The bellows are at their shortest length, that's what I mean by collapsed. So, the knob at the end of the tube, not at the negative stage, is the fine focus knob and there is no lock on it? That's the knob I was turning, but the bellows only moved a little. Perhaps I need to get this thing upright to play with it. It's lying on its back now. ;-)Originally Posted by Luis-F-S
Not much good on it's back...........Post some photos of the head. On mine, the focus knob has a crank that pulls out for rapid adjustment. The knob at the negative stage is just a lock for the tube to lower the lens stage and extend the bellows. L
On my enlarger there is a focus lock/adjustment knob 90 degrees (behind) the focus knob. I treat it like a focus adjustment since it controls how quickly the focus knob moves the lens stage along the tube.
Yes, get the enlarger standing up before you worry about all this. Then I would take the time to clean it and adjust each area. Mine had old grease and oil that had hardened in many places. It took an afternoon of scrubbing, polishing and adjusting but I eventually got it working very smoothly.
There is a locking knob behind the focus wheel. There is also a knob or wheel higher up for adjusting the bellows length. Google the manual if you don't already have one. It will show all the knobs and their function.
Arthur
What do I use to clean it? It's pretty gunked up and dirty.
Here is the only picture of the head I have at the moment, unless I can find the pictures the guy sent me. There is no crank on that knob at the bottom of the picture. The lightbulb works!
I don't have a good picture of the right side, but I have this:
Different arrangement on the knobs from mine, much older unit. I'll post some shots of mine when I get home. You can probably use WD40 to loosen up some of the gunk, I'd then probably put a very light coating of oil on the chromed parts or lithium grease (what I use). Don't clean the mirror inside the head if you don't have to, it's front surface coated and scratches easily. If you must clean it, I would do so very carefully. L
Last edited by Luis-F-S; 24-Dec-2014 at 10:53.
I use Qtips & alcohol to detail clean, old t shirt fabric for larger surfaces.
Careful with the surface coated mirror, I use alcohol and lens tissue.
The knob on the older models didn't have the crank. The lock is behind it. if you loosen the lock the lens stage should move down when you turn the focus knob. If not you may need to adjust the focus gear track. It's also possible a gear is stripped if the knob just spins.What do I use to clean it? It's pretty gunked up and dirty.
Here is the only picture of the head I have at the moment, unless I can find the pictures the guy sent me. There is no crank on that knob at the bottom of the picture. The lightbulb works!
I don't have a good picture of the right side, but I have this:
I cleaned mine with a couple different degreasers and then lubricated things with various bicycle greases and fine machine oils. On the columns I degreased them and then used a metal polish before applying a very thin coating of oil. The manuals have directions on places that should regularly be oiled.
This knob is used to fine focus. It has a pull out crank for faster focusing:
The back knob locks in the lens stage tilt. You can see the focus knob with the crank retracted
I suspect the small knob in the front of yours is the lens stage lock, the older model (without the removable turret) does not have the crank on the fine focus (but does have a focus lock) ; you can use the upper lock by the lens stage for rough focus by lowering the lens stage, focus visually, then lock it in place and use the fine adjustment with a loupe for the final focus. Which bulb was in the head? One of the original ones hopefully? If so, use a dimmer on it to lower the output and extend the bulb life. L
Thanks Luis, I'll get back to my enlarger next Monday and will post what all the knobs do. I hope nothing is stripped, and can be fixed if it is.
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