FrankGosebruch
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AchimBauer
Hi Frank,
I can’t give you any definite answers either!
I’ve looked into the matter myself and haven’t found anything. The only thing I’ve managed to find out is that the company is apparently still in business at Rosenbergstraße 113 in Stuttgart West, though I just haven’t noticed it yet.
And in Leinfelden-Echterdingen, the company is called Metal-Photo-Maton GmbH and manufactures aluminium signs.
Our host once mentioned here in the forum that he took over Beseler from the company Teufel.
While rummaging through the old Lindemanns (it still exists as an online shop, run by old Mr Lindemann from his flat; the high street shop in Stuttgart is now Osiander), I found an entry in a book about the photography industry in Germany that didn’t reveal much more than the former address.
I know that Teufel used to stock developing tanks, as well as lenses, but above all he sold Fujimoto and Ahel enlargers and Beseler equipment.
I’m not aware of him manufacturing much; I believe it was more of a trading company that bore the name ‘Photogerätebau’ from the early days. And perhaps later on he produced a few small parts to adapt equipment to local conditions.
I’ve just discovered the Deville processing unit and the Bobinoir long-track processor in the 1981 catalogue of Photo Universal (a wholesaler for professional equipment). Even though the Swabian dialect has borrowed many words from French, I still don’t believe the equipment is the work of Swabian tinkerers.
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Ah, and then there are Teufel RM retouching colours, KKS-Teufel slide softener, Teufel Simco film cleaner, Teufel chemical tanks, Teufel vignetting set, Teufel Labor-Boy waste bins, Teufel Labor-Clean cleaning wipes, Teufel Paper-Film-Safe, Teufel cutting machines, a Teufel VG 13x18 enlarger with no other name attached, Teufel Simma-Color developing drums, and in the 1984 Fotouniversalkatalog there’s also the Teufel Bencher rEPROSYSTEM, Teufel Fidelity sheet film double cassettes, Teufel Calumet 6x7 roll film cassette, Teufel Jumbo studio ladder and nothing else!
Although the products mentioned seem to be more of a commercial nature.
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I don’t want to paint the devil on the wall, but I fear that even here in the devil’s homeland, little can be found out about the devil.
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Regards, Achim
FrankGosebruch
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AchimBauer
Hi Frank,
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Glad to hear you’ve found something; I’ve been looking around too, but haven’t found anything new at all.
I’ve been rummaging through my heirlooms – old photo albums and a few magazines, including Fotomagazin from the 1950s – and there’s no mention of the Teufel company anywhere (back then, it was common for adverts to be printed in books too).
But I’ve found all sorts of other things. In Stuttgart there was a manufacturer of plate-shifting machines; in Bad Cannstatt (the people there still refuse to accept that they’ve been incorporated into Stuttgart) there was a firm called Veigel that made enlargers, and the firm Kienzle, which still exists today but is no longer in Stuttgart – though you can still see the neon sign for their Plexiglas division opposite the Wasen. Then there was Kodak, Zeiss Ikon, etc., and even in the wider area around what is now the ‘civil war zone’, there were quite a few players in the photographic industry or small manufacturers. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to look into this in more detail; my main passion in photography is still the act of taking photos itself.
I hope you’ll let us know where we can find the Wiki article once it’s finished.
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Regards, Achim
MirkoBoeddecker
In 1998, we took over the distribution of Beseler equipment from Teufel and purchased all remaining stock as part of a ‘package deal’.
After Teufel had ceased manufacturing its own enlargers, it had been distributing and servicing Beseler equipment since the late 1980s, and in some cases had even converted them to 220V itself.
Teufel had several workshops, and every Beseler unit was converted and made suitable for the German market.
For example, the motor housings on the MXT were replaced with DIN plugs, the voltage stabilisation on the colour heads was completely replaced, and so on.
We took over a great many parts and tried to maintain a comparable level of service.
However, as the business more or less collapsed completely within 2–3 years, not much came of it. There are still two pallets of original Beseler parts stored here...
The owners were very nice back then (a brother and sister). They are now called Metallphoto and make a living producing fireproof inventory labels using a photographic process (UV exposure).
To be honest, I’m surprised they haven’t replied. Have you asked Metallphoto?
Best regards,
Mirko
AchimBauer
Hi Mirko,
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I’d like to quote you directly here, as I think I’m too daft to use the quote function.
So you’ve still got two pallets of original Beseler parts lying around.
Why don’t you put them in the shop? I’ve also got a Beseler that turned up at some point, but I’ve no idea where it came from.
I gave up on fixing it in frustration after I came across a Kaiser up to 6x7 with a multi-grade head, colour head, etc. So I just buried my dream of 6x9 and now work with 6x7 on the Linhof.
OK, you said here in the forum a long time ago that the enlarger market is purely a second-hand market.
But where do you get second-hand Beselers? The answer is in the USA.
And nothing is more annoying than having to bid on eBay USA first, then spending double on postage, and then paying for everything together so that customs and import tax are also due on the postage.
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Regards, Achim
MirkoBoeddecker
Why don’t you put them in the shop?
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Because the labour costs involved in listing them would most likely not be covered by the sale of the parts.
This is yet another project that’s only worth working on if I’ve got nothing better to do :-)
But that hasn’t happened for years now.
This would be ideal for someone who doesn’t have to factor in their own working hours. We could sell them the whole lot, and they could then make a few euros each month from the comfort of their sofa by marketing them. Of course, you’d need to get to grips with it and know your way around the parts.
FrankGosebruch
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Josefine
Hi Achim,
I’m selling my Teufel black-and-white enlarger, 6 x 9 cm, with a high-quality lens: Schneider-Kreuznach Componon 1:5.6/60. Interested? Please get in touch. Best regards
AchimBauer
Hi Josefine,
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It’s nice of you to think of me; I just happened to come across the topic again by chance, but as it’s been so busy here today, your post had already disappeared again.
I’m not interested in the device at the moment, as I’ve got one lying about (I don’t know where it came from; it was probably one of those bits and bobs people give me because I might still need something like that) in which I’ve already invested a lot of money and time; the only thing I’m still missing is a 220V lamp head or conversion kit. But even if I had that, it would only be a spare in case I ever manage to find an FT4 panoramic camera at a reasonable price.
I’ve now got so used to my Kaiser and have come to appreciate the multi-angle head.
It’s just a shame that Frank’s posts were edited and have therefore disappeared, as I’d still be interested in the Teufel topic.
But thanks anyway for thinking of me.
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Regards, Achim
