Gast
Hello,
I want to start making black-and-white enlargements – though not very often at first. However, I find the developing trays a bit too expensive. Is there a cheaper alternative, for example from a DIY store or a household goods shop? Or are they not suitable for the chemicals?
Instead of a darkroom lamp, can I use those coloured light bulbs that glow red, for example?
Many thanks?
fotohuisrovo
Hello Tobias,
If developer trays are too expensive, it does get a bit tricky. A second-hand paper drum for colour development might be even cheaper, and you wouldn’t need a red light either.
However, you do have to rinse and dry the drum after every print.
Kind regards,
Fotohuis RoVo
Robert Vonk
Gast
Hi Tobias,
Just a quick note about the Duka light: those red-tinted bulbs from the party section of the DIY store won’t do. You need a proper Duka bulb. And when you order it, make sure it comes with two bowls. A used roll tank is more expensive, and with other beakers you usually run into a problem: a smooth base, meaning the paper sticks to the bottom.
You can often find laboratory beakers on eBay for very little money.
Best regards,
Franz
Gast
Hello Tobias
If you only very rarely need black-and-white enlargements, I recommend using black-and-white films from Kodak or Ilford, which are processed using the C41 process at a large-scale lab.
The results are guaranteed not to be ‘fine print’ quality, but neither will your
darkroom results be if you don’t work regularly in your own darkroom with decent (not super-expensive) equipment.
I think we’ve all had this experience: if you don’t stick with it...
it’s better to leave it at that.
I don’t want to frustrate you unnecessarily, but if developing trays and a darkroom light are already
a financial issue for you (which is understandable!!!), how do you intend
to manage the chemicals and, above all, the paper? In my experience,
the trays and the light are the cheapest part of the whole thing...
Regards,
Michael
Gast
Hi Tobias,
Forget about the party light straight away. Philips (and previously Osram) make red lights that you can use. They’re listed in Mirko’s catalogue, costing around €9.
Regarding the trays:
For my second lab in my studio flat (complete with a proper Soviet UPA510 suitcase enlarger ;-) I’ve built up a small collection of spare trays – pop into Aldi, Lidl or Norma, buy 3 or 4 packs of ready-made lasagne, and tuck in. The lasagne comes in aluminium trays that you can throw away once empty. The outer packaging, however, is more interesting: a sturdy, sealed plastic tray with a foil lid – roughly 18x24 cm in base area.
You should be able to soak a 13x18 cm tray in a litre of solution. And replace them regularly with new trays; they shouldn’t last particularly long.
Cheap? Well, about 3 euros per tray. But that includes 1kg of delicious lasagne – the stuff is surprisingly good. ;-)
Mirko, you once posted the UPAs on the website – do you have any idea who made them? I’ve managed to trace the manufacturer back to an ammunition manufacturer in Tula, south-east of Moscow, but they won’t comment on their products via email.
Even the Industar96U lens bears no manufacturer’s mark. :-(
But the basic design is very similar to a Contax enlarger from 1946, before the units were sent to Kiev.
I’m just interested as a user and collector. :-)
Regards, Roman
