durst laborator 1200

[case-ie]

Hello "everybody"

is there an (easy) way to adapt a durst 1200 so it can print the whole 4x5 negative or at least the whole exposed part of it?

Thanks.

[Oslolens]

If a new negative holder does the job, I suggest getting A4 soft magnetic sheets with the thickness of 2-3mm and cutting a big enough hole.
2 sheets are needed to hold the film in place.

It's been a while since I used a 1200, so I can not guarantee it will fit to the enlarger. You may also need a glass so the negative doesn't bulge down.

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[MartyNL]

The Femoneg AM allows printing of 4x5" including the film rebate with Femogla AM glass inserts. But good-luck finding one and that's affordable!

The common Femoneg with Femogla glass inserts allows a little more wiggle room than the Femomask, metal inserts.

Alternatively, you could try filing a metal Femomask insert or consider getting something 3d printed.

[Lars Holte]

A spare Durst Femoneg Adjustable Negative Carrier for Laborator L1200 is both rare and expensive. The 4x5 inserts will not print the whole negative with blank borders, and the corners are so thin, that it is not possible to widen the opening by means of filing. Even using two (anti-Newton) glass plates to sandwich the negative will not allow you to print the full negative with blank borders, I think, because of the way the Femoneg carrier is constructed. The cut-out in the Femoneg carrier itself restricts the borders. I have never seen a Femoneg AM (American) carrier for sale.

[case-ie]

Thanks for your answers and ideas,

I have been thinking about filing, because i print with the glass in the femoneg but that will not improve things I'm afraid. And I just checked out ebay, a femoneg costs more then I paid for two laborators.

The magnet sheets will still have to go in the holder otherwise it will get difficult to get things straight and light tight.

[Renato Tonelli]

I use the the Femoneg AM with Anti-Newton Glass on top and Glass on the bottom. It is the only way I am able to print the e tire negative (including the black borders, if I wish).
An additional modification may be necessary: the Light Baffle above the Mixing Box, just below the Lamp Housing, may need to be cut larger all-around. I had to do this on one of my L1200; it worked fine with a 9x12cm negative , but not a 4x5” even with the Femogeg AM. The owner of Durst-Pro USA, surmised that that particular model had been configured that way and that it was just a matter of changing the Light Baffle and using the Femoneg AM.

You could make a DYI glass negative carrier with foam all around to prevent light leaks and to keep it in place; use the outside dimensions as a guide. I think it’s worth a try. I haven’t seen a Femoneg AM available for less than $400.00, usually with just regular Glass and they are indeed rare.

[Greg]

On my Durst CE 1000 when I was shooting and printing 4x5s, I used a ZBE glass carrier that illuminated more that the full 4x5 negative. I did have to jury rig centering guides for the negative carrier though. ZBE carriers seem to be put up for auction for either $50 or $500 each. Got mine for around $50. Their build quality was as if they were built by Linhof and meant to last a lifetime.

[carl_luxlab]

The AM Femoneg carrier was designed to fit a mask with slightly larger corners. It can be filed out, but not much. But as others have mentioned, it is expensive and difficult to find the AM version. Someone working with me managed to destroy a filed out durst AM 4x5 mask, my mistake was to not super glue it in and to keep the femoneg AM and cut 4x5 mask as one unit, the mask corners were like aluminum foil. Glass is great, as it keeps the negative flat, newton rings and dust can become an issue, even with anti-newton glass. Recently I needed to push a 6x7 negative a little deeper in the enlarger, so the projected image would move forward. I used just the insert without the femoneg carrier and black taped around the head to stop light leaks. The only annoyance was undoing this to slightly move the neg. You could consider doing something similar with a flat 4x5 carrier, perhaps a saunders or omega or a beseler (probably got to cut off the back circle on the beseler), but you will want a spacer to lift up the negative to make it closer to the light source so the light source will cover it. Also, use a 150 or 180 lens so the angle of the view from the lens is more strait to the edges of the light source. A 135 will often see the edges of the light source, even on a durst 4x5. I have wondered about modifying a Carl Wen negative carrier, but not sure this could work. The Carl Wen carriers were made I think in the 80's or 90's. Good luck!

[case-ie]

Thanks for your time attention and ideas. The foam I will keep in mind. The zbe carriers I found on the net.
Yesterday I measured the cross section of the light passage on the laborator 1200 and that is 12 x 12cm so printing a whole negative is never possible. I should have measured it before asking questions, I apologize for that, but I do remember asking for an easy way:-).
Before modifying other carriers I will try printing with my Durst 1000 again, although that also had problems (uneven lighting).
I know 4x5 negatives are seldom printed as a whole especially not in the old days but I find it strange that Durst doesn't facilitate that on their 1200. Thanks again.

[Vaughan]

I know 4x5 negatives are seldom printed as a whole especially not in the old days but I find it strange that Durst doesn't facilitate that on their 1200. Thanks again.

Transparencies in particular usually have peg marks in the corners from processing.