1200mm is a normal focal length for 32x40 and even a process lens that long is a stretch to cover at infinity. a 35" dialyte would put you in close-up only territory. Unless you want 2/3 of your plate to be an indistinct blur, or you can afford to wait for a heavily stopped down lens to expose the plate, I'd steer well clear of anything single element.
Incidentally, you can get coverage stats for most lenses online with some dedicated searching.
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