Federal enlarger lenses

Kawaiithulhu · Jul 11, 2016

You know these, 269, very small lens boards, the Decar anastigmat lens that comes with it is f6/3 and I'd like to get something more modern on there and add a 50mm for 35mm on top of the 6x9 it comes with.

Has anyone had success at adding a modern enlarging lens to the smaller Federal enlargers?

Paul Howell · Jul 11, 2016

I had a 269 that I converted to point source and made a lens boards for a Wallensake 90 4.5 and 50 4,5. Not the most modern designs but very 4 element lens. I no longer have the enlarger but still have the lens.

gone · Jul 11, 2016

I'm using a Minolta Rokkor 50 2.8 on my Federal enlarger for 35mm, and a Wollensak Raptor 90 4.5 for 6x6 and 6x9. Great glass, small investment. The Raptor stopped down is very sharp even though it's 4 element. A Nikkor 50 2.8 would also work great for 35mm.Nothing wrong w/ Paul's 50 4.5 lens either, just a little harder to focus than a 2.8 lens.

Made my own lens boards because they're very easy to make. They're just flat squares, so whatever you have around the house (thick plastic, thin wood, whatever) works fine for a lens board, and the enlargers are fully capable of 16x20 prints from 35mm to 6x9 (mine are Federal enlarger models 311 and 312). Your 269 is almost exactly like my two I think, and should be capable of 35mm to 6x9 negs.

Paul Howell · Jul 11, 2016

With a point source enlarger no problems with focusing at 4.5, if your Federal is a diffusion or single condenser then a 2.8 would be brighter. If your 269 is the double condenser model you can make a halogen lamp assembly to use as a point source, the advantage of the 269 is that you raise the lamp up and down to best lamp to paper distance. down side is that without a fan for cooling need to be mindful of hot the lamp gets. Point source is very sharp, I found it to be too sharp.

Kawaiithulhu · Jul 11, 2016

This particular Federal is a single condenser lens with a creatively designed, center-weighted frosted glass pane to help even out the light of the standard PH211 bulb.
The lens is all right, but very dim and smears the grain a bit; if I'm going to set it up at all before I can find a dream-deal 4x5 setup I want some visibility on the baseboard

Thanks, all. Since it's been done before, I can scavenge the material to build a lens board and git'r'done

wombat2go · Jul 12, 2016

https://app.box.com/s/pl241r8adl5lcttgy63km0ezw2pufn9w

One of my Rodenstock lenses came in a plastic box which has a threaded mount in it to protect the rear element.I removed the original lens from my Federal 269, cut a hole in the box,
and drilled 2 mounting holes on the pitch of the original lens board.
I have made some excellent 35mm bw prints on 8*10 inch Ilford Multigrade Pearl.

Kawaiithulhu · Jul 12, 2016

wombat2go said:
plastic box

That right there is a great idea, the two lenses I have come in boxes like that, too!

wombat2go · Jul 12, 2016

Now the boxes will be worth more than the lenses!

Federal enlarger lenses

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