For Sale COLENTA AT60 DEVELOPING MACHINE FOR SALE

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Philippe-Georges

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For sale: a well looked after COLENTA AT 60 DEVELOPING MACHINE.

See the pictures for more comprehensive information, but here a short description of the set.

A you can see, it has been well looked after as it was an important part of my bread and butter, and it is still in working order…

I tested the Colenta by have it run a complete process several times, although only with water, but the timing and temperature were spot on, this is of paramout importance for a processing machine!
In the photo’s you can still see the waterspots of the testing.

There are a few spare parts, amongst them, a whole set of rubber stops as a replacement for the ones in the product tanks, and one good working spare electromagnetic valve.
All the rubbers are still flexible, thus not hardened nor brittle!

I add tree specially made thermometers, two precisely measuring between 34°C and 42°C, to be hang in the two developer tanks, these ware very useful for the original E-6 process.
The third one is to be used precisely at lower temperatures for B&W.

There are a whole lot of film reels for a wide array of film formats, ranging from 35mm film over 120 roll-film till 4”x5”, 13x18cm, 18x24cm, 8”x10” and 24x30cm sheet film.
I mounted some film on them to show the real dimensions.
A whole lot of the famous ‘red clips’ to attach the film are present too.

All the needed documentation, user manual, wiring diagram, connection diagram, some personal notes and more are present.

Everything is present for a good takeoff…
As you can see it’s a whole load and it as only to be sold in the EEC.

Price for the undivided lot: € 2 500,- excl. shipping.

REDUCED PRICE: € 1 500.- (PayPal) plus shipping

I will do shipping myself in a radius of 85km and will be free, for longer distances can be negotiated.

View attachment 297907 I want € 2500,- for the lot, undivided.
 
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Philippe-Georges

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I forgot the list of the different reels, here it is:

List with all the different reels, sizes and numbers:
Reels for 120 rollfilms:
- reels to mount two roll films: 2 pcs
- reels to mount four roll films: 4 pcs

Reels for 35mm/36exp. film:
- reels to mount one film: 4 pcs
- reels to mount two films: 6 pcs

Reels for 4”x5” sheet film:
- to mount 6 sheets: 6 pcs

Reels for 13x18cm sheet film:
- to mount 6 sheets: 3 pcs

Reels for 8”x10” sheet film:
- to mount 3 sheets: 5 pcs

Reels for 18x24cm scheet film (= DIN version of the 8”x10” sheet):
- to mount 3 sheets: 2 pcs

Reels for 24x30cm sheet film:
- to mount 2 sheets: 2 pcs

THIS IS THE OUTMOST FLEXIBLE DEVELOPING MACHINE EVER BUILT, IT CAN PROCESS ALL THE DEVELOPING METHODS YOU WANT, SIMPLY PROGRAM THE MICROPROCESSOR!
 
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jtk

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Many professional labs relied on AT Colentas for transition from E4 to the then-newly introduced E6.. Some of them had previously run E3 (note the light unit in these photos).

FWIW I was Colenta's West Coast sales manager for about a year...long enough to learn that the company itself was a burden, despite the wonderful East German (!) design. Many or most of the labs that bought roller transport processors (e.g. 30"-60") to replace Kreonite roller transports also had AT60 or even the larger model and used them for film processing (as well as Ciba/Cibachrome prints).

Philippe's photos depict a wonderfully well-kept example
 
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Philippe-Georges

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As an answer on the reactions, via PM, I had on this post, I would like to respond:

I am always surprised how people can’t see the tremendous advantages and potential of a machine like this one.
It’s flexibility, steadiness and reliability is more than legendary, this Colenta is built like a tank!
I worked with this one for more than 25 years, and time after time I could appreciate these capabilities.
Coming home after a rude day of shooting on location, these virtues ware a relief to be able to lean on.

At the time, I saw many professional labs having a Colenta as some kind of sidekick to the ‘mass-production' dip-and-dunk machine, not only as a back-up to their vast production system, but also, and this was (and is) important, as a system ready for more rare and/or exceptional process demands, like pushing or dropping and B&W plain - or reversal developing (not to mention Cibachrome).
That’s why I invested in this system.

Concerning the price: to my humble opinion, this reflects the vast amount of accessories AND the quality of the goods.
In the early ’90, the purchase of this machine and auxiliaries, accessories, installation, power wiring, plumbing and tuning costed me around € 10 000.-…
Knowing that a more amateur JOBO, a less reliable and less automated developing system, costs used about € 2 000.- today, having a much less capacity and even less reliability…
In times of the analogue revival we experience now, future-oriented thinking professional or knowledgeable hobbyist should immediately see the Colenta's possibilities, which I did at the time!

The manufacturer, located in Austria now, still alive and kicking, has a lot of parts and can give a surprisingly good support, what I experienced.
But hoping to see this machine finding a new life in a good home might move me to reconsider the asked price or accepting a reasonable offer…
 
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Ari

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Indeed, this is an absolute bargain, and the system is far more superior to, and with greater capacity than, a Jobo ATL.
I've seen these in use at a lab I used to frequent in Paris, and they were handling a couple hundred rolls per day
The bonus is still having tech support and parts.
Good luck, P-G!
 

AgX

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jtk said:
I was Colenta's West Coast sales manager for about a year...long enough to learn that the company itself was a burden, despite the wonderful East German (!) design.
Click to expand...
Colenta was a West-german manufacturer. In East-Germany industrial design was earlier recognized than in the West, but I do not see the idea behind your remark.
 

jtk

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AgX said:
Colenta was a West-german manufacturer. In East-Germany industrial design was earlier recognized than in the West, but I do not see the idea behind your remark.
Click to expand...


The biggest problem came from Germanic failure to understand that for the US, motors/pumps/electronics had to work with 60 cycle power and would self-destruct when shipped with 50 cycle.
 
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Philippe-Georges

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jtk said:
The biggest problem came from Germanic failure to understand that for the US, motors/pumps/electronics had to work with 60 cycle power and would self-destruct when shipped with 50 cycle.
Click to expand...
The power supply frequency is one of the reasons why I limited my offer to the EEC...
220 à 240 Volt, 50 Hertz and 16 Ampère.
 

Elijah Willert

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jtk said:
The biggest problem came from Germanic failure to understand that for the US, motors/pumps/electronics had to work with 60 cycle power and would self-destruct when shipped with 50 cycle.
Click to expand...
Was it just the motor that usually burned out on these if a 50hz model was run on 60hz? I see one for sale on ebay in non functioning condition and I'm wondering if I could replace the motor in it to get it running again. I'd have to get it for a much lower price than what they're asking, especially since it comes with no accessories.
 

AgX

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jtk said:
The biggest problem came from Germanic failure to understand that for the US, motors/pumps/electronics had to work with 60 cycle power and would self-destruct when shipped with 50 cycle.
Click to expand...


To my understanding (I am not a electrical engineer) is raising the mains frequency at same voltage a much, much lesser issue than reducing the frequency.
With the raised mains frequency the rotational frequency rises proportionally and the torque is reduced proportionally.

(At reducing the frequency magnetic saturation will appear and the motor will strongly heat up.)


BUT in this case the mains voltage is much lower, and not apt for the motor anyway. Thus a power transformer has to be added, or the motor substituted.
If the motor is a low-voltage motor (as in a Jobo processor) it is a DC motor anyway...
 
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Philippe-Georges

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I think that running a 50Hz device on 60Hz might also damage the microprocessor, and the induction coils of the relais and the electromagnetic valves, the circulation pumps and the transformator.
A Colenta is a rather complex machine although it doesn't look like...
 

AgX

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A Microprocessor is basically locked off the mains frequency and also got its own clock.

Mains Solenoids react neglible on a rise from 50-60Hz. (statement of manufacturer)


A Transformer has to be substituted anyway, due to the much lower mains voltage in this case

And to have mains driven solenoids,valves and motors running in this case a extra mains transformer has to be installed, or these parts substituted, unless an export version already got such adapting transformer.
 
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Philippe-Georges

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I might be mistaking as I am not a trained électrotechnicien, and what I learned in the Humaniora is somewhere far in the past, but what about solenoids and the law of Biot-Savart?
 

AgX

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This is a law describing electr-magnetic effects in general, thus it applies already at a machine operated at circumstances it was designed for.

When considering operating a machine at a different mains several things are to consider: the kind of voltage (in the long past there were DC nets), the voltage, the wiring of the net, the frequency, the load the net/outlet can bear, fluctuations at the net (voltage,frequency), added frequences.
 

jtk

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It is/was a wonderful machine. I do suspect replacement of motors would work. Many served for years in the US, mostly in small photo labs. Your friend Google might find some chat/insight.
 
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Philippe-Georges

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jtk said:
It is/was a wonderful machine. I do suspect replacement of motors would work. Many served for years in the US, mostly in small photo labs. Your friend Google might find some chat/insight.
Click to expand...

Concerning the motors and pumps, these are rather straight forward, don't think that Colenta had special models of motors made for them, they used what could easily found on the market: Siemens, AEG, Bosch and alike.

About 15 years ago the circulation pump of the water jacket bath stopped working (I still don't know why).
As I couldn't wait fo a new one to arrive from Austria, I toke the broken one to the Handyman shop down town and the shopkeeper immediately recognised it and sold me a pump for a Bosch washing machine (around € 60.-), it still runs perfectly!
It is so easy to work on that machine, a smart kid can do it...

The only thing you do have to do systematically is thoroughly cleaning the machine with warm (not hot) water to avoid drying in chemical residues!
 
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