20x24 enlarger easel options

[Tin Can]

TV

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[Greg Y]

I disassembled, cleaned, lubricated and re-painted a used Saunders 20x24. These really are built better than the smaller Saunders easels.

Attachment 215487

Agreed. The Saunders 20x24 is rock solid. I prefer it to my smaller 11x14 & 16x20 Saunders..... although I wouldn't turn down a Kienzle easel if one showed up at my door.

[ic-racer]

A phototrio (APUG) user recently purchased a brand New Kienzel 4x5 enlarger from the factory:

https://www.photrio.com/forum/thread...larger.183372/

[Tin Can]

Great link with lots of show and tell

Very cool!

A phototrio (APUG) user recently purchased a brand New Kienzel 4x5 enlarger from the factory:

https://www.photrio.com/forum/thread...larger.183372/

[tgtaylor]

Tip: If buying a used easel, bring a torpedo level with you and make sure that the easel is plumb before you buy it. Many used easels have been dropped and/or misused to the extent that they are no longer level. If its not level its going to be a major headache every time you print with it. Several years back I bought a brand new Saunders 20x24 easel from K&S in Palo Alto - it was the very last one they had in stock and I paid close to $500 for it. It's still in its box, never used. I've been using the 16x20 Saunders instead. On day, though, I'm going to make 20x24 prints.

Thomas

[Steve Goldstein]

Printing a 20x24 in my micro-darkroom is a challenge as the space under my enlarger isn't wide enough to accommodate any commercially-made easel I know of, and it can't be made wider. A Saunders borderless might fit but the 20x24 version is pretty rare.

I recently realized I don't need a big-bucks universal easel that handles sizes from 8x10 to 20x24. All I really need is something to hold down a piece of paper measuring 24" in the wider dimension; I can use a smaller easel for "normal" size 11x14 prints. This means a simpler unit with a non-adjustable long dimension would suffice. I always pre-trim the paper to match the image aspect ratio including margins when I print bigger than 11x14 (eases paper handling during processing) so a simple hinged affair with fixed margins on one long and both short sides and a moveable long blade opposite the hinge will suffice. The overall width would be just over 24" so I'd still be able to move it to either side for fine positioning. Plywood or melamine will do for the base with small magnets embedded along the short sides to hold down the top if its weight isn't enough to overcome paper curl. I can also embed an array of magnets to hold down the adjustable blade in various places.

I'm still working out the fine details but expect to be buying some beers for my table-saw owning buddy in not too long.

[Tin Can]

I don't like my Borderless, so it sits...somewhere

I love Ganz Speed-EZ-EL if bought NOS and not bent, great for a series as I can load paper by feel. I gaff tape into positions I have nearly every size up to 16X20

I also like SAUNDERS Single Size which don't adjust! I have 5X7 to 16X20, almost as fool proof as the Speed EZ

[Steve Goldstein]

I have a straight 20x24 Speed EZ-EL but find it difficult to use given the limitations of my working space. The paper has to go in from a short side; I've got walls in the way and it's too easy to bump the easel and change its position. Yes, I could tape the easel to the baseboard to keep it from moving, but it's still tricky to get the paper in and out. And it only works properly with full-size sheets, I'd need to fabricate an auxiliary blade. The Saunders single-size also only works with full-size sheets of paper - same problem.

The easel I'm planning to build might just end up without a hinge, similar to a Speed EZ-EL except with the opening on a long side and an adjustable rail on the open side so I can use trimmed-down paper. It seems that much of what I want to print that large is panoramic to a greater or lesser degree; with trimming to size I get "free" test strips and also easier paper handling in the dark.

I've encountered an interesting problem with my single-size easels (8x10, 11x14, and 16x20). The framing "blades" are quite thick and the glancing reflection off their black-painted sides causes a darker halo around the print edges. It can be trimmed off, but I'd be happier if that didn't happen. I may investigate some telescope flocking material to try to solve this problem, or at least reduce it.

I don't like my Borderless, so it sits...somewhere

I love Ganz Speed-EZ-EL if bought NOS and not bent, great for a series as I can load paper by feel. I gaff tape into positions I have nearly every size up to 16X20

I also like SAUNDERS Single Size which don't adjust! I have 5X7 to 16X20, almost as fool proof as the Speed EZ

[Luis-F-S]

I have an 11x14 V-Track easel that I use and a 16x20 V-Track easel. Also have a 24x30 Saunders easel that my lab was going to throw away so I brought it home, though I doubt I'll ever use it!

[Tin Can]

4 years ago I packed up and put everything in storage, 6 months later I bought my last home DR.......hopefully

I made the decision to get rid of almost all 20X24 necessities

Sold 20X24 easel, 20X24 washer, FOTAR 10X10, 30X120 sink, mostly to members here

No worries I have what I need

I still have 20X24 paper and can process it in trays but when it's gone....

I find 16X20 matted and framed is big enough, I have almost no wall space left, flat files do store prints well

My hot press can mount 16X20 in one go, I have plenty of adhesive paper for my lifetime

even NOS Light Impressions mat board I bought 21 years ago