Enlarging Easel what is the best

[smithdoor]

Enlarging Easel what is the best one to use
Beseler Universal 4-Blade and 2-Blade types or the Ganz Speed EZ-EL
Or other types not list here.

Dave

[Pawlowski6132]

I don't like the bladed easels and don't understand why people use them. I use the fixed, one size easels.

[Michael Graves]

Enlarging Easel what is the best one to use
Beseler Universal 4-Blade and 2-Blade types or the Ganz Speed EZ-EL

Dave

I had a Beseler for a while, but was not fond of it. The blades were not truly square and it was very hard to adjust them smoothly. And I bought it new!! I bought two Saunders easels, one 14x17 four blade and one 16x20 four blade and have been very happy. The 14x17 is typically listed as an 11x14 because with the blades in place, that is the largest print size to be made. But you can take the blades out and use the easel as a single-size 14x17 easel.

[Heroique]

Whichever bladed easel you choose, don’t scrimp! You might spend into the hundreds of dollars, but investing in a superior darkroom easel like investing in a superior tripod – the results convince you not to feel so bad about spending a lot.

Saunders, for example, made no better 4-bladed easels than their VT2000 (16x20 easel – w/ four guide slots for 5x7, 8x10, 11x14, and 16x20 paper) and VT1400 (11x14 easel – w/ three guide slots for 5x7, 8x10 and 11x14 paper).

I don't think they're made anymore, so you may have to search the used market, but they appear often enough.

I have the VT1400 – it’s the first thing I’d try to save in a house fire. Forget the negatives. Forget the cameras & lenses. Forget the pets. Come to think of it, even if you tossed it out the top-floor window, you might damage the sidewalk – but not this tank-tough, high-precision easel.

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BTW, one should not confuse the Saunders high-end “VT” models with their “Slimtrack” or “Universal” models – which are capable 4-bladed easels too, even if not built to the same standards.

[Jon Shiu]

I like the Saunders Slimtrack 11x14 and find it excellent to use. It is more compact easy to move around without running into the column. However the masking blades are not as wide. Excellent quality.

Jon

[Regular Rod]

Beard are pretty good.

RR

[Tin Can]

I like peed easels for sizes up to 8x10, after that the Saunders VT's are great.

I have a 16x120 speed easel, but never use it.

The speed easels are easily bent, but you bend them right back.

I guess I slow way down after 8x10 paper.

[Tin Can]

In a house fire, don't save anything but the people.

I just lost 2 old friends in a fire, they wasted time calling in the fire and never got out alive of a small house. Smoke got them. Funeral Tuesday.

Whichever bladed easel you choose, don’t scrimp! You might spend into the hundreds of dollars, but investing in a superior darkroom easel like investing in a superior tripod – the results convince you not to feel so bad about spending a lot.

Saunders, for example, made no better 4-bladed easels than their VT2000 (16x20 easel – w/ four guide slots for 5x7, 8x10, 11x14, and 16x20 paper) and VT1400 (11x14 easel – w/ three guide slots for 5x7, 8x10 and 11x14 paper).

I don't think they're made anymore, so you may have to search the used market, but they appear often enough.

I have the VT1400 – it’s the first thing I’d try to save in a house fire. Forget the negatives. Forget the cameras & lenses. Forget the pets. Come to think of it, even if you tossed it out the top-floor window, you might damage the sidewalk – but not this tank-tough, high-precision easel.

-----
BTW, one should not confuse the Saunders high-end “VT” models with their “Slimtrack” or “Universal” models – which are capable 4-bladed easels too, even if not built to the same standards.

[jeroldharter]

I am in the process of selling a bunch of gear here, so consider me biased. These are my thoughts.

• 2 blade easels are awful. I used to have one. You can't center an image on the paper. The borders on the 2 fixed sides are non-adjustable and two narrow for thick or curled paper. I hated those.
• The Saunders universal easels (i.e. their cheaper ones) are OK but they are too light and easy to bump out of place which is a nuisance if you are doing a run of several identical prints.
• Kostiner easels are crap. I had one and threw it away rather than try to sell it.
• Borderless easels are OK for RC paper but I would not want one for fiber.
• Fixed size easels are nice and simple. The down side is that they are still too light for my taste. Also, the border around the edge is narrow so the rectangular bar that sits atop the paper is a bit light and will sometimes not sufficiently flatten fiber paper. Of course, there are workarounds.
• The Saunders 4-blade easels are excellent, either the V-track or the regular professional models with geared knobs. They are much heavier, you can center prints, work well with fiber. The blades however sometimes don't hold down curled fiber paper sufficiently. A simple fix is to wrap 4 neodymium magnets (smaller than the size of a quarter or they are too strong) individually in some gaffer tape and sit one on each blade once the paper is inserted. That puts some pressure on the blades to flatten the paper and the gaffer tape assists in pulling off the magnets.

FYI, I have listed for sale a Saunders 4 blades easel (11x14 and 16x20). I also have a complete set of fixed size easels, I believe from 5x7 to 16x20 that I have not put up for sale but will be.

[Rafal Lukawiecki]

Dunco are OK. Well designed.