Convert Durst m605 to medium format.

[s_r_shaw]

Hi, I'm trying to convert my Durst m605 to medium format. I know I need an 80mm lens and a new lens board (siriopla), although If if any body thinks i can get away with using the original recessed board that would be better!

I am confused about the negative carrier. When I bought the enlarger (secondhand) it had 35mm glassless inserts. The manual says I need to buy a Sivopar 66 glassless insert. Great, these are readily available. My confusion is that the sivopar 66 is stated for use with a sinoneg carrier, which I believe comes with the newer durst m670. My enlarger has an older sirioneg carrier.

My question is simple. Will a sivopar 66 insert fit in a sirioneg carrier? The durst m605 is stated to work upto 6x6, although negative masks are available up to 6x7, does this mean I can actually enlarge up to 6x7?

Any help greatly appreciated....

 

[NikoSperi]

I only have the newer 670 which takes the Sinoneg. But I think you might need one more mod: your light source. The 670 (diffusion head) has a larger diffusion box that can obviously go down to 35mm, but the 35mm box might not cover MF. Even less sure about the condensor setup... Have you contacted Durst directly?

 

[clogz]

Instead of the mask you mention I'd advise you to use glass inserts for your negative carrier. The upper glass insert must be anti-newton. The advantage is that the negative stays absolutely flat. What type of carrier have you got now?

regards
Hans

 

[127]

The joys of the Dirst naming system - does ANYONE have a clue what any of the bits are/do?

I've got a couple of 605's I use for MF without any real thought. I take it you've got the colour diffuser head - otherwise you need a new condenser too...

The standard neg holder is the sironeg, which is glass (top and bottom), with adjustable blades for masking - takes any size up to 6x6. 6x7 probably won't fit without a crop, but you might squeeze it in. You don't need the drop in masks that some of the other models use.

I take it you've currently got a siriotub lens board - the recessed version? I think you might get away with it with a longer lens - I'd just try it and see. Worst case you'll not be able to focus at all enlarger head heights. The siropla is the flat board (I think), though I've got two which are slightly different: one is deeper than the other, through they're both badged the same.

The flat and recessed lens boards are surprisingly cheap - about 12 UK pounds. The extended board for VERY long lenses is much more expensive.

Ian

 

[s_r_shaw]

Yes, I have a colour head, so just assumed i flick the switch.

Does any body have any thoughts about glass vs glassless carriers. I've always used glassless for 35mm and found it fine. However, will the greater size of a 6x6 neg cause distortion with glassless carriers?

Having said that, the medium format negs that I am beginning to develop seem to lay completely flat, unlike 35mm which always seem to curl at the edges.

 

[edz]

Yes, I have a colour head, so just assumed i flick the switch.

Does any body have any thoughts about glass vs glassless carriers. I've always used glassless for 35mm and found it fine. However, will the greater size of a 6x6 neg cause distortion with glassless carriers?

Having said that, the medium format negs that I am beginning to develop seem to lay completely flat, unlike 35mm which always seem to curl at the edges.

Always use a glass negative carrier--- or at least a half-glass one such as found in the Focomat Ic/Valloy enlargers. All this talk about alignment and APO or even 6-element enlarging objectives and yet glassless carriers? They might be fine for subminiature formats such as MINOX but even in KB-135 they deliver a suboptimal image quality.

 

[127]

The colour head just has a switch - set it to 66box (rather than 35 box), and all is fine.

I've always used the glass carriers that came with the Durst. Dust is a PAIN, but it's not as bad on the diffuser as the condenser. The only time I've had real problems with glass is with 110 negs - for some reason they curl more or something, and I got really bad newton rings, when using exactly the same carrier as I use for larger formats. I ended up making my own glassless carrier for 110.

Ian

 

[Blighty]

I used to have the M605 colour and the M605B+W (which I much preferred). Good advice alround. Essential you get Anti-Newton glass inserts, for the top anyway! Regards, BLIGHTY