50$ DIY Mamiya RB67 Instant Back Using a Fujifilm Instax 300 Camera

[@hexahexametermeter]

You are the ultimate DIY guy!

[@_Sisyphus]

Given limited resources, nice work with the conversion.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Interesting conversion. The benefits were clear to see with a decent lens in the front of the camera.

[@GoneWithFilm]

Yeah the only thing holding back Instax are the cameras themselves.I'm still hoping Fujifilm will put better lenses on the cameras but all we got this year was a reskinned Instax 11.

[@MrWesker0986]

Thank you for your sharing, and hoping your new video with more details how to modify it ^^. Tks so much!

[@666-t4d]

Would you be able to do a step by step tutorial video of how you made this back?

[@GoneWithFilm]

I can't promise when but I did manage to film the whole build. Will take some time to edit since it's several hours of footage.

[@bender37]

Awesome work! I have a couple of questions for you... 1. Did you consider cannibalizing a film back to create the mount for the Instax? 2. How did you determine the focal plane? Was it just trial and error?

[@user-pl6mj8ge4i]

Wow! Good diy🚀

[@nosfeh]

thanks for the video, trying to do a mod from a instax wide 100 soon.

[@igehring]

Hello ! What do you say about putting together a real polaroid back for the RB with an Instax camera ? How about the instax square ?

[@GoneWithFilm]

There's conversion kit available online to use Polaroid originals film. As for instax square yes it's the best fit for the RB. I'm in the middle of making one but it's a bit harder. Will post a video once it's finished.

[@burgulize]

Awesome conversation, I tried to do that with the instax Wide but got stuck with too much of a gaping hole, the instax 300 might be a much better fit!

[@derkeksinator17]

Yes, I tried 5his as well and it didn't really work out. I think I'll retry this.

[@jamescallahan7000]

I want to try this out, but I'm entirely new to DIY stuff like this. I have a instax 300 and RB67. Would you publish a more detailed instructional? Either in video or txt format?

[@GoneWithFilm]

I'm currently working on a non-motorized DIY Square back for the RB67, I'll see if I can make a video out of that since I've been able to document the process more.

[@jamescallahan7000]

@@GoneWithFilm That'd be great! I look forward to it!

[@RJMPictures]

Well done!

[@michaelbourlotos8763]

Anyone thinking of trying this be aware that you will not get the full frame with this conversion, it's hard to tell in this video but the image ends up being about 2.6 inches with black bars on either side. Cool project though!

[@GoneWithFilm]

The back of the RB67 cuts the frame so you get about a "7x7" or 62x62mm square image on instax wide's 99x62 image area. An Instax square camera would be the perfect match.

[@jpcgordon]

Great conversion but I fear it's too complicated for me to build. Have you thought about selling backs? I would certainly be interested.

[@GoneWithFilm]

No plans yet since this was a one-off. There's several makers online that sell 3D printed backs, prices are usually around 300-400usd.

[@STEPAdub]

@@GoneWithFilm do you have any links ?

[@ruffprophetproductions]

awww man i may need to get in contact with you so you can give me a rough step-by-step on this!!! i just recenly found a broken instax wide 300 at a thrift shop for... $35 just like you 😂

[@GoneWithFilm]

As I mentioned to one of the other commenters, I will try to make a longer video but I am a slow editor and I have several hours of footage from the build so it'll take some time to post that. In the meantime, here a text answer to your question. The rough steps are: 1) Make an Instax ground glass for checking focus- make a ground glass from an empty Instax Wide film pack and some glass cut to fit the pack. You will have to cut and modify the plastic on the film pack and check if the glass is completely parallel to the pack. Either grind the glass with 400 grit grinding/polishing compound or sandpaper, OR use Scotch Magic Tape as an easier but not as nice looking alternative. 2) Disassemble the camera and remove unnecessary electronics. Remove the lens assembly, flash and other wiring. Retain the ejection motor and wiring to the motor and switch, 3) Flatten the front of the Instax 300 chassis so it's flat and perpendicular to the RB67 back. This is done by grinding/cutting the plastic nubs and bits that the other removed parts attach to. 4) Create the adapter plate-this is a metal plate that attaches to the Instax 300 chassis and holds the mounting screws that adapt it to the Mamiya RB body. I made mine from an old computer casing, about 1mm thick. A hole the size of the Mamiya body's opening is also cut on the plate. Holes to hold the mounting screws are also made. The screws are size M3, I used ones that are commonly used for electronics projects that have a standoff that is 8mm tall. This makes the chassis about 9mm from the back of the RB, allowing it to focus to infinity. 5) Attach the adapter plate using screws and or epoxy to the chassis. Also mount the screws to the adapter plate too. Once attached and mounted to the camera, you can check if it focuses to infinity using the ground glass. 6) If it focuses to infinity, proceed with rewiring the shutter button and switch. I rewired the power and the ejection motor to the original microswitch/button combo used for the shutter button. 7) Cut the body/shell of the Instax 300 to fit the Mamiya RB back-the shell has to be cut a bit in order to be flush and be mountable to the RB67. 8) Cover the holes and gaps on the Instax 300 with foam and vinyl sticker-this is to make the whole thing light tight. 9) Congratulations! You're now done with your back and ready to test it out and shoot :)

[@samcumby]

@@GoneWithFilm did you ever end up editing the footage? I'm gonna attempt this soon with an instax wide on a mamiya universal press and having a reference to look at would be nice

[@jamesmcdonald1130]

Hi I’m intrigued by this concept and would love one of these for my rb but I really don’t have the time to make one. How much would you charge if I were to pay you to build one for me and ship it? Thanks

[@GoneWithFilm]

Sorry I only do this as a hobby. There are several people who do this as a service, the backs usually cost about 300-400$ (USD). Check out ebay or the "Mamiya RB67" group on Facebook-those are the places where I see ads for them.

[@ChDe]

Galing!

[@Mac__Tonight]

how did you rewire the electronics?

[@GoneWithFilm]

I used the original wiring. I connected the battery power to the ejection motor and the shutter button. Take note that the ejection motor has forward and reverse polarity-forward powers the ejection motor and when reversed, it powers the lens gears. Also, the shutter button is attached to a microswitch-I epoxied the microswitch to the "On" position so that the circuit is always closed when the shutter button is pressed.

[@oxoelfoxo]

Volume way too low!

[@GoneWithFilm]

Thanks for the feedback :) Will raise the levels on the future videos.

[@2dguillaume233]

hello, nice hack, congrats ! do you sell them ? I'd like to buy one !

[@GoneWithFilm]

Sorry I don't sell them. There's several makers online, they cost about 300USD some time ago, not sure if the prices have gone up.

[@2dguillaume233]

@@GoneWithFilm ok thanks

[@vhon.a]

🙌🔥

[@hexahexametermeter]

audio is too quiet