Enlarger question

I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some reasonble
enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6 negatives,
and up to 11x14 prints?

Thanks,
Greg
--
Obscurity in the low desert: http://lodesertprotosites.org

Dethink to survive - Mclusky

Any of the Besler 23 series enlargers!


G.T. wrote:
I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some reasonble
enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6 negatives,
and up to 11x14 prints?

Thanks,
Greg

"Nermal" wrote in message
...
Any of the Besler 23 series enlargers!

G.T. wrote:
I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some
reasonble enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6
negatives, and up to 11x14 prints?

A couple of points on enlargers -

1. Given you want to use negatives up to 6x6, just make sure that the
enlarger in question handles 6x6 negatives. Then make certain that you get
the negative carriers and the lens boards/cones for each film format you
plan to use.

2. Most - if not all - enlargers will handle up to 11x14 prints, even 16x20
prints. There are ways to handle the larger prints if the enlarger column
is not long/tall enough to accommodate such larger prints - some enlargers
allow you to reverse mount the enlarger head so you can project onto the
floor rather than the baseborad. Other enlargers allow you to swivel the
enlarger head so you can project the negative image onto the nearby wall.
And some enlargers have the enlarger column slanted forward so you can
remove the baeboard and mount the enlarger column onto a three sided box
affair with shelves to accommodate different groups of print sides....you
project onto the highest shelf for the smallest set of prints, onto the
lowest shelf (with the intervening shelves removed) for the largest set of
prints.

3. If space is limited as it seems to be in your situation, look for
enlargers designed for apartment use. The Durst folks have a (non
discontinued) line just that. You easily put it up for a darkroom session
and quickly/readily break it down to store away in a chest drawer, on a
closet shelf afterwards.

4. Just right now is a good time to acquire a good, solid enlarger. The
rush to digital that still continues has put many an excellent enlarger
(with timer, safelight, trays, etc.) on the market at very good prices. You
say you are in the Los Angeles area....check the major photo stores there as
well as craigslist.

I'ved used 23C variants for many years and they are excellent
workhorses for the formats you mention. They are very common and
accessories are easy to find (and bargain-priced, too!). They have a
wide variety of illumination systems.

The Omega choices are also good. In my experience, they have features
that some might prefer to Beseler. They are a bit less stable and
require a longer pause after touching the head and starting your
exposure. I always liked the function of the carriers on the Omegas
but either brand should serve you well and have easily found
accessories, too.

If you find something of another brand that seems decent, be certain
that it is a complete kit with what you'll likely need and not
something that will leave you searching in vain for a necessary part
or repair.

On Tue, 8 Jan 2008 13:44:03 -0800, "G.T."
wrote:

I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some reasonble
enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6 negatives,
and up to 11x14 prints?

Thanks,
Greg

Craig Schroeder
craig nospam craigschroeder com

In article ,
G.T. wrote:
I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some reasonble
enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6 negatives,
and up to 11x14 prints?

The canonical answer is the Beseler 23. The Beseler 67 is smaller, cheaper,
and will also work well.

If you're in or near New York you can have mine.

--
Thor Lancelot Simon

"The inconsistency is startling, though admittedly, if consistency is to
be abandoned or transcended, there is no problem." - Noam Chomsky

"Thor Lancelot Simon" wrote in message
...
In article ,
G.T. wrote:
I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some
reasonble
enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6
negatives,
and up to 11x14 prints?

The canonical answer is the Beseler 23. The Beseler 67 is smaller,
cheaper,
and will also work well.

If you're in or near New York you can have mine.


Bummer. I'm all the way across the country, LA.

Greg

On 1/8/2008 1:44 PM G.T. spake thus:

I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some reasonble
enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6 negatives,
and up to 11x14 prints?

Just another note endorsing the Beseler 23.

Be sure to get ahold of a grain focuser, too. Much better than trying to
focus with the nude eye. (Also available cheap on eBay, natch.)

wups...miscue. That third point should have read

"3. If space is limited as it seems to be in your situation, look for
enlargers designed for apartment use. The Durst folks have a (now
discontinued) line just that. You easily put it up for a darkroom session
and quickly/readily break it down to store away in a chest drawer, on a
closet shelf afterwards."

"now" rather than "non". Big difference.

"Lawrence Akutagawa" wrote in message
et...

"Nermal" wrote in message
...
Any of the Besler 23 series enlargers!

G.T. wrote:
I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some
reasonble enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6
negatives, and up to 11x14 prints?

A couple of points on enlargers -

1. Given you want to use negatives up to 6x6, just make sure that the
enlarger in question handles 6x6 negatives. Then make certain that you
get the negative carriers and the lens boards/cones for each film format
you plan to use.

2. Most - if not all - enlargers will handle up to 11x14 prints, even
16x20 prints. There are ways to handle the larger prints if the enlarger
column is not long/tall enough to accommodate such larger prints - some
enlargers allow you to reverse mount the enlarger head so you can project
onto the floor rather than the baseborad. Other enlargers allow you to
swivel the enlarger head so you can project the negative image onto the
nearby wall. And some enlargers have the enlarger column slanted forward
so you can remove the baeboard and mount the enlarger column onto a three
sided box affair with shelves to accommodate different groups of print
sides....you project onto the highest shelf for the smallest set of
prints, onto the lowest shelf (with the intervening shelves removed) for
the largest set of prints.

3. If space is limited as it seems to be in your situation, look for
enlargers designed for apartment use. The Durst folks have a (non
discontinued) line just that. You easily put it up for a darkroom session
and quickly/readily break it down to store away in a chest drawer, on a
closet shelf afterwards.

4. Just right now is a good time to acquire a good, solid enlarger. The
rush to digital that still continues has put many an excellent enlarger
(with timer, safelight, trays, etc.) on the market at very good prices.
You say you are in the Los Angeles area....check the major photo stores
there as well as craigslist.

"G.T." wrote in message
...
I've been poking around on Ebay and Craigslist and there are some
reasonble enlargers available at the moment, several Beseler 23c series.

What's the most basic enlarger that I can do 35mm, 6x4.5, and 6x6
negatives, and up to 11x14 prints?

I used a Besler 23c (XL - the tall one) and produced marvelous prints. Get
it, make sure it's put together right, aligned and BE HAPPY! Get a good
lens.

On Tue, 8 Jan 2008 23:13:28 +0000 (UTC), (Thor Lancelot
Simon) wrote:

The canonical answer is the Beseler 23. The Beseler 67 is smaller, cheaper,
and will also work well.

If you're in or near New York you can have mine.

Replaced it with something else, or just giving up printing?