Homemade Nova-style print processors and washers

[cmo]

I confess: I am a hybrid photographer, shoot on film and scan the negs. You are perfectly right if you say that this is a shame.

I want to make my prints in the darkroom again... but I don't have much space, the lab to-be is really, really small. Some friends recommend to use Nova print processors and washers. In fact, I like the idea of such a small footprint, but they are not exactly cheap.

Are there any people around that built their own processors and washers?

 

[srs5694]

I've not done it myself, but I do seem to recall hearing of people who've done it, so it's do-able. IIRC, one issue is that prints tend to stick to the barriers between sections, at least if something like smooth glass or plexiglass is used to separate them. Roughing up the surfaces or using something with a textured surface to begin with helps.

 

[perkeleellinen]

There was a very similar thread earlier this year. A member from New York, I think, was after a Nova but the postage from the UK killed any potential deal. I can't find the thread now, but there was some discussion about building a slot-type processor. Are you in Germany? A second hand unit may not be that expensive to post from the UK.

 

[Ulrich Drolshagen]

I have bought a 12x16 Washmaster Eco. I have bought it direct from Nova in UK. Makes it a little less expensive. I am pretty sure that you can't DIY for much less the money. For me it makes fiber based paper manageable and is worth every cent I payed.

Ulrich

 

[RobertV]

Sometimes you can buy them pretty cheap. Super compact and cheap can be a Nova Masterlab, suitable for film/paper development in four slots till 20x25cm/8x10". When having a lot of prints (and for RA-4 color) I am using the Thermaphot ACP 252.
Big sheets (40x50cm) I can do in rotation in my Jobo CPA-2 with elevator. When doing trays, till 30x40cm because I do not have more space.

 

[perkeleellinen]

The most basic type that Nova ever made was a sort of plastic stand in a triangle shape. Into this was cut three slots and into each slot went a 10x8 'pod' in which you kept the dev / fix etc. It was really portable when empty as the three pods would stack and the little plastic stand was small and light. If you could find one of them 2nd hand I'm sure it was be cheap and the postage low due to the light weight. Even just the pods without the stand would be a good deal as you could easily fabricate the stand yourself. I think the pods used in this model are exactly the same as the Masterlab.

 

[RobertV]

I think the pods used in this model are exactly the same as the Masterlab.

Yes, they are the same, so for me interchangeble. The Pod I have already over 16-17 years.

 

[perkeleellinen]

It might be worth giving Nova a call (+441789 739200) and asking about the pods. Last time I was there, they had quite a stock of 2nd hand items and bits and bobs left over from manufacturing the processors. They maybe have some pods and if you've got them, the rest would be easy to make.

 

[thefizz]

Lots of new and used washers here: http://www.secondhanddarkroom.co.uk/www.secondhanddarkroom.co.uk/info.php?p=2&cat=16427

 

[Neal]

Dear CMO,

It's hard to save much by building yourself if you have to purchase material. I built my own washer because I was able to save some 1/4" Lexan that was being thrown out by a place I used to work at. Otherwise I would have browsed ebay until I found one I wanted. Even then, after I added in all the little fittings and the like it was a long way from free.

Personally, I suggest building a support so that you can stack trays. Very cheap and easy to do. As for the washer, work out your look on RC paper (minimal washing required) and the washing effort for the final few prints.

Good luck,

Neal Wydra

 

[fotch]

I would think, if you don't put a price on your labor, that you could build one a lot cheaper. The bigger the sheet of Plexiglas the lower the cost per square foot. However, stacking trays would be a lot easier and quicker. I just depends on space. The commercial slot processors, are they heated (for color processing)?

 

[perkeleellinen]

They come in both heated and unheated models. The heated ones have a central chamber which if filled with water and the heat is regulated via a thermostatic controller. .

 

[Henry Alive]

Look at; http://www.fernandogago.es/lavadora.html