8x10 Enlarger...HELP please talk me out of it!!

[Armin Seeholzer]

If you have the space for it go for it!
I do not have the space for an 8x10 enlarger.
I do contacts and have a Epson 750 Scanner which give me very perfekt 16x20 prints from my 8x10!
Happy hunting! Armin

[PViapiano]

...inky ejaculations of pixelography

Pure brilliance!

[Gary L. Quay]

I only want to echo the sentiments of those who say "Go for it!" I had the same decision to make a couple months ago. I needed a studio camera, (my Linhof field camera really doesn't have the movements I need) and I really wanted an 8x10, but it would have required some extra investment in the darkroom, so I bought another 4x5 along with more lenses. Two weeks after I bought it, I saw a Durst 8x10 enlarger, a floor standing model, for sale in Citizens Photo for under 200 dollars. It needed some work, but all of the parts are available from sources on the Web. Follow your dreams.

--Gary

[fuegocito]

There is a Durst AF 2501, auto focus and programmable 810 enlarger up for grab in Boston area, the seller didn't specify price, just asking for "meaningful" offer and he would literally "give" it away. I would have taken it but I can't afford a warehouse space that needs to go with it. If any one is interested, I'll pass the contact info along.

[fuegocito]

here is the picture of this beast, the gent said he'll let it go for $500!!! Anyone can use it??? It would be such a shame if it end up going to the dump.

[Gene McCluney]

It looks like that Durst in the photo above is a horizontal enlarger that runs on a track?

[fuegocito]

Yes, it's a beast running on tracks, if I only have the "warehouse" space that it requires, I would have taken it even if I had to haul it home one piece at a time carrying on my back... Just imagine the mural size one almost never makes

[Andrew D Hess]

I have a 10x10 Durst with a diffusion color head. Free standing fits in normal height room.
I have made 20x24" print on it with the table at normal working height with the head near but not at the top. This can be done with a 210 or 240mm les no problem.
Not a big deal.

[Rolfe]

I have been wanting to go up to 4'x4', can that beast of an enlarger fit on a pallet and be shipped to CA? Also, I am new to horizontal enlargers, can standard schnieder lenses fit on the lensboard, and can I use 120 negatives?

Can it be controlled manually, like my old Omega D-2?

Thank you,
Rolfe

[fuegocito]

I have been wanting to go up to 4'x4', can that beast of an enlarger fit on a pallet and be shipped to CA? Also, I am new to horizontal enlargers, can standard schnieder lenses fit on the lensboard, and can I use 120 negatives?

Can it be controlled manually, like my old Omega D-2?

Thank you,
Rolfe

The beast, is likely to be a size of a small powder room but I imagine it can be moved, it's just a matter of finding the company and pay a small fortune in shipping.

This is what Barry the seller wrote about the enlarger;
"The Durst enlarger is a 2501. It is auto focus and programmable. If you're
printing a mural, you can test at a small magnification, say 16x20 or so,
which allows you to see the entire image in the test. When you are ready to
run the mural you enter the final magnification. The enlarger will move back
on the track to the correct size, focus itself, and change the exposure time
and color balance to compensate for the reciprocity failure of the paper. It
really is quite remarkable. We have several lenses and negative carriers
that would go along with it. We used the enlarger to print images that were
too large for our Light Jets. Typically that meant anything over 4' x 10'..."

Isn't that sweet!!!!!! Personally I like "small magnification, say 16x20..."

As for operating in manual mode, I have never been in the presence of it so I don't know, I will be there sometime this weekend to pick up a few other things, perhaps I can inquire for you. If all you prints is 120 size, wouldn't make more sense to find a 4x5 enlarger that can project horizontally?

Robert