Help me pimp my Omega D6!!

pthornto

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Ok- maybe not pimp it out so much as get it up and running! I have this beast without a baseboard. I plan to have this set up permanently in a basement darkroom but think it may be worthwhile to get it on a temporary baseboard before mounting it on a permanent bench (and I plan to brace it to the walls as well as the bench). My challenge in planning is that I won’t have a lot of ceiling height (might be just shy of 8feet) which could limit what my bench height can be. Do you have any ideas around how to best accommodate a big enlarger in a aller space?

Also- right now it has the Superchromega D lighthouse and power supply. I like the idea of diffusion light source but wonder if there are other light heads that would be better for b/w printing, and worth the modification prior to getting it set up in its new home.

Thanks!!
 

Sirius Glass

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I run mine as it came from the seller. No modifications.
 

MattKing

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Consider mounting/supporting it from a wall, and putting a drop table down below it with movable shelves.
 

Neal

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Now is the time to clean it up and make sure everything is as is should be. I had to reattach two of the dichroic filters with super glue on my D5 once.

Good luck!
 

Paul Howell

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You might want to invest in a laser alinement device and learn how to keep the beast in alinement , even a great enlarger like the D6 is just junk if not kept in alinement. The theory is that a condenser head provides more contrast and prints can look sharper, but grain and dust can show. I have both a very old Omega florescent head and a condenser head, I use the condenser head with LED bulbs, cold head with condenser qualities. Start with the color head and buy a condenser head only if you don't the results. What ever base you use, make sure is free from vibrations as you can make it.
 

ic-racer

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pthornto said:
Do you have any ideas around how to best accommodate a big enlarger in a aller space?... wonder if there are other light heads that would be better for b/w printing,...
Click to expand...
Since you might need the baseboard lower than a 36" counter top, some people construct a moveable baseboard that can be raised to save your back when doing small prints.
If the Super Chromega D works, I can't imagine why anyone would replace one.
 

Sirius Glass

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I have a much different arrangement. The Chromega 5D-XL is in a bedroom, my dry darkroom on a steel table and the head at its height is just short of the ceiling. Once I set it there and got it level, it fortunately has never needed to be realigned. The enlarger never moves. I take the exposed print, place it in a box, leave the room and walk down the hall though a bedroom to a two sink bathroom which is my wet darkroom. I have a plywood board across the sink for my trays and the print washer sits in the bathtub.
 

gone

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What ic-racer said. If the choice is lowering the table or raising the ceiling.......
 
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pthornto

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Thanks for the feedback! Yeah I think I’ll stick to the colour light source for now. I don’t have the voltage stabilizer but it probably isn’t necessary. The idea to fasten this thing to the wall is appealing but if anyone has experience/ideas with vibration dampening for these setups that would be helpful (I’m thinking household things like the dishwasher, heat exchanger etc. Probably vibrate walls more than the basement floor which is a concrete slab). Regardless of how it’s mounted, a printing surface that can be raise and lowered would be ideal.
 

Sirius Glass

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My enlarger is heavy enough that there has never been a need to fasten it to the walls. If I lived next to train tracks, a trolley or heavily travel road things might be different. I had trouble just lifting mine and getting on the table. I had to partially disassemble it to lower the lifting weight.
 

darkroommike

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Baseboard, make one from two pieces of 3/4 inch/18mm particle board. Cover both sides with plastic laminate (aka Formica). Build a lower bench so that you can run the enlarger all the way up to the ceiling but build a box to put on the baseboard when printing smaller to save your back.
 

Pieter12

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How large do you intend to print? I have an Omega D5XL and an 8' ceiling and I can print 16x20 no sweat. Also, I like sharpness and don't mind grain at all, so I prefer a condenser head.
 
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pthornto

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Yeah I think 16x20 would be max print size and yes I think you are right- even a 6x7neg should enlarge to that scale with the 90mm lens I have no problem.

Given a blank slate I’m think that I’ll mount the thing to a separate stand attached to the wall and then build a table that can be adjusted. Just going to take some planning! I have a smaller 6x7 rig that I may just leave on its baseboard and keep next to the D6.
Thanks for all the comments!
 

Sirius Glass

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Generally the largest I print is 11"x14" although I can make a 16"x20", turning it over and getting even development requires extra effort.
 

Pieter12

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This is how my D5XL is mounted, using the Omega wall mount and a top brace made from aluminum bits from the hardware store:

 

Luis-F-S

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Pieter12 said:
How large do you intend to print? I have an Omega D5XL and an 8' ceiling and I can print 16x20 no sweat. Also, I like sharpness and don't mind grain at all, so I prefer a condenser head.
Click to expand...
Don’t guess you mind dust either. Every professional printer worth his salt uses a dichroic head. Look at the photos of professional darkrooms nearly all have DeVere 504’s with dichroic heads. Wonder why?
 

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Sirius Glass

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Luis-F-S said:
Don’t guess you mind dust either. Every professional printer worth his salt uses a dichroic head. Look at the photos of professional darkrooms nearly all have DeVere 504’s with dichroic heads. Wonder why?
Click to expand...

Using the same enlarger for black & white and color is yet another reason.
 
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pthornto

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Love seeing those darkroom portraits! Also really like that setup, Pieter. I think I’ll try and get the wall mount for the omega as well.

I’m sold to try working with the dichroic head. Minimizing dust would be great.
 

Pieter12

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Luis-F-S said:
Don’t guess you mind dust either. Every professional printer worth his salt uses a dichroic head. Look at the photos of professional darkrooms nearly all have DeVere 504’s with dichroic heads. Wonder why?
Click to expand...
The pros I know use both. I have no problem with dust, I take some time to clean my negs. I don't shoot color film and I process my B&W in Rodinal and use a condenser head. I value sharpness and have no problem with grain. The great majority of my work is MF and I don't have to do much spotting on my prints. Also, most pros use glass carriers that have even more surfaces for dust to collect on.
 

Pieter12

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pthornto said:
Love seeing those darkroom portraits! Also really like that setup, Pieter. I think I’ll try and get the wall mount for the omega as well.

I’m sold to try working with the dichroic head. Minimizing dust would be great.
Click to expand...
One note of caution--make your table high enough so you can make smaller prints, too. You may have to cut a notch in it to clear the wall mount or just not have it flush to the back wall if you are making smaller than 8x10 prints from MF. Or use a longer lens (that's what I do for small prints)--that way you will be in the sweet spot of the lens and have less fall-off to be concerned with.
 

Luis-F-S

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I've used both for years. The dichroic wins hands down. No comparison
 

ruilourosa

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Win?
I thought this discussion ended last century...

I have a focomat v35, a durst m805 and a laborator 138 on the run all with diffuser heads...
Not good not bad just different from the condensor sistems i use where i teach.
 

Sirius Glass

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To pimp your enlarger you need:
  1. Peak Grain Focuser
  2. Small red [safe light] flash light
  3. Reading glasses, given your age
 

Nokton48

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Darkroom Reno II No 2 by Nokton48, on Flickr

I have two DII's one for 4x5 one set up for 35mm. Use everything in between, too. Like the Omegalite Diffusion Head as you can see. I use Laser-Align every time always sharp prints, black Rodagon lenses and many others too. I built the two drop tables I need only go up to 16x20, all B&W.

The 5x7 E3 came along and I have yet to get going with it. Still needs a bit of work but it's all there. Have a lot of original carriers, too. I had a carpenter come in and build the E3 table, similar to the original I have seen in photos. Even have a homemade LED head and a 4x5 Condenser E-3 head.

I have LED heads and Chromega heads, right now I am favoring the Omegalites.
 
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