Omega D5 question - what to look for

[rodandgun]

I'm looking at buying an Omega D-5 from a local seller. It has the color head (Chromega D), however I'm only going to use it for B&W printing. From what I've read, the color heads are great for dialing in VC papers.

Unfortunately, when she sent me a photo it appears to be partially taken apart. Is there anything specific I should look for when I go check it out? Does it look like putting it together will be problematic? I also notice that the assembly where the head attaches is white. That certainly doesn't bother me, but is it different than normal? All the pictures I see online seem to be all black.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Sean

[George Richards]

I don't know much about the Dichro head - check that it fits, there are difference sets of rods in the lifting mech for different heads. Also check to see if the focus will hold at the upmost position. If it slips it could be simple cleaning or it may need a part. There is dovetail shaped piece behind the focus stage that may be plastic and these tend to break. It's about a $40 part from KHB and easy to change. BTW mine is grey as well.
Check out KHB and Harry's sites:

http://www.khbphotografix.com/omega/

http://www.classic-enlargers.com/

[bob carnie]

As George says make sure it fits on the brackets, and screws tight,
You may want to ask about stabalizer bars to hold the vertical shaft tight.
Make sure the filters dial in completely, you can do this by taking out the mixing box and cranking the dials , all three should move easily and completely go into the light path.
Check the mixing box to see if it is clean, ask for the different boxes if you can .

This is a great little enlarger and down the road you can put on condensor heads .
I use this enlarger for split printing with the magenta filter so make sure it goes in all the way.
have fun

[Mark Sampson]

The gray ones are older, later ones are painted black- no other difference. All the weight of the color head is cantilevered over to the right side, so the lifting arms often slip. This is a common and regular adjustment. Those with lens turrets often won't focus a 50mm lens, if you plan to enlarge 35mm. The head elevation cranks will need attention occasionally as well. The standard carriers will crop your negative for you, like it or not. Despite their design flaws, they are real workhorses and were the industry standard for 35 years. All the parts are available, too, which is a great thing. In a nutshell, Omega=Chevy pickup, Beseler=Ford pickup, Durst=Mercedes-Benz Gelandewagen, LPL=Toyota.

[Graybeard]

If the rods which George mentioned are missing, you can easily make them from 3/8 rod stock available at most hardware stores; just cut them to size with a hacksaw. A three foot length of rod stock is enough material to make a set for a Dichro head and second set for a condensor head should you acquire one.

If the filters stick, open the Dichro head and examine the sides of the flat plates that hold the filters. Sometimes lubricant on the side of the filter plates can become gummy and cause the sticking. I found it a simple job to clean the old lubricant off with a Q-tip moistened with rubbing alcohol.

Once you get D5, take the hour or so to align it properly; this is very much worth the effort.

[rodandgun]

Thanks for the help guys. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like it'll work out with this one. I spoke with the owner on the phone and she kept dropping little problems about it. There's no baseboard, no timer, and there is some rust on different parts. I'm sure it would work out with some TLC, but I'm not wanting to buy a project.

Since it looks like I'm back to the drawing board, is an Omega the best option for a relative newbie? Mark called Durst the Mercedes of enlargers. What makes them so nice?

Also, is there a difference between the color head and a cold light head? Both are diffuse light aren't they?

Thanks,

Sean

[tgtaylor]

I don't see a power supply in the pictures. You'll need one.

As above, I also recommend checking the mixing box to see if it's clean and that there are no scratched on the diffusion glass that would leave marks on your prints. If you can, bring a torpedo and laser leveling tool with you to see if the baseboard and the enlarger can be leveled front to back, left to right, as well as the lens stage. If the chassis is bent, then you won't be able to properly align the enlarger without replacing the damaged part(s).

Finally I highly recommend that you purchase an Owners manual for the D5 if you are serious about purchasing this type of enlarger. KHB Protografix in Canada sells reprints for $16.80 + $4.48 S&H. I'll sell you mine delivered for $13 paypal, amazon, MO or check. PM me if interested.

Note: I purchased the above D5 Owners Manual in anticipation of buying a D5. However the enlarger was exceedingly poorly packed and was delivered damaged. Luckily paypal refunded my complete purchase price including the shipping and from that experience I waited for a 4x5 enlarger to pop-up within driving distance and ended up with a very good Beseler 45MXT with a cold light head and purchased the Beseler Owners Manual from KHB. Later I picked-up a mint Beseler 45S color head which I now do all of my printing with - both color and B&W. I highly recommend the Versalab laser leveling tool. It cost $200 new but with it you can check and bring the enlarger to perfect alignment in a minute or two - literally.

Thomas

[ic-racer]

you need a Power Supply! like tgtaylor writes. The rods are SAE size and are available at the hardware store for a few bucks like Graybeard writes. conversion.

[Mark Sampson]

rodandgun, color heads and coldlights are both diffusion light sources. The color head uses a tungsten bulb (ELC), and moves dichroic filters in and out of the light path, to correct the color balance when using color materials. Also useful for variable-contrast b/w papers. The coldlight is a fluorescent source behind the diffuser and is for b/w only. They generally require a stabilizer or other feedback circuit, to compensate for the fact that CL output varies with lamp temperature.

[3e8]

Not to hijack the thread, but I'm interested in the comments about the DIY rods for the lift arms. I bought a chromega D head for my D2, and the seller was supposed to dig the lift arms out of storage and send them, but never did. I currently have a condenser on it, and don't want to spend $130 on new lift arms. Has anyone actually done the DIY rod solution?

[Graybeard]

Not to hijack the thread, but I'm interested in the comments about the DIY rods for the lift arms. I bought a chromega D head for my D2, and the seller was supposed to dig the lift arms out of storage and send them, but never did. I currently have a condenser on it, and don't want to spend $130 on new lift arms. Has anyone actually done the DIY rod solution?

I can't quite tell if you need to replace the lift arms or the rod that connects them. I'll assume that you have a condensor head on your D2, but the rod connecting the arms which you have is too short for the Chromega head. I have made new rods in order to fit a Super Chromega head onto an Omega D2; using the arms which were fitted to the condensor head that I was replacing.

Both the Super Chromega head and the different condensor heads (and the old Omega cold light head AFIK) use the self-same lift arms, What differs between the Chromega and the condensor head is the length of the 3/8" diameter rod to which the arms are attached.

The arms are secured to the rod with an Allen head setscrew. The is nothing special about the 3/8 rod, what you find in you local hardware store will do fine. Just cut the rod to the correct length (2 pieces), slide them into the enlarger chassis, and attach the arms to the ends.

Given prices these days, it would seem that you could buy five or six complete D2's or DII's, complete with arms, for the $130 price that you mention for new arms.

[ic-racer]

Not to hijack the thread, but I'm interested in the comments about the DIY rods for the lift arms. I bought a chromega D head for my D2, and the seller was supposed to dig the lift arms out of storage and send them, but never did. I currently have a condenser on it, and don't want to spend $130 on new lift arms. Has anyone actually done the DIY rod solution?

I put a chromega that I refurbished on a d3 for a friend using a few parts from my local hardware store. I got two rods from the steel bins. Then I used two locking collars in place of the two spacers.

The existing arms are removed from the existing rods. Two new rods are cut to size. The arms put back on the rods. The locking collars go on the rods to keep the head from migrating to the right.

Using a hacksaw and an SAE allen wrench the conversion took about 1.5 beers :)

http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/38x58lockcollar.aspx

[Graybeard]

I neglected to mention the locking collars.

Mine came from the same hardware store where I bought the rods. If you go to a decent sized store, ask, they'll have them.

[3e8]

Thanks guys for the replies. I had just made the new rods the other night and was about to venture to the hardware store tomorrow to see what I could use as spacers, so that's a huge help.

[Greg Blank]

Mark;

Actually the oldest ones only dial in 150 on a given color and can not be set higher, the newer ones go to 170cc's.


[QUOTE=Mark Sampson;674941]The gray ones are older, later ones are painted black- no other difference.

[ic-racer]

Mark;

Actually the oldest ones only dial in 150 on a given color and can not be set higher, the newer ones go to 170cc's.

.

...and my Marshall amp goes to "11" :)

(Omega just changed the numbers on the wheel).

[Greg Blank]

Actually the wheel themselves will not allow the action of the numbers to set beyond a certain point. If you set the upper limit past what is designated by the counter you can not zeros to appear at the bottom. Perhaps the filter is the same, perhaps it is not. Most likely the filter would or could yield more filteration or even does. Unless you calibrate the output with an analyzer its all a moot point :)


...and my Marshall amp goes to "11" :)

(Omega just changed the numbers on the wheel).

[Roger Cole]

Humm..I have the exact same pictures. ;) I saw the ad on local Atlanta Craigslist and corresponded with the seller some. She said no timer (no problem, I have a Gralab digital and footswitch) and no baseboard - maybe a problem, as I do need one. I'll be working off a table (and have done this before and know not to bump it!) for a while so I must have one but I have a D-II (on which someone has fitted a V lamphouse so I suppose it's a sort of D-IIV) and was wondering if the baseboard would just bolt on. I actually started searching the forums here for information on that and on whether I could just plop the Chromega head on my D-II. I still don't know about the former but it sounds like the head won't fit without at least a little (maybe minor, but I'm a bit of a mechanical klutz) work.

Probably should skip it and stick to my MG filters and the condenser, huh?

[Graybeard]

Humm..I have the exact same pictures. ;) I saw the ad on local Atlanta Craigslist and corresponded with the seller some. She said no timer (no problem, I have a Gralab digital and footswitch) and no baseboard - maybe a problem, as I do need one. I'll be working off a table (and have done this before and know not to bump it!) for a while so I must have one but I have a D-II (on which someone has fitted a V lamphouse so I suppose it's a sort of D-IIV) and was wondering if the baseboard would just bolt on. I actually started searching the forums here for information on that and on whether I could just plop the Chromega head on my D-II. I still don't know about the former but it sounds like the head won't fit without at least a little (maybe minor, but I'm a bit of a mechanical klutz) work.

Probably should skip it and stick to my MG filters and the condenser, huh?

The work involved in fitting a Chromega/Super Chromega head to a DII/D2/D5/D(any other number) is straightforward and simple. You'll only need a hacksaw and an Allen wrench (any good family man should have these already). Just measure and cut, paying attention to what you are doing.

Regarding the baseboard, just go to Home Depot, or your local equivalent, and buy a quarter sheet (2'x4') piece of particle board - less than $10.This is nice, heavy stuff. If you ask, the lads at Home Depot will cut it on their monster radial arm saw (you get one free cut on most things there, more if the one asking is a female and cute, I've noted). Before you go, measure the table on which you plan to put the enlarger - you want the largest baseboard that your table will accomodate for reasons of stability.