Using 120 Film in 620 Cameras Vintage Cameras     Home Many good cameras were made in the first half of the Twentieth Century which used the now-obsolete 620 format. Kodak, in particular, made some excellent cameras which can often now be obtained for next to nothing because most people do not want to be troubled with obtaining film in a size no longer available over the counter. However, there are several methods available for modifying still-available 120 film rolls so that they will fit in many cameras originally designed to accept only the 620 format.
The problem in fitting a 120 film roll into a camera intended to take 620 is illustrated in the photo to the right. The film and paper backing are essentially identical. However, the 620 spool is very slightly shorter, it has smaller diameter disks at each end, and the axle hole and slot is smaller on the 620 spool than in the 120 size. The length difference is insignificant in most cameras that have spring-loaded spool holders as they will adapt to the difference in spool lenth. The larger axle hole and slot diameter will often pose a problem for using a 120 spool on the take-up side in a 620 camera; however, this is easily remedied by salvaging a few 620 spools from cheap box cameras. That leaves just the problem of the over-size disks on each end of the 120 film spool which will often not fit into the film compartment of a camera meant to use 620 film.
The solution I have found easiest to adapting 120 film to 620 cameras is simply to add a manicure set to my camera kit. All you will need is a pair of high-leverage nail trimming scissors and a nail file. A popular alternative is to re-spool the 120 film and paper backing onto a old 620 spool. However that requires a fully darkened room, and you will need to accomplish the whole task completely in the dark. Getting the film rewound onto the 620 spool and repositioning the tape holding the paper backing to the film under those conditions seems to require a bit more dexterity than I was born with.
Kodak 120 film spools are made of plastic that is tough, but not brittle. A pair of sharp nail scissors will enable you to cut the disks at the spool ends to the proper size to fit into the film chamber of a camera designed to accept 620 film. By taking small bites with the scissors and guiding them along the groove near the end disk's outer edge, you can trim off the excess diameter so that the disk is nearly flush with the paper backing and approximately the same size in diameter as the old 620 spools.
The initial trimming with the scissors is likely to leave an uneven border on the disks at each end of the spool. I like to use a sandpaper-like nail file to do the final smoothing of the disk edges. Done properly, the result will be a roll of film that winds very easily from start to finish in your 620 camera. In handling the film roll during the trimming process, it is probably a good idea to avoid gripping the roll too tightly which might deform the roll of film slightly and cause light leaks along the borders of the film. I also like to do the whole process away from bright light sources and I store my trimmed film cartridges in a dark container as well.
The final picture to the right shows a roll of trimmed 120 film loaded in my Kodak Vigilant -- a camera with a Tessar-style lens that cost me about $12. The trimmed 120 spool is at the bottom. The paper backing of the film has been threaded into the slot of an old metal 620 film spool at the top which was salvaged from a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye. It is important to carry several such 620 spools in your kit as once you use the film, the spool it is wound onto is no longer available until you have developed the film.
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