How is this enlarger? Will it live up to what I think?

Hello all,

I've recently contacted somebody about a used enlarger for sale. I believe it's a Beseler 45MCRX. It looks pretty old but it has been cleaned up great. It has a motor to raise and lower it but after a while of being turned on, it tends to get an electrical smell but very slight. Otherwise, the lens that will be coming with it is a Nikkor 135mm f/5.6 and it is VERY VERY clean, if not brand new.

The enlargers that I'm used to using are Omega 4x5 universal variable condenser enlargers. It's got the light in the top as usual and then has the small chamber where you can move around the top condenser glass for 50, 80, and 135mm lenses. Recenly I've been doing a lot of medium format photography and have used the 135mm lens in those enlargers quite successfully. Will I be able to make 35mm enlargements with a 135mm lens in the old Beseler? What limitations could there be?

The person who is selling this is asking $150 for the complete enlarger, though only with a 4x5 negative carrier, though I wouldn't assume they would cost much to buy 1 or 2 medium formats and/or 35mm carriers in addition. I believe she also has one of the large safelights that hangs from the ceiling and has the two reflectors that can lift up on the top. I think there are also a few processing trays and other misc. things like color viewing filters and such. Oh, and one of those black gralab analog timers. I need a new one anyways, since the one that I got a little while back from a friend popped at me one time hahaha.

Thanks for your opinions!!

Hi. $150 is a great deal, take it! If you get the extras such as the Thomas safetlight, timer, and trays you're a thief. Local pickup...even better. Expect to pay 20-40 for more carriers; less if you're patient.
The limitation you'll run into with the using the 135 lens for 35mm is printing size (raising the head higher for comparable size that a 50 would project) , and longer exposures. 50's run cheap used, and since you already have the 135 on an omega board it may prove more practical to get a beseler lensboard and fit the 50.

Andrew Laverghetta said:

It has a motor to raise and lower it but after a while of being turned on, it tends to get an electrical smell but very slight. Otherwise, the lens that will be coming with it is a Nikkor 135mm f/5.6 and it is VERY VERY clean, if not brand new.

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Just be sure not to burn you house down. Did you check the electrical wires and everything? Ask the owner how the machine has been maintained.

If it's just some old dust getting roasted in the lamp house and making that kind of smell, you can just clean it.

oh yeah, forgot about that . Definitely , be careful. Like firecracker mentioned it could be something as simple as dust. I once lost a filter inside a condenser lamphouse...never could figure out where it disappeared to until smoke was coming out of the enlarger.

I have one of these beasties. It's a nice enlarger and built like a tank. Check to see if the electrical smell is coming from the lamphouse or the motor. As mentioned by Firecracker, it might just require a cleaning. If the smell is coming from the motor, it may need to be replaced.

Obviously I haven't messed around with it enough because I dont' have it yet, but is it possible to operate the enlarger without the motor on? I noticed there was a cable going from something box over top of the motor (I've never heard of it before but it has a needle gauge on it), what does it do? ANyway, there's a cord going from that to the motor and then another cord and it's all confusing. I like the Omegas that we have in the SoFA (School of Fine Arts) darkroom because they're operated with a crank. So yeah, is it possible to work it without using the moter? If I were to set it to the proper height and then stop the power from going to the motor somehow? Thanks!

it is not uncommon for that enlarger to emit that smell.

I have three and they have served me well for a very long time.

I would not consider using them with out the motor, and in fact don't know if you can raise and lower the housing without it, as this is a very heavy peice of equipment.

The needle with a gauge is for adjusting voltage.

The Omega feels good because that is what you learned on, but this is a very good deal and adding the additional boards and or lens should be easy to do.

As someone else has indicated a 135mm lens will create problems for you with 35mm negatives.

You will need to adjust the light housing for format size, but that is easy to do but different than the omega.

Safe Bet

The 45M series is the enlarger of St. Ansel, and many master printers. The smell you find is due to the motor being of an "armature" type. This is like a drill or saw, in that two carbon brushes contact a rotating collar that supplies voltage to the windings of the part that rotates. The smell is ozone. If you look into the back of the motor and see a lot of blue sparks, the armature contacts probably need cleaned, or the brushes replaced. Not a big deal.

There are countless accessories that can be bought for this; heads, carriers, etcetera. It can grow with you, and serve you well. The bay provides a ready and cheap (if you are patient and shop around) source of goodies. I have two of these and would not consider anything else except maybe a 45V series...

yeah, looking at that thing just makes my back hurt about getting it to my place lol. I would use the motor to raise and lower it of course, but once I get it to where I need it, I was just wondering if it was possible to stop the current from going through the motor while I was using the enlarger to print, focus, etc.

The Omega that I used in class has a variable condenser glass...I noticed that the Beseler has two bellows. One below and one above the (negative stage?) Does the top one act as the variable condenser? I know the bottom one focuses. Also, I've noticed reading some things about it being hard to get the lens board flat maybe? I noticed that it seems to have the tilt kinda things to partially correct some perspective error when printing I think.

I'll definitly need to start looking for a medium format carrier since I already have one that 35mm, though not the best, it'll probably work well for now until I can get a 35mm carrier too...and so MY collection begins haha!

Another quick question that should be taken care of quickly, do enlarger lenses have depth of field? It seems like they should but I don't notice any difference at any fstop. Is it just because it's so close?

the top one does act as a variable condensor. there should be a guide ruler on the side, you just move the head to match the format size shown on the ruler.

I have used these enlargers for over 40 years, and we use them in our labs for class and they hold up well . Omega also are well built and hold up .

The question is, which are you going to be more comfortable using.

Old D2 are very cheap these days and if your in the Atlanta area, we have a couple of extra's that we are going to sell at a very cheap price.

Andrew, if the motor is the same type as on the MXT then yes, you can raise and lower the enlarger but it is slow. In front of the motor is a hand wheel you can turn for final adjustment of the height but it takes a lot of rotation to bring it up or down just a few inches.
The beselers are great i have both a 23CII and the 45MXT and like them.
Good luck

Good Afternoon, Andrew,

I'm not sure if all Beseler 4 x 5 enlargers are the same, but with mine there are two separate electrical connections. One goes directly from the height-adjusting motor to household current. The other runs from the head (bulb) through the Resistrol unit and , usually, a timer, then out to household current. Two separate wires are involved, so if you don't want to activate the motor, just don't plug it in. In theory, the enlarger can be operated in motor-less state, since there is a knob on the motor unit which will raise and lower the head. This knob, however, is meant for fine-tuning the image size and isn't really practical for routine up and down movements.

The top bellows is simply a means of adjusting the position of the condenser lenses above the negative. All the way down is for 4 x 5 negatives; all the way up is for 35mm. You could print all sizes with the condensers in the lowest position, but, supposedly, there is better light concentration for small negatives when the condensers are located optimally, according to the scale on the right side of the bellows.

The tilt control on the lens stage can occasionally help with focus, especially if you use a tilted easel position for perspective control.

Beseler carriers are routinely available for reasonable prices on E-Bay. You can also make your own from 1/8 tempered Masonite with just simple woodworking tools. In a pinch, cardboard can also do the trick.

Yes, enlarger lenses, like other lenses, have depth of field or focus; less wide open, more when stopped down.

Enjoy your enlarger. I've had mine for over thirty years, and it's still going strong.

Konical

An additional note on that gague thingie- the Resistrol, as mentioned above, is there to allow you to adjust the voltage going through the condenser head. It acts like a more precise dimmer switch. The purpose behind it was to allow you to adjust the voltage so you could lengthen/shorten print exposure times. This is particularly helpful when you have a thin negative that prints VERY fast, but you want to do some dodging or burning in.

OK! UPDATE!!!

I ended up getting the enlarger. Beseler 45MX Series enlarger. More specifically, 45MCRX I believe. Looks great and easy to use...except....for the lens.

It came with an EL-Nikkor 135mm f/5.6A. The glass is very clear and the aperture ring snaps into place perfectly. It's got the threading on the lens where it would screw into the lensboard and it comes with a piece of metal that snaps into the lens stage on the enlarger. It looks like some screws should hold the lensboard in but it didn't have any so it looks like I'll need to get some screws and washers or something to hold it in place. It fits in on one side with springs and just kinda seems to be held by tension on the other side. I wouldn't trust it with the weight of the lens. ANYWAYS.....the metal plate that fits in there has threads on it and so does the lens but the board is to large for the lens. The lens just kinds slips in but doesn't fit into the threads. There is a part on the lens that comes un-screwed but I can't find anyway in which that will help it fit. It's coming with everything that the previous owner used I believe but I'm not sure if I need to buy anything else (I hope not). I tried to fit in the 50mm lens from my Beseler Cadet II 35mm enlarger and it seems to be too small as well. I just checked and the 135mm lens fits perfectly into the Beseler Cadet II.

So this is great, I got this enlarger with a normal black and white head and this 135mm lens, a vivitar 135mm f/2.8 lens that looks to be a Nikon mount (but I'm not sure since I use Canon), one of those huge hanging safelights, and a few other accessories for $150. Seems like pretty good deal to me.

Thanks if you can help again!

Andrew Laverghetta said:

…..and it comes with a piece of metal that snaps into the lens stage on the enlarger. It looks like some screws should hold the lensboard in but it didn't have any so it looks like I'll need to get some screws and washers or something to hold it in place. It fits in on one side with springs and just kinda seems to be held by tension on the other side. I wouldn't trust it with the weight of the lens…..

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Fit the board to the spring side and press it into the spring. Then raise the other side of the board into the recess opposite the spring, release the tension on the spring side, and the board will slide into the recess and be held tightly.

Andrew Laverghetta said:

.....but the board is to large for the lens. The lens just kinds slips in but doesn't fit into the threads. There is a part on the lens that comes un-screwed but I can't find anyway in which that will help it fit. It's coming with everything that the previous owner used I believe but I'm not sure if I need to buy anything else (I hope not). I tried to fit in the 50mm lens from my Beseler Cadet II 35mm enlarger and it seems to be too small as well. I just checked and the 135mm lens fits perfectly into the Beseler Cadet II…..

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So the 135mm lens has the same threads, probably 39mm Leica threads, as the 50mm. Your 50mm probably has a jam nut to mount it to the Beseler Cadet, so you can use that jam nut, or buy another.

Yeah, I've done that with the lens board I think. I put it in with the spring side and push it so that the other end with lift up and fit into a small notch. Then I can let it go and it will stay there, being held with the springs pushing it against the notch, but my concern is how it's relatively easy to just pull it back off by pulling down. I just feel like the weight of the lens might pull it down and that wouldn't be good obviously.

About the thread size, once I unscrewed the 50mm lens on the cadet, it was slightly harder to get it back on because I couldn't force it through the hole and turn it because there is the lens board, and then I think it screws into something on the other side that will push up if I force it. Is this the nut that you're talking about? I can't really get to it in the cadet because it wasn't really built to be taken apart like the 45MCRX seems to be.

Also, I seem to have run into another problem. It's slightly harder to explain though. There's a cable going into the lamphouse from the resistrol. above the resistrol is the (working) voltmeter. There's a very short cord from the resistrol going to the lifting mechanism. There's also an outlet on that lifting mechanism that says "switch." I don't know what that does. Then there's a cord that comes out of that lifting mechanism that I believe goes to my timer, a gralab 450.

Here's what happens. I'll turn on the timer and set it to "focus" so it runs current through to the enlarger. I can push the switch up and down on the side and the enlarger WILL move up and down via the motor. As I said before, it does give of a slight electrical smell after a little bit of use, such as moving it from top to bottom or bottom to top. I have the plug from the resistrol plugged in and the lamphouse and the voltmeter in the resistrol. the problem is that when I have the timer set to "focus" the lamphouse should turn on, right? It doesn't. The ONLY way I can get the lamphouse to turn on is by taking the lamphouse plug out of the resistrol and plugging it into a direct power source like the wall or the timer while it's running or on "focus."

The next level, I plugged the voltmeter into the timer and it's reading 120volts as it should here but when I put it on the enlarger, it doesn't show any current anywhere unless I put it into the "switch" outlet. Then, when I remove the lamphouse cord to put it into "switch," the current is lost so there seems to be a circuit that is working through the resistrol but it's not getting to the lamphouse.....I have varied the resistrol as well, but the lamp isn't turning on.

What can I do!!?? haha

The lensboard is working properly, and will be rock-solid. Don’t worry about it. You need a jam nut to mount the lens to the board. I’m sure you can get the lens board off the Cadet to get to the jam nut, but then your Cadet’s 50mm will need a jam nut. I would just buy another jam nut for a few bucks.

To trouble-shoot the electrics, I would disconnect and remove both the timer and the resistrol. Then, plug the enlarger head elevation motor into the 110v power outlet, and plug the lamp cord into the same (duplex) outlet. With both cords plugged in, the lamp should light and the elevation motor should work. Then put the timer between the lamp cord and the 110v outlet. Everything should work. You don't need the resistrol, so I would leave it out of the circuit.

I think you have everything you need, and it’s only a matter of getting things sorted out. Good luck!

Ok! Here we go...

I took the cadet apart and managed getting the jam nut out because (since I'm in college still without a credit card) my dad didn't want to get on B&H and order me a used $6 piece of metal. haha. It's ok though. Anyway, I had to kinda "unglue" or rip up the bottom part of the bellows on the cadet because the lens board doesn't come off and the bellows were glued over two sides of the nut. I got that out and put it on the 45M and it works great. I WILL hold that 135 but I'm still cautious haha. Also, I should be able to use it for 35mm enlargments as well since the 50mm lens fits. The only problem is that I don't assume that 50mm lens is as good as the 135mm Nikkor. I'll get it figured out though. Thanks for everything! I'll probably end up using the normal lighthouse cord and skip the resistrol. Any suggestions/tips? Let me know!

Thanks!

Hopefully get it working someplace somehow this summer!

-Andrew

It should be fine to smell a bit especially you use the motor quite a bit more than normal operation would require. Check the counter balance spring with the light source mounted. The motor should go up and down at pretty much the same speed.

The outlet marked 'switch' is for a switch that turns the lamp on and off. This is a dangling thing about the size of a socketless lamp socket but with the lamp socket's lamp switch still in place. This switch would then control just the lamp but not the motor. Alternately, a footswitch is plugged into the switch outlet. This outlet is not longer provided on Beseler enlargers since just about everybody uses a timer and not a pocket watch or metronome.

If the lens board can be removed by pulling straight down on it, it sounds like you're missing the piece of metal that holds the board on the back side where the spring is located. The metal piece (similar to the one on the front side, only a bit larger) should be held in place with 2 screws.

To use the enlarger the way it was intended, you must have a switch plugged into the outlet marked 'switch' (it controls the outlet on the motor box), and if you're using a timer, you just leave the switch on all the time. You can bypass this by using an extention cord and plugging the voltage controller directly into a timer that is plugged into a wall outlet, rather than the outlet on the motor box. Make sure to use the timer between the power source and the voltage controller, not between the voltage controller and the lamp.

If it's making an electrical smell just from being plugged in (not using the motor or lamp), I would be very concerned. There might be a short in the up/down switch, or somewhere else in the wiring. I would test the ciruit with an ohm meter and make sure there's no continuity with the up/down switch in the neutral position. With the lamp off, and the motor not turning, there shouldn't be any current flow through the circuit.