Beseler 67s Questions - long post, sorry

Hi all, I'm a relatively new poster here, but have been lurking a while now. I do plan on becoming a subscriber on my next paycheck to boot. The amount of knowledge here is amazing. Please forgive in advance this long post.

I have been lucky enough to receive a Beseler 67s Dichro color enlarger for free from a company that my father worked for. They originally bought it brand new for their marketing dept. but never really used (maybe once they said). But hey, free enlarger!

Anyway, I've never had my own enlarger before and I am getting ready to set up an area in my basement for it, but I have a couple of questions. First, what should I use to clean this thing? Water and a lintless type of rag?

Secondly, I'm pretty sure it's never been moved until I picked it up (carefully too), should I worry about alignment on this?

Thirdly, it came setup for 35mm, with a lens and carrier. I have what looks like a small house shaped unit that they said was for it, but I'm not sure what for. Does anyone know? Is this needed for enlarging 6x6? I don't really plan on making color prints (but who knows what could happen!) but do I leave the color knobs zeroed out for B&W or can they act as variable contrast filtering for VC paper?

And finally, does anyone know a (relatively) cheap place to get 6x6 negative and slide carriers for this? Are the 67s carriers that same as the Printmaker 35 carriers?

Any help would be appreciated.
Chiron

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I First, what should I use to clean this thing? Water and a lintless type of rag?
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Very little water on a barely damp rag for dusting works.

Secondly, I'm pretty sure it's never been moved until I picked it up (carefully too), should I worry about alignment on this?
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Probably not.

Thirdly, it came setup for 35mm, with a lens and carrier. I have what looks like a small house shaped unit that they said was for it, but I'm not sure what for. Does anyone know? Is this needed for enlarging 6x6?
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I can't tell by your description what it is.


leave the color knobs zeroed out for B&W
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for graded paper, yes. And be sure the white light lever is switched to white light.

or can they act as variable contrast filtering for VC paper?
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yes, charts are available

And finally, does anyone know a (relatively) cheap place to get 6x6 negative and slide carriers for this?
*****
Flea bay. Sometimes you can make your own.

Are the 67s carriers that same as the Printmaker 35 carriers?
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Dunno

I agree with Anscojohn on most points (and thank him for the typing). Here are a few comments:


Secondly, I'm pretty sure it's never been moved until I picked it up (carefully too), should I worry about alignment on this?
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Probably just need to check that the back girder is attached properly to the baseboard.

Thirdly, it came setup for 35mm, with a lens and carrier. I have what looks like a small house shaped unit that they said was for it, but I'm not sure what for. Does anyone know? Is this needed for enlarging 6x6?
*******

Sounds like the "house" is a mixing chamber, as shown on this exploded diagram from the Beseler site:

http://www.beselerphoto.com/img/exploded.dichro67.body.gif

You can use the 6x7 mixing chamber for that size and smaller. The only reason to use the 35mm chamber is to get shorter exposures for that format.


leave the color knobs zeroed out for B&W
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for graded paper, switch the white light lever to white light. If you need less light, you can set each of the knobs to the same filtration, and by doing so you will reduce the intensity.

or can they act as variable contrast filtering for VC paper?
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this is how I use my dichro head. There are charts available (check the websites of the paper manufacturers) which indicate approximate equivalents between contrast filters and dichro head settings, or you can consider using split contrast filtering.

And finally, does anyone know a (relatively) cheap place to get 6x6 negative and slide carriers for this?
*****

I've got all mine through eBay - although I am not aware of a carrier for mounted 6x6 slides.

You will most likely need a lens as well for 6x6, and I would recommend looking for a lensboard as well, also from eBay.

Are the 67s carriers that same as the Printmaker 35 carriers?
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Yes

I've been using my 67C since the 1970s, and have had a dichro head for about 5 years.

One further comment - some of the dichro heads require a separate power supply, while others have the power supply built into the head.

If the head doesn't have a separate power supply with it, but appears to have a regular plug, try it out, because it probably is fine.

Here is a link to a list of manuals. Look through the Beseler 67 manuals to see if your model is the same or similar to the ones shown.

http://www.darkroompro.com/pdf/enlargers/index.html

Hope this helps, and have fun!

Matt

Guys, thanks for the input and help on this. I took a closer look at some of the pdf manuals and the house shaped unit I have is indeed the alternate mixing chamber for this enlarger. I'll double check for any kind of serial number on it to make sure it's not just an additional chamber for 35mm. As for alignment, I'm definitely not going to worry since I have the frame version as opposed to the single post version and I know for a fact that it didn't get knocked around on the way home. I have the version that has the standard US 110 volt wall plug on the end of it so I'll just plug that into my gralab timer port labeled enlarger. Right?

It sounds like I'll be hitting up craigslist, the auction site, and a couple of other places for an 80mm lens, lens board, and a couple of 6x6 carriers. I just have one final question to clarify something for me. When using graded papers, I flip the lever to white light and for VC paper, I flip it back so I can use the color dials for contrast control, correct?

Thanks for all the help guys. I really do appreciate it.

Chiron

. When using graded papers, I flip the lever to white light and for VC paper, I flip it back so I can use the color dials for contrast control, correct?

Yep. And don't forget it. I had some mild yellow filtration dialed in, using graded paper, on a yellow easel. Could not figure out why my exposures were so long. Duhhhhh. BTW, I have the double column unit also. Built like a soviet tank. And yes, as stated above, I use the 6x mixing chamber all the time. Have fun.

Chiron said:

I have the version that has the standard US 110 volt wall plug on the end of it so I'll just plug that into my gralab timer port labeled enlarger. Right?

Chiron

Click to expand...

Probably!

There is at least one version of this head that has that plug, but requires a power supply. Check the label at the back of the head to see what it says about voltage. If it says 82 volts (IIRC), it might be a problem.

I actually have two of the heads, and one is that strange type.

The most effective test is to plug the head into a wall socket. If the lamp burns out immediately, you have that type of head, and do require a separate power supply.

Matt

Anscojohn,

Thanks for the tips on the mixing chamber and the filtration settings. I'm going to be putting together a checklist for when I go to start doing prints and I'm going to make sure that checking the lever/switch and dials is one of the first few things to check. Oh, I took a closer look at the frame and you're right, the thing IS frickin' built like a tank!

MattKing,

I took a closer look at the head and it's labeled 120 volts 60hz only. When I plugged it into the wall, it came on with without a problem, FTW!

Great - have fun!

Matt

MattKing said:

Great - have fun!

Matt

Click to expand...

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Ditto