Building an enlarger chassis

[Ethan]

I touched on this project in my previous thread, but I figured that this question is different enough from that to warrant a new thread. My new enlarger, an Elwood 8x10, did not come with the stand or wall mount, and the previous owner thinks it may have stayed behind when he moved darkrooms. Because of this, I might need to make a new stand for it, or have one made. I have a wood shop, so I was thinking of making a stand out of LVL (super strength plywood), but I'm concerned about that not being rigid enough when printing. Would it be worthwhile to go to a local welder and have a steel frame made?

[Peter De Smidt]

I"m not a super woodworker. I mean, I have joiner, planer, table saw,..., but I'm not going to hand cut dovetails, or anything. But I built a cabinet with a hardwood frame/plywood inserts to hold a 1000 lbs fish tank, and it did so for years without any issues. I also used to have an 8x10 Elwood, and so I'm familiar with them. Sadly, I scrapped it years ago. Anyway, I see no reason why a good wooden stand wouldn't work fine. I would waterproof it, with West Epoxy or similar, just to keep expansion at a minimum.

[Ethan]

Thanks for the info. I was mostly worried about vibrations, but I think I’ll probably build it and see how it does. If it ends up not working, I won’t have lost much and will have learned something

[LabRat]

An old Polaroid MP-4 copy stand could work, and cost you about $50...

[Peter De Smidt]

Look at the tripod threads. They're full of people saying how much better wood is for minimizing vibrations than metal. I'm not saying that they're right, but wood can certainly be made into a very stable support.

Anyway, make all joints such that they are stacked such that the joint doesn't take any weight. The joint only holds the structural piece from moving laterally. The top support member rests on the bottom member. Think of a 'T' made of two separate boards. Weight on top of the T presses down on the top board, which itself presses down on the lower board. The joint between the top board and the lower board doesn't hold up the load. It just keeps the two boards aligned. If that doesn't make any sense, I'll take some pictures of examples.

[Jeff T]

A wood stand would work well, but it probably needs a wall brace with 2 tide points at the top to stabilize. Can you post a picture? How do you plan to raise or lower the head? For reference, I have the Elwood 8x10 with the metal stand which holds the rack and gear for the head. I also have the stage carrier, the rack and gear for a 5x7 if you're interested.

[Ethan]

I’ll post my sketches later today. For raising and lowering the head, I found sources for a 1/4x4” aluminum plate as well as a gear rack matching the pinion on the enlarger. I would bolt those together, and then screw them onto the frame

[Larry Gebhardt]

Thanks for the info. I was mostly worried about vibrations, but I think I’ll probably build it and see how it does. If it ends up not working, I won’t have lost much and will have learned something

Wood will absorb vibrations where as metal will transmit them. My concern with wood is expansion due to moisture. So have a way to check your alignment quickly before printing sessions, or at least seasonally.

[Tin Can]

Ethan, you already have all the moving parts as i saw in the other thread.

If you wall mount, to a sturdy wall, it will be less work than a floor stand.

West Epoxy is for boats, I really doubt you need that stuff.

Steel is great, but will be expensive and i bet the second version would be better than the first.

All you really need to do is fasten the existing rack to something strong.

Since the main elevation crank is big, you need to allow for it's complete movement. Rectangular tubes would work. Go to Home Depot and look around. Look in a scrap in scrap metal yards.

You could also just buy precut metal online. Drill holes and bolt it together.

I also shop here, for many things. No order from them is too small and they ship quick.

https://www.mcmaster.com/

https://www.mcmaster.com/standard-al...-hollow-tubing

[Jac@stafford.net]

An old Polaroid MP-4 copy stand could work, and cost you about $50...

Thanks for the memory kick. I have two aluminum stands, one for an Polaroid MP-4 and the other is unknown. OP - may I ask where are you located?