Enlarger(s)choice

[Herb Cunningham]

After many moons of kneeling over a bathtub to process my 8x10 and smaller negatives and prints, I have decided to build a darkroom.

As I have never done anything in moderation, the plan is a building, 12 x16, in the back yard with hvac and plumbing.

As I am designing the basic building, the question of ceiling clearance regarding enlargers is:

I do contact printing on AZO right now, but would like to get into enlarging, most likely no color processing, at least not at this point-
I rather like 5x7 for casual field work, but 8x10 is certainly here to stay. I also do 4x5 occasionally, and if color is in the mix, I would use 4x5 because of the cost, if no other reason. Black and white will be 80 percent plus of the work, and I am not a "commercial" photographer, just an old guy who sells a few prints every so often, and never for hire.

Is it reasonable to buy an 8x10 enlarger and use it for all sizes? If so, which one and how much ceiling clearance?
If not, then 8x10 AND 4x5? or 8x10 AND 5x7?
Finally, once the enlarger choice(s) are made, should the entire ceiling be the max height of the biggest enlarger, or can I just dedicate a
place, say 6x6 ft that would have a sort of chase that would extend as high as needed? It costs a lot more to have the entire ceiling say ten feet, not to mention heating and cooling that much more space.

Thanks

[Ralph Barker]

I think there's a balance or trade-off between utility and convenience when considering the range of formats enlarged by a single enlarger, Herb. While it is certianly possible to do all sizes on a single enlarger, you may find it more convenient to have one dedicated to 4x5 and smaller, and the other for 5x7 and 8x10.

Ceiling height is a matter of which orientation you select for your 8x10 enlarger - horizontal or vertical. If, for example, you're considering one of the big Durst 8x10s, ceiling height is an issue. A horizontal DeVere, in contrast, eliminates that problem. Both are pretty large and heavy, though, so plan your floor and doors accordingly.

There are also trade-offs in terms of ceiling height and volume of air. While it obviously costs more to heat or cool a larger volume of air with the higher ceiling, that also means that chemical fumes will be less concentrated, for example. Where the optimal balance point is for you is probably a question that only you can answer.

[darter]

Gee, with that kind of space, you should try and pick up a used Durst Laborator. They are, I think 7 feet tall, but can handle 10x10 negatives and last forever. Since very few people can handle them, they sell relatively cheaply. For new enlargers, you can't beat the value of the Saunders (omega) 4550 series, though they only handle up to 4x5.

[bob carnie]

Herb
I own and 8x10 Durst Condensor and an 8x10 Deveere Colour Diffusion.
both would work for your purposes , and both can be found for under $1000.00.
I use mostly condensor light for my work therefore my choice would be the Durst, but I must say the Deveere is very easy to work with and I don't have a problem with the diffusion source, I use this one for portraits.
Both these enlargers pound out an tremendous amount of light that is wonderful for large prints.
Jens at durst usa has a retrofit kit for the durst that I am considering as well as a couple of others on this forum.
Both units are floor models and the final height is not much more than a 4x5 enlarger.
You can not go wrong with either one and parts are readily available for both.
Good luck with your darkroom, there are plenty of people here who can help you out with any plumbing, sink , electrical, ventilation issues you may come across.
By the way, you can cut smaller masks out of black lexan for the smaller formats and only require one glass carrier as long as you center the windows to the lens and bulb.

[peter cawthorn]

I have a De Vere 5108 8x10 enlarger which when fully racked up with an Iford 500 HLE head is 8 feet high. A room of 9 feet high is required to allow for the head to remain sufficiently cool if it is to be fully extended for maximum sized enlargements. If, however, only enlargements up to 20x24 are to be made then the head does not need to be fully extended and a room height of 8 feet is adequate. The De Vere can be used with 8x10 negative carriers and 4x5 carriers.

[John Kasaian]

Herb,

If you're investing in a building you probably aren't interested in bargain basement stuff, but I think for 8x10 work old Elwoods have a lot going for them, especially for B&W. If anything, for a very modest investment you can see if you're really serious about blowing up 8x10, then invest accordingly. You'll be able to enlarge any format up to 8x10 without needing condensors---just cut a mask to fit the negative carrier and you're "there."

I like to put an old overcoat and fedora on mine and wheel it out next to the front door on Halloween;-)

It also does a great job a heating tortillas(better, I think than my Bride's George Foreman Grill!)

Good luck!

[ronald moravec]

You can do it all with an 8x10 machine. So if you are going to get one, get it first and be done with it. The big machines with the variable height tables have to be wonderful to work with.

Another way to look at things is getting one of the better 4x5 machines and use the light for contact printing 8x10.

[Steve Feldman]

Herb,

Many years ago I took a tour of the CBS (Burbank, CA) photo lab and studios. Their darkroom had 3 - 8x10 enlargers of unknown brand. But I do remember that they were enormus. The ceiling was standard height. They solved the enlarger head max. height issue by poking a hole in the ceiling only in the area of the head.

[Dave Brown]

Herb,

The chase idea should work just fine; the top of the column on my 10 x 10 durst sits between two joists.

As for using an 8 x10 enlarger for all formats, it depends on which 8 x10 enlarger you choose. While any 8 x10 enlarger should be able to handle smaller formats, they generally don't do so with the ease and efficiency of a 4 x 5 enlarger. Also, assuming you don't want to use a 10 x 10 glass carrier for all formats, finding smaller format carriers or masks for 8 x10 enlargers can be problematic (and expensive). If any of your work involves roll film, I would recomend a 4 x 5 enlarger for that; for 4 x 5 to 8 x 10, an 8 x 10 enlarger should work fine.

Given that you work in B&W almost exclusively, you might want to look into the 8 x 10 conversion kit for Beseler 4 x 5 enlargers. Although I have no experience with this unit, it seems like a great all format solution that also doesn't require a lot of head room.

[Henry Ambrose]

Building a chase for the higher enlarger head will probably cost as much as a complete10 foot ceiling in a small building like this. It will not cost much more for materials over an 8 foot ceiling but the labor will be higher for the chase.

Probably cheapest is a shed roof that is12 feet tall on the high side, insulated between the joists with adequate ventilation for the decking, finish ceiling attaches to the bottom of the joists.

A wooden floor system will be more comfortable to work on but a concrete slab might be less prone to vibrations. Standing still for a few seconds during an exposure is not that much trouble.

Pay attention to how the heated and cooled air enters and leaves. An air register blowing directly on your enlarger or on you might not be the best idea.

I think the airiness of a high celing is nice.