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View Full Version : Best material for new (large) enlarger table?



vinny
27-Apr-2012, 07:40
32"x42" is the original size chipboard table with a banded edge. I'd like to make it 1 1/2" thick as like the original since it's not bolted to the enlarger (10x10 fotar), only balanced on 5 points with leveling screws. The new table won't have the t-track. MDF seems the most stable if coated in polyurethane? Formica might be nice on top too.

bob carnie
27-Apr-2012, 07:44
Vinny

use metal so in the future magnets can be used for larger prints. better still make a vacumn frame out of it if you have the chops.

I am making Vacumn tops for my drop tables, really comes in handy with larger prints.

Bob

vinny
27-Apr-2012, 08:05
Yeah Bob, Vacuum frame planned for sitting on top. I was thinking a piece of sheet metal glued to the top too. I won't be making huge prints that often as they aren't giving the paper away, I don't have room for more than wallpaper trays, and no one is buying my work.

bob carnie
27-Apr-2012, 08:09
Then put metal on so you can use magnets to hold the paper ,, really practical...
keep printing and exhibiting and people will buy your work. Its a 20 year stint to be an overnight sensation.


Yeah Bob, Vacuum frame planned for sitting on top. I was thinking a piece of sheet metal glued to the top too. I won't be making huge prints that often as they aren't giving the paper away, I don't have room for more than wallpaper trays, and no one is buying my work.

Dave Langendonk
28-Apr-2012, 08:30
MDF is the way to go. It's dimensionally stable and very flat. I used it to make a vertical easel for my horizontal 10x10 enlarger. As Bob said, I glued sheet metal to the front face so I could use magnets to hold the paper on. I print up to 30"x40" this way. You could also just paint it or polyurethane it as you mentioned. I also used MDF as my counter top under my wall mounted LPL enlargers. Same reasons as above, stable and very flat.

Chuck P.
28-Apr-2012, 09:19
MDF seems the most stable if coated in polyurethane? Formica might be nice on top too.

I chose the formica option and it worked out quite nicely; purchased a 4x8 sheet at Lowe's for $40---and it is laminated to a 3/4" piece of MDF, very smooth.

Dan Henderson
28-Apr-2012, 10:26
Bob: I am interested in building a vacuum frame, but have never actually seen one. Any suggestions for where to get a plan?

Vinny: sorry, don't mean to hijack your thread.
Dan


Vinny

use metal so in the future magnets can be used for larger prints. better still make a vacumn frame out of it if you have the chops.

I am making Vacumn tops for my drop tables, really comes in handy with larger prints.

Bob

Bill Burk
28-Apr-2012, 10:36
Granite. Sorry couldn't resist. It _would_ be the best material for an enlarger table but I am sure it would be impractical.

vinny
28-Apr-2012, 11:16
Hey hijacker,
There was a decent video about it online but I guess he recently removed it. send him an email. http://www.philipmorgan.net/diy-vacuum-easel/
here's a thread on it: http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/archive/index.php/t-66129.html
Make it bigger than you think you'll need and make inserts for it that'll cover the holes around your smaller paper sizes.


Bob: I am interested in building a vacuum frame, but have never actually seen one. Any suggestions for where to get a plan?

Vinny: sorry, don't mean to hijack your thread.
Dan


granite?
hmmm, I'll see if I can find some magnets that'll stick to that.
I did see some "magnetic" paint the other day by rustoelum. I wonder how well it actually works. The quart size can was heavy as hell.

bob carnie
28-Apr-2012, 11:54
I think Drew Wiley may have some plans , I am going to make a couple of them for larger prints. I have some commercial 20x24 units for smaller prints .If I get a plan I will post.


Bob: I am interested in building a vacuum frame, but have never actually seen one. Any suggestions for where to get a plan?

Vinny: sorry, don't mean to hijack your thread.
Dan

Bill Burk
28-Apr-2012, 16:54
granite?
hmmm, I'll see if I can find some magnets that'll stick to that.
I did see some "magnetic" paint the other day by rustoelum. I wonder how well it actually works. The quart size can was heavy as hell.

Just use more granite to hold things down. Or suction cups.

Bill Burk
28-Apr-2012, 20:37
While granite may indeed be the best enlarger table base, I only mention it in jest. I'd make an enlarger base out of it if I happenened upon a slab. Or if I was remodeling and had to buy the whole piece and was wondering what to do with the rest - rather than let the granite company keep it... Then by all means make an enlarger base out of granite. But the other materials mentioned are much, much more practical.

Louie Powell
29-Apr-2012, 04:47
32"x42" is the original size chipboard table with a banded edge. I'd like to make it 1 1/2" thick - - -. MDF seems the most stable if coated in polyurethane? Formica might be nice on top too.

Formica is nice if you are willing to do the work involved in installing it. But some people don't like working with contact cement.

Another option is particle board that is varnished after the table has been completed. It's tough and dense, and with a few coats of polyurethane, it's rather attractive. I suggest using waterborne polyurethane floor finish form maximum toughness - and faster drying. Don't forget to sand between applications. Use a band of some kind of molding to cover the edges. It comes in 3/4" thickness and can be doubled (glued) if you want something thicker, but my experience is that if you have a support frame that extends around the entire outside edge, you don't need additional thickness to have something that is very rigid.

MDF is also a good material, but it's a bit softer than particle board. Glueing two 3/4" sheets together to make a 1 1/2" thickness should produce something that is reasonably rigid. MDF takes paint very well, but it's fundamentally thick cardboard, so it doesn't look that appealing when it is varnished.

Chuck P.
29-Apr-2012, 06:44
Formica is nice if you are willing to do the work involved in installing it. But some people don't like working with contact cement.

I found installing the formica was pretty simple and straight forward and it was the first time I had ever done it. The OP may already be familiar with the process, but---------once you have covered both MDF and the underside of the formica with the contact cement and waited the appropriate time, it's ready to lay down. Place dow rods so many inches apart on the MDF surface for the whole length of the table, close enough that when you lay the formica on top of them, the formica sheet does not sag and make contact with the MDF surface prematurely (that is the most important part of the process). Once the formica is in place on top of the dow rods, slowly remove one dow rod at a time starting at one end of the table----the formica gently lays down and makes contact with the MDF with each removal of a rod. Then it's a matter of putting some weight on the top surface, I think about 50 lbs per square foot for the entire surface of the formica. I did this by laying a 18" square piece of scrap MDF on the table top, then standing on it, then repeated until finished. Lastly, use a router with a formica trimming bit to trim the excess from the edges, I made sure to leave about 3/4" - 1" of excess. By all means, don't try to fit the formica too closely to the table top dimensions, leave excess and trim. I've included just a couple of pics of the table frame and the MDF cut to fit---once the frame was built, I had Lowe's cut it to the needed dimensions, much better than I would've myself----If it's a wood frame, I recommend using finish screws to instal the MDF to the frame.

vinny
29-Apr-2012, 07:30
At this point I've cut the mdf and am considering making it into a vacuum/steel table combo by adding a 1/2" layer of mdf around the edges between the top/bottom and a galvanized steel sheet on top with the holes all the way through the steel and top mdf layer. Best of both worlds.
I do have formica experience but would rather do steel, I think.

Chuck P.
29-Apr-2012, 08:35
Sounds nice and very sturdy-----good luck with it.

jp
30-Apr-2012, 09:00
Nice table there Chuck. I made one very similar but not as long.


If steel is used, it should be painted; shiny galvanized metal would probably reflect light back onto the paper.

I'd stay away from MDF having seen how it bows on bookshelves and such. Normal plywood would seem better. I'd probably do a sheet of plywood, a layer of honeycomb, then steel or formica. The honeycomb (as used in boatbuilding or other fiberglass work) would pass the vacuum and would add greatly to the dimensional stability without any weight.

I like granite too, but it would be impractical.

ic-racer
30-Apr-2012, 12:37
I gave this spare piece of 4x4 foot melamine covered 3/4" particle board to Jeff Bannow a few years ago to make a new table for his 10x10 DeVere Enlarger. I'm not sure if that project ever got completed or if it worked out ok or not.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v670/ic-racer/Melamine.jpg

Chuck P.
30-Apr-2012, 15:46
Nice table there Chuck. I made one very similar but not as long...................I'd stay away from MDF having seen how it bows on bookshelves and such.

Thanks JP-----------------------but if the MDF is properly supported beneath with the framing it should do fine, IMO. But it's a good point though, I actually put some extra support from what is shown in my picture for that exact reason.

vinny
30-Apr-2012, 16:27
1. I wouldn't use something shiny w/o painting it.
2. If I were to use melamine, it'd be the black stuff. The original was something melamine like but it sat in a vacant lab (broken windows, leaky roof) for many years before I bought it so the conditions weren't good.
3. the table isn't hard fastened to the enlarger so plywood (which warps because it has grain) is out.
4. I will coat all exposed surfaces with paint or polyurethane.

RW Hawkins
30-Apr-2012, 17:41
I just redid my enlarging table. I decided on 5ft x 6ft torsion box design. 2in internal frame with 1/4 plywood skin. It is dead flat and pretty light as well.