De Vere 810H - Lens questions among other questions...

[ajp]

So I am jumping into this all in, headfirst. Lots of DR experience, however not in this format and not with this machine.

I just (somehow) scored a De Vere 810H horizontal enlarger for a really great price. I drive 10 hours to pick it up in the next day or two.

Sadly, the unit does not come with a lens. However it does come with 2 lens panels, 1 flat and 1 recessed panel, color head etc.. Presumably I am assuming each panel is used for different focal lengths. I ordered the manual as well, however I'd like to get user insight if possible.

Does anyone out there have recommendation for a nice lens? I am printing from 8x10 primarily. SO 300mm to 360mm would be ideal. My question is should I be looking for a specific thread size? or would any 300mm enlarging lens do the trick?

Also, regarding laser leveling, any insight for this process? Tools used, tricks. I am printing b&w mural size prints, using a trough style developing method (hopefully). Sizing will vary, but starting 80x50ish.

Thanks for the help!

~Ashlyn

[Luis-F-S]

For 8x10, I'd get a 240 Rodagon or Componon-S or a Nikkor. If you want to get a 300mm, go for it, the 240 will work just fine and allow greater magnification at a lesser distance.

[Keith Pitman]

Luis is right about the recommended lenses. Make sure the lens board hole is the right size. A too small hole can be enlarged by a competent machinist, but a too large hole will be a problem . Attached is a chart from an old Calumet catalog with the lens board hole sizes for several suitable lenses.

[Jac@stafford.net]

Luis is right about the recommended lenses. Make sure the lens board hole is the right size. A too small hole can be enlarged by a competent machinist, but a too large hole will be a problem .

If one is lucky he might find a universal diaphragm lens holder.

[Peter De Smidt]

I had one of these. It came with a 240mm Nikkor. Worked well. You'll have to look in the manual for the right board/lens combo. What lens you use will depend on your magnification and the space you have available.

Your going to be laying metal track on the floor. It needs to be level and perpendicular to the easel. Ideally, you'll fix the track to the floor.

[ic-racer]

You will probably want a 360mm lens, otherwise the enlarger may be too close for your body to get in between to do dodging and burning. I suspect the DeVere manual will let you know the correct alignment procedure for your enlarger, but for the Durst Horizontal, they recommend projecting a vertical line on your wall and sliding the negative stage back and forth to see that the projected vertical line stays the same length. If it gets bigger or smaller then the enlarger is not perpendicular to your wall. Move the back of the tracks and try again.

My enlarger is Vertical but will swing to the side and will run on tracks like a Horizontal (shown with the 360 Componon I use in this case.)
Since my negative carrier moves up-and-down, rather than side-to-side like the Durst Horizontal, I use a laser for alignment (take lens off and bounce it off the glass negative carrier).

[Peter De Smidt]

You will probably want a 360mm lens, otherwise the enlarger may be too close for your body to get in between to do dodging and burning.

]

I had no problem with that making 16x20s from 8x10 negatives with a 240mm lens. It'd be even less of a problem with bigger prints.

[ic-racer]

I had no problem with that making 16x20s from 8x10 negatives with a 240mm lens. It'd be even less of a problem with bigger prints.

Sure the 240 would be great for horizontal, knowing he will be printing on fabric, especially if the OP has a smaller space for the enlarger and track. I have actually used a monster big burning card (like in the video above) and it was easier to get in between the enlarger and the paper with the 360.

Sometimes I see 360 as the 'normal' lens for the Horizontal Durst, maybe because with the 300mm you can't go smaller than 16x20" and with the 240 nothing less than 24x30" (the enlarger is too close to the wall with the recommended rail placement).

[ic-racer]

I had no problem with that making 16x20s from 8x10 negatives with a 240mm lens. It'd be even less of a problem with bigger prints.

How close are your rails to the wall?

[Peter De Smidt]

How close are your rails to the wall?

That was a decade ago, or more, and so I wish a remembered more precisely. I had about 8 feet of track. It stopped about 2 feet from the easel. Getting the track flat, fixed and perpendicular to the easel took some time, even with a Versalab, but that was mainly because my very old concrete floor was uneven.
If you get the manual, it'll tell you lens and track length needed for a given enlargement.