contact switch.  They are
> well synched for even moving things.  They have all the features
> you want.

I have found with the older Ricoh KR10Ms that the sync is better if a 4 wire
connection is used. This requires opening the camera top and paralleling the
three wires on each shutter button and also connecting the camera bodies
(earth) together with either a 4th wire or  via a metal mounting bar with
metal threads into the camera tripod screw threads. The three connections on
the shutter button are for warm up (first pressure on button) and fire
(continue pushing button).

If you undertake this modification - always have identical batteries in each
camera and replace all batteries at the same time as the batteries are in
parallel when the when the cameras are switched on.

With the 4 wire connection I get good sync for flash and good sync at 1/1000
sec. With the parallel firing via the shutter release sockets I did not get
full flash sync and there was a noticeable out of sync with shots that
included high speed motion such as the bough wave of a boat.

Both of these non auto focus motor wind and rewind Ricoh SLRs take the
Pentax range of lenses.

The Ricoh KR10M was the basis of the RBT X2.

Ray Moxom