harv
Hello everyone,
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I’d like to produce my own black-and-white prints and am looking for a suitable enlarger.
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I mainly shoot with 35mm, medium format 6x6 and 6x9. I’d like to make prints up to 40x50 cm in size.
I’ve already done some reading on the subject and found a Durst Laborator L900, which, based on my beginner’s understanding, would meet my requirements.
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Are there any reasons not to go for this enlarger? What alternatives are there?
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Many thanks for your helpful replies.
AchimBauer
Hi Harv,
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There are still new machines available from Kaiser and Kienzle, as well as Beseler,
If you want to do multigrade printing, a multigrade head is the most convenient solution.
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Otherwise, look for machines that have everything you need – that is, all the lighting heads, all the condensers, all the printing tables, and, depending on the lighting, a transformer. Because if you have to source parts for a second-hand unit, it’s a tedious, frustrating and usually quite expensive process. If all the lenses are included, that’s great. If not, it’s no big deal – you can usually get them separately.
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Regards, Achim
Bonderer
For a beginner, I’d recommend starting with an inexpensive, simple model. If it doesn’t turn out as expected, it won’t be a financial loss. Krokus or Meopta offer relatively affordable options. Both are available up to 6x9. Otherwise, there’s the AGFA Varioskop, the workhorse enlarger of the old photo shops, which can be found relatively cheaply in good condition, or my personal favourite, the Kienzle 69S, KB – 6x9. Spare parts are readily available and many can be replaced by the user; parts are available from Kienzle.
Incidentally, they make spare parts for many enlargers, although the AGFA and the Kienzle are very robust machines. I also had the Durst for a while to try it out, but it wasn’t for me. The AGFA was good, but as I wanted the split-grade module on it (which adds quite a bit of weight), I switched to the Kienzle, which is even more robust. If you’re going to do that, go for the 250W lamp. No more of those disgustingly long exposure times. And I wouldn’t want to be without the focus tracking now.
Urnes
That said, the Varioskop’s focus tracking only works with original (i.e. calibrated) lenses.
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Generally speaking, it’s better to spend a bit more and get what you want than to find out later that the Meopta’s base plate only allows for prints up to 40x40 cm.
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By the way, I work with a DeVere 5x7"? (also available in 6x9 – I think it’s called the 23). Extremely robust machines, though it’s now difficult to get hold of accessories and spare parts. So always make sure that the transformer and/or timer are compatible (in the US and UK it’s only 110 V) and it’s best to buy accessories at the same time. It’s often cheaper than having to hunt for them later.
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Regards, Sven.
harv
Thanks for the quick replies.
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I don’t want to consider buying new equipment.
I’ve already had a look at a few Meopta cameras, e.g. the Opemus 5a – what’s the situation with accessories and spare parts for those?
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What are your thoughts on the Kaiser VCP 6000 and VP 3505? I reckon accessories etc. should still be available for Kaiser models. The company is still in business, after all. What would be a reasonable price range here?
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In terms of formats, the range from 35mm to 6x6 would be sufficient for me in the long term.
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I could hardly find any offers for Agfa and Kienzle devices.
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Which manufacturers offer the easiest access to book-style light tables etc. at a fair price?
Patrick
Hi Harv,
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Over the years, I’ve used various enlargers, including Kaiser, Durst, Phillips and Meopta. It all depends, of course, on how keen you are on the subject, and also on how much space you have. Generally speaking, my suggestion would be to buy a unit that accepts larger film formats, e.g. up to 4x5, so that you aren’t limited later on, and a unit where the parts are made of metal. They last longer and are often better built. If you’re serious about enlarging, you’ll spend a lot of time with the unit, and it should be fun to use.
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I bought a Meopta black-and-white enlarger to start with. It worked, but the condenser wasn’t very accurate, or wasn’t set properly, which meant part of the image always came out lighter. To be honest, I wasn’t convinced by this machine – it felt cheap, and the settings weren’t very precise. It was a fairly old model, though; later ones might have been better.
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After a while, I switched to a Phillips PCS 2000 colour enlarger. That was a huge leap forward in quality. However, it was limited to 6×6, and after a while I wanted to develop 6×7 negatives. The colour head also allowed me to make prints on multigrade paper without needing separate filters. I worked with that for a long time and enjoyed it.
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I also used the Kaiser 6000. You often find these in school laboratories. It’s a perfectly decent piece of kit, except that all the parts are made of plastic, and it’s limited to 6×6.
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All these enlargers barely allow you to make prints larger than 30x40cm, due to the length of the column. The built-in lamps aren’t very powerful either, so exposure times for large prints can be quite long. On the other hand, they’re compact enough that you can use them in a bathroom, for example, if you don’t have a basement room that you can set up permanently as a darkroom.
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If you’re really keen, I’d look for a larger unit on eBay if I were you; however, as Sven and others have mentioned, it should be as complete as possible, i.e. with the condensers and negative stages for all the formats you’ll need, and if possible with spare lamps etc. I currently use a Durst Laborator 138 and am very happy with it. I did have to search for a long time before I found all the parts, stages, etc.
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Best regards, Patrick.
TR
What’s your budget like? As a poor student, I can only recommend the newer 6x9 Krokus (but no other Krokus) with a colour head: very compact, sturdy, and cheap on eBay. It looks the part and goes up to 6x9. I paid €25 for mine. Accessories are still available
here at the moment.
Lens plates from, for example, Durst (approx. 7.8 cm diameter) fit with a slight modification to the mount. Downside: the glass stage doesn’t have anti-Newton glass. I’m going to have my own glass inserts made soon.
AchimBauer
Hi Harv,
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Since you specifically asked about the Kaisers, I have two really lovely units which, despite having a few plastic parts, are very sturdy. The company is still in business and spare parts are still available, though not for all models.
There are the old ones with the round condensers – upgrading those is a complete non-starter; they look exactly the same on the outside as the mid-range models, like my big one, which can be upgraded to 6x7 without any problems. 6x9 is also possible, but that involves replacing half the unit. And then there are the new ones – no problem from KB up to 6x9.
The model designations are a bit confusing. But if you can get hold of one of the new ones at a reasonable price, you can upgrade it to 6x9 – from the condenser through the multi-grade head right up to colour.
If you search long enough, you’ll find a complete set too.
I was recently offered a Beseler here on the forum; that would be a good idea too if it has a 220V head. The condenser is always the same; it just needs to be raised and lowered, and if a glassless stage is sufficient, you can file down the ‘waffle irons’ that serve as the image stage yourself if necessary. But definitely not a 110V unit – too expensive to retrofit, and the bulbs cost a fortune and have a special bayonet mount.
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Regards, Achim
Wolf_XL
...if 6x6 is enough for you – I’ve got a Dunco II-66 for sale – complete with colour module and multi-grade module. The Dunco also has the advantage that the manufacturer is still in business. It isn’t quite as solidly built as, say, the Durst machines, but in terms of quality it’s on a far higher level than the Eastern Bloc products like Meopta or Krokus. In any case, the Dunco replaced a Meopta for me and was then in use for around 25 years. However, since I managed to get hold of a Leitz V35 and a Durst L1000 at a bargain price, the machine has been...
harv
My budget is such that I’d like to get started for around €300 if possible.
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In the meantime, I’m wondering whether it might not be more sensible to go straight for 6x7, as my mate is toying with the idea of buying a Mamiya RB67 or 645.
It certainly wouldn’t be a bad thing if he could make prints as well.
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I’ve asked around locally to see if anyone has anything suitable in their attic. I’ll have to see what comes of it and which models turn up.
harv
This evening I’ve got the chance to have a look at an enlarger that’s no longer in use.
More to follow here.
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Quick question: how do you go about washing your enlargements? Do you use wash units exclusively, or does anyone have an alternative method that uses less water?
Mainly for PE paper.
TR
The paper doesn’t actually need to be washed in the traditional sense: it’s more a matter of using a concentration gradient to remove the chemicals from the paper. As your PE paper is ‘sealed’, so to speak, and doesn’t have a thicker, cardboard-like backing, it only needs to soak in water for a relatively short time (~30 mins): give it a gentle nudge now and then, and change the water if using a smaller container. You don’t need to hold the paper under a running tap all the time, nor does the water need to be running constantly!
The leaching of the chemicals can be accelerated: to do this, after a brief ‘soaking’, place the paper in a bath of soda powder: dissolve a small heap of soda powder in 1 litre of water in the palm of your hand and soak the paper in it for approx. 1.5 minutes. Then continue soaking as normal. Instead of soda powder, there is also ‘KODAK® Hypo Clearing Agent’. I believe Tetenal has something similar. You’ll have to have a bit of a look around.
I leave my baryta paper in a tub for a few hours, changing the water now and then. During this time, the chemicals are drawn out of the paper and settle at the bottom of the tub, or are poured away when the water is changed.
harv
Many thanks for the helpful reply, T.R.! I think I read about the soda bath in Feininger’s *The Art of Photography* as well.
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I visited a very nice elderly gentleman today who has a fully equipped darkroom. He has everything to sell.
He has a Kaiser VCP 6001 with a head for 35mm and medium format up to 6x9, fitted with Schneider 50mm and Rodenstock 80mm lenses. Both are 5 or 6-element lenses.
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What would be a fair price I could offer him for it? He also has all the other necessary accessories, such as trays, tongs, focusing screens, mask frames, etc. (you know better than I do what’s all needed)
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What do you think?
AchimBauer
Hi Harv,
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What sort of heads?
With an opal lamp, a multigrade head or a colour head, or several – the heads are the same for all formats, only the condensers are swapped out.
I paid 360 euros for mine, which only goes up to 6x7, with a multigrade and colour head and condenser for 35mm and 6x7, with a transformer and two Rogonars (50 and 90mm), as well as glass inserts and glassless masks for the book-style stage – or rather, nobody bid higher.
We can only say what the residue is worth once there’s a detailed list.
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Regards, Achim
Patrick
Hi Harv,
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Can the VCP 6001 really enlarge up to 6x9? I may be mistaken, but the models I’ve seen only went up to 6x6 (you mentioned that you’d be photographing up to 6x9). I’d also make sure that glassless masks are available for 6x6. With glass masks, you have to ensure that all six surfaces are dust-free, not just two – which, for me at least, makes the whole process a lot more stressful!
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Regards, Patrick.
harv
@Achim I think they’re multi-format heads. There are also lab timers, stages, etc. For a really thorough inventory, I’d need to arrange another appointment.
@Patrick I’m not entirely sure about that. I’ve only seen up to 6x6 myself so far, but the seller said from memory that he has a head that goes up to 6x9. I’ll take his word for it for now. When it came to his cameras,
he also knew the operating details off the top of his head. I didn’t ask exactly which masks they are, nor have I looked at them closely yet.
I’ll set aside a morning soon and do a proper inventory.
harv
I’d like to expand on my question a little further: how would you design the darkroom in terms of workflow and dimensions?
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I don’t have any experience with this yet. I have the option of partitioning off part of a basement room measuring 3m x 5.50m.
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Would you design the workbench so that one can work ‘linearly’, i.e. from left to right – with the enlarger on the left and the chemicals (developer, stop bath, fixer, wash) to the right?
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Or would two parallel workbenches be the better solution? I’m sure some of you have practical experience by now and might suggest a different layout if possible.
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From the literature, I’ve compiled the following list of equipment:
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Enlarger heads, masks, power supply, lenses
Exposure timer
Mask frames
Filters
5 laboratory beakers
3 laboratory tweezers
Funnel
Measuring jug
Thermometer
Fixer bath test strips
Protectan
Waste container
Gloves
Cutting tool
Drying press
2 darkroom lamps
Cabinet for paper etc.
Table for set-up
Stirring sticks
Plastic bottles
Clips
Clothes line
Grain sharpener
Brush (for cleaning glass plates and negatives)
Scissors
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Is anything essential missing from the consumables?
piu58
> Design the table so that you can work in a 'linear' fashion, i.e. ... or would two parallel tables be a better solution?
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Keeping wet and dry areas separate is always the better solution. However, a single table will also do the job if you can leave a metre of space between the enlarger and the trays.
ultra8
Hello Thomas,
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The paper doesn’t actually need to be washed in that sense: it’s more a matter of using a concentration gradient to remove the chemicals from the paper. As your PE paper is ‘sealed’, so to speak, and doesn’t have a thicker, card-like backing, it only needs to be left in the water for a relatively short time (~30 mins).
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The leaching of the chemicals can be accelerated: to do this, after a brief “soaking”, place the paper in a bath of washing-up powder: dissolve a small heap of washing-up powder in 1 litre of water in the palm of your hand and soak the paper in it for approx. 1.5 minutes. Then continue soaking as normal. Instead of washing-up powder, you can also use “KODAK® Hypo Clearing Agent”. I believe Tetenal has something similar. You’ll have to have a bit of a look around.
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I leave my baryta paper in a tub for a few hours and change the water from time to time. During this time, the chemicals are drawn out of the paper base and undergo settling at the bottom of the tub or are poured away when the water is changed.
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Please explain to me the principle of how still water can draw something out of a paper substrate.
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Example: If I soak baryta paper in dark ink for the time I would normally spend fixing, and then place the paper in still water, the water takes on the colour of the ink adhering to the paper’s surface. The paper substrate nevertheless remains (slightly) discoloured. Only a proper ‘washing’ with gently flowing water cleans the substrate of the ink.
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I am always sceptical about ‘washing’ in still water. If no washer is available, I recommend using a conventional bowl. The paper is gently moved around in the bowl several times so that it is constantly surrounded by a current of water. The water is then changed eight times. When using fast-fixing baths with a high oil content and fixing times of no more than one minute, this procedure is sufficient to ensure archival stability.
AchimBauer
Hi Harv, Hi Patrick,
Second attempt at replying – something went wrong.
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So, according to the user manual, the 6001 can handle up to 6x7 with the right filter; you can find the manual at?
www.kaiser-fototechnik.de/pdf/anleitungen/4420_2_de.pdf but only if I’ve spelled it correctly; otherwise, use a search engine.
However, it can also go up to 6x9 if the component from image 1 has been replaced. Simply measure the opening and check whether it’s smaller or larger than 9cm.
Image 2 from left to right: head with opal lamp, then multigrade head, and then colour head (multigrade is also possible with this, but not as convenient)
Image 3: if the condenser has the left bayonet mount, it won’t work; if it has the right one, it might work, provided there is no longer a third version. Note: with 6x7, the glass plates are square.
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Regards, Achim
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