OFFICIAL I HAVE A NEW (FILM RELATED) TOY THREAD!!

Easel looks like new, it was in a box wrapped
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Now for the most important part, the enlarger, it was a bit disappointing.
There was fungus inside the glass shown in the last picture below. Not sure if i can open the enlarger and try to clean it up. I lit up the enlarger and it works ok. It doesn’t have a timer and the seller forgot to post the base plate. Bummer
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Also looks like a screw Mount, wonder what size is the mount thread
 
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Marino said:
Yayy two developing tanks, the other was was brand new. I loved these old Paterson tanks, they’re really well made, prefer them from the new ones.
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Me too, I have both the System 4 and the newer Super System 4 (?) I much pre fair the older one.
Marino said:
Also looks like a screw Mount, wonder what size is the mount thread
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It will most likely be L39 the same as screw fit Leica rangefinder camera.
Good replacement enlarger lenses are not expensive.
It is a shame that the enlarger is incomplete, have you contacted the seller, hopefully it is a mistake on their behalf and the missing items can be found, if not they should give you a partial refund surely.
 
@zx9 thanks for the reply,
It is a shame indeed, the enlarger seems to be in excellent condition. I’m sure he forgot about it because i saw the base on the original listing picture.
The thing with the enlarger is the fungus in that piece of glass. I can see black-spots on the projected light. It needs cleaned or else the enlarger is unusable… I’m not sure if i can open it,i might give it a go if i get the base plate
 
Marino said:
@zx9 thanks for the reply,
It is a shame indeed, the enlarger seems to be in excellent condition. I’m sure he forgot about it because i saw the base on the original listing picture.
The thing with the enlarger is the fungus in that piece of glass. I can see black-spots on the projected light. It needs cleaned or else the enlarger is unusable… I’m not sure if i can open it,i might give it a go if i get the base plate
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It is difficult to see exactly which glass surface is effected, if it is a heat filter or an optical condenser or even a double glass negative carrier it should clean up with well, after cleaning I would wager that it will have no effect on any prints that you make. The optical systems in B&W enlargers are quite basic, the worst or most significant damage would be burnt dichloric filters or mixing boxes, both of these are in diffusion colour enlargers, and are not used in condenser B&W enlargers.
 
zx9 said:
It is difficult to see exactly which glass surface is effected, if it is a heat filter or an optical condenser or even a double glass negative carrier it should clean up with well, after cleaning I would wager that it will have no effect on any prints that you make. The optical systems in B&W enlargers are quite basic, the worst or most significant damage would be burnt dichloric filters or mixing boxes, both of these are in diffusion colour enlargers, and are not used in condenser B&W enlargers.
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It’s the glass right above the film holder. It’s also a colour printer. Thx for the help! I wouldn’t have a clue what’s the parts you’re talking about. Can confirm it’s not the negative carrier, as it doesn’t have glass. It’s hollow on both sides.
I’m tempted to just open it and try to clean it
 
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Marino said:
All new in the boxes, measuring cylinders. colour print drum????? What’s that??
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The paper used to make colour prints is sensitive to all colours, so you can't use a safelight (not 100% true, but never mind) and therefore you have to process in complete darkness. You can either do this in trays in a darkroom (just like you can process film the same way) or use a daylight developing tank aka print drum. You load the paper in darkness, close it up, and add chemicals and (usually) roll it around on a work surface or in a water bath.

They used to be sought after by new to LF people who wanted a developing tank. The Paterson orbital processor did the same job, and is still popular for developing LF film.
 
StephenM said:
The paper used to make colour prints is sensitive to all colours, so you can't use a safelight (not 100% true, but never mind) and therefore you have to process in complete darkness. You can either do this in trays in a darkroom (just like you can process film the same way) or use a daylight developing tank aka print drum. You load the paper in darkness, close it up, and add chemicals and (usually) roll it around on a work surface or in a water bath.

They used to be sought after by new to LF people who wanted a developing tank. The Paterson orbital processor did the same job, and is still popular for developing LF film.
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Wow, really appreciate the info. Thanks for taking time to explain, @StephenM I thought it was used to develop film.
 
The fungus was on the magnifying glass, but it was easy to access and remove.
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I cleaned it with hand soap :police: and a soft cloth
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Put the glass back in, cleaned inside the enlarger and it's good to go.
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The question is (silly one), Do i keep the same bulb?If i replace it with led, is it going to heat up as fast?
I'm a bit worried in case it overheats.
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And lastly, is it possible to wire a timer?
It would be hard without one.
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Any other advice/info would be really welcome


:help::help::help::help::help::film:
 
The bulb should be fine. You'll notice that the lettering is around the base, nar the screw thread, rather than on the top of the bulb. That's deliberate on bulbs made for enlargers, to ensure that the lettering isn't focused and appears on the print. The lamphouse should be designed to dissipate the heat. I imagine swapping to an LED would be possible, but I don't know if the colour temperature would be a problem if it differs greatly from the expected.

Wiring in a timer should be straightforward, but never having had a wired in timer it's an assumption. In the old days, some people used a foot switch to turn off the enlarger, leaving their hands free.
 
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@Marino said:
"And lastly, is it possible to wire a timer?
It would be hard without"

Yes it is, the timer has a standard plug. The electric out socket on the timer is a little different in that it's a 2 pin arrangement or is on mine. The enlarger then has a a matching 2 pin plug fitted. For added safety my timer has a short blow fuse. I'm off out now but I'll post a picture of mine another time.

As @StephenM says the current bulb is fine. You can buy direct replacements if you ever need one.
 
Well, this is exciting...

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Looks in absolutely fantastic condition, inside and out. No lens hood unfortunately, not sure if I need one. A test film has been sent off to Filmdev, but then I couldn't wait to see the results and have taken another roll yesterday. I've already been hit by the "forgot to take the lens cap off" bug again!
 
Have you tried taping something to the lens cap that would obtruct the viewfinder?
 
StephenM said:
Have you tried taping something to the lens cap that would obstruct the viewfinder?
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Interesting thought! It's so pristine I'm a bit reluctant, but I'll bear it in mind! This has a meter but it's not TTL, so you don't even get a clue there. Someone on the twitters was saying, he just leaves his lens cap at home!
 
@StephenM & @auntiemaryscanary
Really useful info.
Thanks a lot, i think i got it all sorted now!
Just waiting for the baseplate now, the seller hasn’t replied yet(forgot to post it).
 
Marino said:
Ok here we go, what did i get my self into :LOL: …

I was happy to receive the darkroom equipment but that feeling didn’t last much when i realised the enlarger is not in great condition.
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The boxed stuff was new, i doubt I’ll be using them. But the funnel, jugs and containers will come handy.
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Yayy two developing tanks, the other was was brand new. I loved these old Paterson tanks, they’re really well made, prefer them from the new ones.
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Bulk film loader works ok:)
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All new in the boxes, measuring cylinders. colour print drum????? What’s that??
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Unopened photo paper? I’ll try it anyway, not sure if itsexpired or not.
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Wow that is all amazing! Just remember to keep the darkroom well ventilated to avoid breathing the chemical fumes in for too long !!!!
 
ChrisR said:
Interesting thought! It's so pristine I'm a bit reluctant, but I'll bear it in mind! This has a meter but it's not TTL, so you don't even get a clue there. Someone on the twitters was saying, he just leaves his lens cap at home!
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that's what your pants pocket is for!
 
I know I’m late to this thread but here goes. These are some of my 35mm film cameras. I decided a while back to collect my entire film camera history so there’s a few early ones missing but it’s almost all of them in the 3 pictures. I have loads of nifty 50’s but I will add some lenses I used to use especially those I loved such as the Canon FD 85mm f/1.2L and the Tamron SP 80-200 f/2.8 LD and then I’ll get using them. Cannot wait.
 

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Hadge said:
I know I’m late to this thread but here goes. These are some of my 35mm film cameras. I decided a while back to collect my entire film camera history so there’s a few early ones missing but it’s almost all of them in the 3 pictures. I have loads of nifty 50’s but I will add some lenses I used to use especially those I loved such as the Canon FD 85mm f/1.2L and the Tamron SP 80-200 f/2.8 LD and then I’ll get using them. Cannot wait.
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Canon A-1. Still the best looking camera ever made.
 
soupdragon said:
They are really good.
Can you tell me what chemicals you used for processing?
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Not completely sure, the film was developed a few years ago so would have been either Rollei or Tetenall.

How are you controlling your temp when colour developing? It really is critical to avoid colour casts and get consistent results.

I've been developing colour since I was 14 and tried all manner of things, ok for one offs but you won't ever manage to get the same results again.
 
Jammy Dodger said:
Not completely sure, the film was developed a few years ago so would have been either Rollei or Tetenall.

How are you controlling your temp when colour developing? It really is critical to avoid colour casts and get consistent results.

I've been developing colour since I was 14 and tried all manner of things, ok for one offs but you won't ever manage to get the same results again.
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I have two large plastic containers and two Cinestill water heaters, One for heating the tank and one for heating the chemistry.
I'm using Cinestill powdered simplified C41 kits,
In truth I'm not getting great results and am thinking an alternative chemistry might be the way forward.
I'm amazed at the results you are getting from 35mm as they look better than the 4x5 I'm using and processing.

If you have more information, please let me know your process?
 
Hi Tony,

I used to use a set-up like yourself and I really struggled!

Buy a JOBO CPE2 or CPA2; you will love how easy it makes processing!

I've watched the videos on Cinestill's website; trust me temp needs to be controlled within o.2 degrees for accurate/repeatable/consistent colour processing.

Thanks for the comments Tony - I have been processing film for a long time so practice makes perfect but trust me buy a colour therm Jobo Bath - I even do B & W film in it as the agitation is also consistent.

HTH

Fras.
 
Two recent new things...

Gnome Cadet with Wray 2 inch f4.5 Supar lens. I've had to do a bit of work on it, rewiring for example, and need to replace the red filter for which I have some red perspex. The hardest part is getting the column friction lock to work reliably, more on that tomorrow I think.

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By the way I got the enlarger for £8 plus £8.50 postage after making a cheeky offer on eBay!

Even cheekier, a 1958 Agfa Silette from Oxfam for £14.99 (free postage for some reason).

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The shutter is working well and the only very minor defect is that the left hand viewfinder mask doesn't always stay in place. To be honest, when I saw it for sale I thought it was a rangefinder Super Silette but it is a viewfinder version with suspended frame lines. It came with the lens hood and. unexpectedly, a small camera bag, a light meter and and two flash guns.

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I've checked the light meter against my Sekonic and all seems to be well.


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The Panasonic electronic flash works and I'm expecting to be able to use the Agfa flash gun so I ordered a 15V battery for it as I have some suitable flashbulbs already.

I was astonished that the battery is still available but it looks like that might be because the battery is used in many common Avo meters.
 

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StephenM said:
The bits of the web site I looked at were interesting. My first job was with STC at the time when Kenneth Corfield was in charge, but some years before that I bought a Corfield Lumimeter, an enlarging exposure meter which I still have. Once calibrated for the paper etc., it gave the exposure time and the paper grade to use. Later on Kenneth Corfield was involved with Gandolfi Cameras.
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Stephen, I was searching for information on the Lumimeter and came across your post. I got one ages ago as part of an auction lot. I had no idea what it was or how to use it but I found a web page where the chap explains how it works. Did/do you find it helpful in the darkroom?
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Yes; as you've probably already found out, you can estimate the exposure and the grade of paper needed after you've run a few tests - nothing more arduous than the making of ordinary test strips. You do have to beware of any differences between boxes of paper (I bought paper by the box, not packet), and probably standardise your developer (I only ever used one after Acuprint replaced my previous Cobrol) and pay attention to the temperature - but nothing that you shouldn't do as a matter of course.

I should have the instruction book in my darkroom drawer.
 
benc98 said:
I was gifted some 30 year old Velvia last week - No idea where to start.. !
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My experience with expired slide film has been to shoot it at box speed. The colours may degrade over time, but the sensitivity seems to stay correct, so overexposing it risk blowing the highlights. Do you have more than one roll? If so, use the first as a test. Or do as I do and just live dangerously and chance it. :D
 
FishyFish said:
My experience with expired slide film has been to shoot it at box speed. The colours may degrade over time, but the sensitivity seems to stay correct, so overexposing it risk blowing the highlights. Do you have more than one roll? If so, use the first as a test. Or do as I do and just live dangerously and chance it. :D
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Nice one, thanks for the info.. I have 3 rolls, so an opportunity to trial and error :)
 
FishyFish said:
My experience with expired slide film has been to shoot it at box speed. The colours may degrade over time, but the sensitivity seems to stay correct, so overexposing it risk blowing the highlights. Do you have more than one roll? If so, use the first as a test. Or do as I do and just live dangerously and chance it. :D
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I have found the same regarding box speed.
What can help is if you push process by 1/2 - 1.0 stops to bring the colour saturation up a bit.
 
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