Zone VI Type 2 Variable Contrast Enlarger, any advice for new user?

[neil poulsen]

I'll add another.

I have both the Type I and the Type II. Negative carriers are really hard to find, and when they appear on EBay, they're expensive. I'm sure that there's a way to easily build a homemade adapter to use Omega D2 negative carriers with the Type II.

As another possibility, I had a colleague a few years ago who contacted a local plastic contractor, and they built him negative carriers for formats he didn't have. They used a laser to cut that material to size. If you have one lensboard, then one could build others based on the specifications one could measure from the one.

[Robert Langham]

Neil: If I confessed about all the negative carriers I have cut through the years out of museum board....well..... At least I never scratched any negatives. I still have them from the early 70s going strong. I can't think of the last time I used a metal carrier in my own darkroom. A 4X5 and a 5X7 are coming with the electrics, plus four others.

The ones I cut were to fit all the standard sized, plus two 35mm frames in a row, odd-sized vintage negs, THREE 35mm frames in a row, two 120 frames in a row. Early ones were quite carefully made and hinged with linen tape. Later ones a bit less without fancy cuts on the outside. Hollowed them out to get full frame images. Seems like it was a suggestion of Ted Orland, Ansel's assistant.

[ROL]

You're likely to need at least one glass "carrier" support for 4X5, and certainly 5X7. I use one (made for Z6) on the bottom and a metal cutout (Z6) on the top. In practice you could try one piece of "good" glass on the bottom with mat board cutouts on top, to stabilize the negative. The glass vs. non-glass carrier topic has been argued adinfrightum here and elsewhere.

BTW, what is the significance of the pix at the end of each of your posts? Signature?

[Robert Langham]

It's got a couple of glass negative carriers coming, one a 4X5 and one a 5X7. I've never printed well enough to tell much difference between glass and no-glass so maybe I am in for a surprise!

Pictures at end of posts...just to show images. The pixels...they are free.

Still waiting on electrics/lenses/carriers. Maybe today is the day!

[ROL]

Pictures at end of posts...just to show images. The pixels...they are free.

Right on. (allowing that pixels maybe be free, but so are judgements )

[Keith Pitman]

I have two Zone VI Type II enlargers that I use regularily. One has a 5x7 head, the other an 8x10 head. Here's a few comments:

1. Based on my testing, both of the heads deliver the same contrast for a given setting. Theoretically, you should be able to use someone else's suggested contrast setting with your enlarger.

2. The enlargers are "slow printers" and larger prints will need long exposure times than other enlargers. Higher contrast settings require much longer exposures for a given size versus lower contrast settings.

3. While the heads have a stabilizer, prints at a given exposure will vary from one another noticeably. You should get a timer with a feedback system: RH Designs Zone VI, whatever.

4. The wheel that raises and lowers the head seemsto have some eccentricity. I realign the baseboard, negative and lens stages when I change print size. Easy to do.

5. Eric Biggerstaff showed me how to make glass negative carriers quickly and easily: Make a sandwich of a piece of clear single strength glass and a piece of thin while plexy. The glass and plexy should be the size of your Zone VI negative carriers. Hinge them together with gaffer tape. Then use black construction paper to make masks for each negative size. Voila, you've got a custom size negative carrier. I can post some pix if this't clear.

[Robert Hall]

Great tips folks. I have an 8x10 in the darkroom. It's been lovely to have and these tips will give me fodder to consider.

Thanks!

[Ron McElroy]

.....

5. Eric Biggerstaff showed me how to make glass negative carriers quickly and easily: Make a sandwich of a piece of clear single strength glass and a piece of thin while plexy. The glass and plexy should be the size of your Zone VI negative carriers. Hinge them together with gaffer tape. Then use black construction paper to make masks for each negative size. Voila, you've got a custom size negative carrier. I can post some pix if this't clear.

I'm interested in seeing some pictures of the negative carriers. I have one of the Z6 straight out carriers for 4x5, but I really don't like it.

[Robert Langham]

Fed-Ex shows the last boxes with lenses, timers, carriers out for delivery. Can't wait to plug this thing up and see if it works! Ron: Good idea on glass. I'll post carrier photos, but since I haven't used them they will probably be upside down!

[Payral]

I am interested too by some pictures.