Bill,
I may be old fashioned and I may be stupid....but I'd say go cheap and robust
for the enlarger and buy a good lens.
As for "cheap and robust", I've yet to find anything better than MeOpta's
Opemus and Axomat series. They're pretty down-to-earth enlargers, but
remarkably durable and (imo) they retain accuracy even after many years of hard
usage. They're build of cast iron (or something), so if you're short a hammer
they're usefull for that too (Ok, maybe not - I have not tested this
personally). However if you cannot set up a permanent darkroom, they'll
definitely sustain the stres of repeatedidly being mounted and unmounted. To
prove a point, I've got two MeOpta enlargers - Opemus IIa (II think it's 25
years and still going strong) and Axomat 5 (which I got in, I think, 86 or 87).
I dismount them after each usage. I am considering replacing the Opemus IIa
with an Opemus 6 - the newer models are easier to use.
And they're cheap too - almost so chep that buying second hand cannot be worth
it (although I do not know the second hand prices).
Don't be cheap on the lens, though. Invest as much - or more - as you would in
a Zuiko. MeOpta makes - surprisingly - a very good series of lenses (they also
make crap lenses). But otherwise, I use a Nikkor, which is doing fine, or
Rodenstock - which is also fine.
Ohh...and I do not know the Bessler you mention. Not that that prevents me from
having an opinion or replying to your email :)
--thomas
(who's stuck in an aircraft - again - and has nothing better to do than write
emails....)
________________ Reply Header ________________
Subject: [OM] Enlarger recomendations
Author: Bill Stanke <bstanke@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2001 23:21:53 +0100
Hi everyone:
The discussion about B&W film has inspired me to set up a traditional "wet"
darkroom, after a hiatus of about twenty-five years.
Does anyone have any experieince with the Bessler Printmaker 35 enlarger? I
sold my Durst M-301 and all the other darkroom gear when I lost interest, so I
will have to purchase an enlarger, developing tanks, trays, tongs, etc.
I used to bulk load Plus-X, and developed it (one-shot) of a 1:3 dilution of
Microdol-X. I thought it was pretty hot stuff at the time!
Thanks!
Bill Stanke
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