Elwood 5X7 Enlarger diffuser - Help Please

[Henry Ambrose]

I just bought a model SP-25 (I think) 5X7 Elwood Enlarger in pretty good shape b ut it is missing a part(s). In the parts list (it came with a parts list brochu re!) its called a "light filter and heat absorbing glass". This fits in the bott om of the light housing over the negative stage and I think it diffuses the ligh t. Without this glass in place the light is very uneven. Is there some special p attern to this glass? Could I have one made from heat resistant frosted glass an d would that work? Is this enlarger a worthwhile project or should I not waste m y time? It seems pretty sturdy and was cheap. I would appreciate any tips from a nyone with experience with these machines.

[Doug Paramore]

Henry: The old Elwood is a good enlarger. I owned one years ago. The glass was ground or etched more in the middle, and tapered off toward the edges to even out the light. I don't know how to describe it enough for you to make another one...it will take a little experimenting. You might check with Midwest Photo Exchange. They carry a lot of hard to find stuff. They have a web site.

Regards,

[Brett Thomas]

Henry, I bought a Elwood 5x7 enlarger last year. In shipping the enlarger the frosted glass broke and my attempts to glue it back together again were unsuccessfull. What I ended up doing was buying a round piece of opal glass and placed that at the bottom of the dome, right above the negative carrier. I also purchased a cold light head from Aristo that is specifically made for the old Elwoods. I still have it but the opal glass seems to provide more even illumination than the cold light head. Try the opal glass, it should correct the un-even light. The Elwood is a big piece of equipment, but for the price, it works just fine.

[John Kasaian]

Henry, The old Elwooods are fine enlargers and worth the effort. My 8x10 lost it's opal disk on it's cosmic journey to my darkroom, and as far as I can tell they are darn near impossible to find. Flat opal glass is still being made, I think Stephan Shuart has some. It would be worth checking. I recall one of the stores at the Photomall.com has opal glass too. I suppose the shorter the glass has to travel the less chance it has of breaking in route, but thats just a guess. By the way, you'll want flashed opal glass, not the kind sold at stained glass suppliers which has a random marbled pattern. Additionally, some Elwoods had a center filter or provision for one(mine does) Four posts stick up to hold a square piece of glass above the negative carrier. You can make your own by cutting the glass to fit, taping one side, cutting a circle and removeing the tape in the circle and grinding the exposed glass thats unprotected by the tape. Use carbide grit. Remove the rest of the tape and viola! A center filter! Not precision engineering but hey, it works on Elwoods! I read somewhere that the closer the diffusion glass is to the negative, the better the results. If this is so, you might try putting a piece of 5x7 flashed opal glass as part of your negative sandwich, if you have a negative holder that will permit it which would be cheaper than having a circle cut. In addition, you'll probably need a piece of anti-newton glass to place against your negative in the carrier as well. I think Stephan Shuart has this, and I've seen 8x10 and 11x14 sheets on Ebay on occasion that you could cut down. I think I paid about twenty bucks for an 8x10. As far as heat goes, they do get HOT. So far I haven't had any problems, though I suppose you could use your Elwood to warm your lunch just don't try to make grilled cheese sandwiches. Melted cheese is difficult to remove from Elwoods. Photgraphic Systems sometimes has parts for Elwoods. Good Luck!

[Greg Nelson]

Henry: I agree that Elwoods can be pretty good old enlargers, and have many satisfactory prints to prove it. I was faced with your same problem at the start. The previous owner had 4 plates of frosted glass in the iron piece above the negative holder, at the base of the reflective dome. Without a graduated, center-weighted diffuser, however, prints were impossibly "hot" in the center. I made my own using a 5x7 plate of glass and a spray can of white Rustoleum paint. It sounds extremely unscientific and surely won't meet the psychological needs of the perfectionist -- but I have yet to find fault in it: Shake the can well and give a few practice sprays to make sure the spray is "fine." Prop the 5x7 plate about 10 inches or so away and give a couple of short blasts toward the center. It took me 3 tries (different plates) to get one I liked. I then mounted it at the top of the stack of 4 plates in the Elwood, and haven't looked back. Any small scale irregularity in the painted area is lessened by the fact that it is furthest from the negative, and the other plates are frosted. Good Luck

[M.]

There's a 5x7 piece of Kodak Opal glass on eBay this morning. Bill

[John Kasaian]

Henry, I've been looking for a source for flashed opal on the West Coast. www.abrisa.com has both flashed opal and heat resistant stuff. I'm waiting to hear back from them what their minimum orders are and if they'll cut to suite. They have a lighting products department so they might have other suggestions. Might be worth giving them a try also. Good Luck!

[Henry Ambrose]

Thanks for all the good suggestions! I've found this source for opal glass in a variety of sizes. http://w ww.edmundoptics.com/IOD/DisplayProduct.cfm?Productid=1671 I wonder about cutting these sheets without damaging the coating. I'm still looking for an original center filter glass for this enlarger before I try to make one. Keep those ideas coming.

[C.W. Dean]

It's a shame that the most fragile (and usually broken or missing) piece on the Elwood contributes so much to it's successful operation. Opalized glass may work fine for others but I dislike the long exposures. The factory center filter is more or less ground glass which blocks the center hot spot and graduates gently out to the edges. Although my Elwood still has the original factory glass in tact, I have seen successful home-made efforts using grinding paste on clear glass. The combination of tungsten lamp house and the center filter gives a diffusion that I find every bit as pleasing as any cold light that I have ever used. About 5 years ago, I installed the clunky Elwood as my primary enlarger and have never felt the need to return to cold light. The prints on VC paper respond especially well to the tungsten diffused light source and I don't think I have ever made better prints. 95% of my prints are sold to customers--so much for the latest in high tech gear!!

[John Kasaian]

FWIW, I have toyed with the idea of switching the bulb in my Elwood to a silver tipped reflector bulb that would reflect the light up into the polished dome. I don't know if this would eliminate the need for a diffussion disc and/or center filter, or if it would be overkill. Maybe someone has experience with these bulbs and would like to share their thoughts?-----John