Dunco 90/4 questions

cluttered · May 6, 2018

I'm thinking of splashing out on new large (expensive!) easel, most likely a Dunco 90/4 or maybe a 90/5. I'd need to be buying from overseas, so it would be sight-unseen.

One thing I'm not clear on is the supported paper size. For example, the 90/4 is meant to support 12x16 paper. Is that with the blades in place? From what I understand, some easels only support their maximum size without blades in place, which might limit flexibility.

Feel free to correct me if I'm misunderstanding anything

I've already got a very nice 4-blade Saunders for 11x14 work, but would like to be able to go up a size or two.

AgX · May 7, 2018

This does not answer your question, but is a interesting reading on Dunco Details
https://translate.google.de/transla...19463-Welchen-Vergrößerungsrahmen/&edit-text=

cluttered · May 7, 2018

Thanks for the link.

It seems that any brand of easel can have issues. For example, some people swear by RRB, other people will only use Leitz, or Saunders, and so on. A bigger problem is that a lot of the recommendations that I come across are impossible to buy where I am. Buying a good quality easel from overseas is difficult, with very expensive shipping and no option to try-before-buy.

I'm happy with my Saunders 4-blade 11x14, if I could get hold of a larger version I'd be happy, but that is also proving difficult.

AgX · May 7, 2018

I fully understand. If availability is limited for whatever reason, one still may modify, enhance what one can get. I practically only buy local.
Concerning your actual question you might send an email to Dunco.

Lachlan Young · May 7, 2018

A secondhand RR Beard four blade, or Kienzle four-blade. They're significantly squarer than the rest & offer adjustment potential. Dunco & Kaiser can be persuaded to be acceptably square with the aid of some tape & effort - & the size they list is for the biggest piece of paper that can be used with the masking blades. My own preference would be for a Saunders fixed margin easel if truly square edges are an absolute requirement.

cluttered · May 7, 2018

Lachlan Young said:
A secondhand RR Beard four blade, or Kienzle four-blade. They're significantly squarer than the rest & offer adjustment potential. Dunco & Kaiser can be persuaded to be acceptably square with the aid of some tape & effort - & the size they list is for the biggest piece of paper that can be used with the masking blades. My own preference would be for a Saunders fixed margin easel if truly square edges are an absolute requirement.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll keep an eye out for those. And thanks also for the info about how they measure the size.

Truly square edges aren't an absolute requirement, I'm just a bit obsessive that way In reality any lack of square edges would be covered by the matt when mounting & framing the print.

Lachlan Young · May 7, 2018

cluttered said:
Thanks for the suggestions, I'll keep an eye out for those. And thanks also for the info about how they measure the size.

Truly square edges aren't an absolute requirement, I'm just a bit obsessive that way In reality any lack of square edges would be covered by the matt when mounting & framing the print.

I'd also add that the leading cause of the blades going out of alignment is attempting to adjust them without opening the easel first - the Dunco also operates most similarly to your current Saunders in terms of alignment slots etc (except you can adjust the length of aforesaid slots on the Dunco), the Kaiser uses retractable pegs for smaller sheets & a gripper bar for the biggest sheet for a particular easel. The Kienzle is not dissimilar but is rather more 'industrial' in its engineering.

AgX · May 7, 2018

As a side note:
Dunco meanwhile has a minimum order value for spares of 70Euro. I do not even blame them with used stuff around and Dunco maybe only used as retailer of spares. But such should be taken into account. Especially with the seemingly limited life span of the original gas spring. One may consider buying a non original spare.

John Koehrer · May 7, 2018

On older Saunders 11x14's the blades did pop out to handle 14X17, is yours newer?

cluttered · May 7, 2018

John Koehrer said:
On older Saunders 11x14's the blades did pop out to handle 14X17, is yours newer?

Mine is a VT1400 (http://www.tiffen.com//Saunders_VT1400_Easel.htm). I had a look and couldn't see any easy way to remove the blades. It is a nice easel to use.

John Koehrer · May 8, 2018

It before the VT1400 was even a gleam in Saunders eye.
The entire frame with four blades just popped out.
Sorry.

sepiareverb · May 12, 2018

I had a Dunco with the pin system for paper placement and found it annoying. The springs in the pins were not terribly reliable, and i was not ever happy with it. IIRC neither Dunco or Keinzle make easels with slots any longer, I hope they have come back to slots tho!

I use a Beseller easel, both 1620 and 1114, which I find quite sturdy. Blades can be adjusted/aligned and while I do check them for square and tape them I have had zero issues with them besides needing to replace the spring arm on the 1620 when it arrived broken. This was while Beseller was in the throes of implosion and was nearly impossible to get ahold of, but I eventually managed to get the part.

Keinzle is run by wonderful folks who will deal with us here in the US directly. If I was in need of an easel I would contact them and see what they can offer. Top quality products.

cluttered · May 12, 2018

Thanks for the info. A common theme in the above replies is that I should seriously consider a Keinzle. I'm going to see if I can get a new 12x16 one landed here for a reasonable price, sounds like that's my best option (or wait indefinitely for something used). Like sepiareverb, I'd prefer slots instead of pins, but you can't have everything

AgX · May 13, 2018

As the error is repeating, the manufacturer is spelled Kienzle .

sepiareverb · May 13, 2018

My autocorrect is oblivious to the truth.

http://www.kienzle-phototechnik.de/home_english/home_english.html

MattKing · May 13, 2018

sepiareverb said:
My autocorrect is oblivious to the truth.

This would make for an excellent thread signature. Or even an excellent T-shirt slogan.

cluttered · Jul 3, 2018

Just to provide some closure; I ended up buying a Kienzle E40 easel. Now that it's arrived, I'm very happy with it. Thanks for all the advice!

Dunco 90/4 questions

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