• Welcome to Photrio!
    Registration is fast and free. Join today to unlock search, see fewer ads, and access all forum features.
    Click here to sign up

I stumbled into my first home darkroom

TSSPro

Member
Allowing Ads
Joined
Feb 15, 2010
Messages
376
Location
Colorado
Format
Multi Format
I had a great day the other day when a customer at work offered up an entire home dark room that had fallen into disuse over the last 40 years. I was really amazed at this offer. I gave him my card and I was more than a little surprised when I got a voice mail from him 2 days later. He explained in the voicemail that I could come by or he would even drop it by my work. Wow, I thought. I couldn't believe someone would give away an entire darkroom. All told I became the owner of a mint condition omega enlarger, several lenses, timers, tanks, trays, reels, lights,and loads of other goodies.

Later I thought that under the circumstances, it is not unreasonable to want to offload a lot of equipment and free up garage space I haven't seen in 40+ years.

Has anyone heard of this happening? An entire darkroom or other large items being given away?
 

I tried to give mine aay but nobody was interested; so, digital it is;time to move over to the other side.
 
I've had it happen. Two years ago I was offered a darkroom that would have ended up in the garbage if I didn't take it. With the exception of a few items it all went to the local college photo program.
 
I keep an eye on Craigslist. For every three crackheads that think their rusted, old Beseler 23C is still worth $500, there's one person who's sick of looking at it and will take little to nothing for it. I keep what I want and then toss or sell the rest.

One recent score was a Beseler 45VXL with some misc gear and a clean 135mm Nikkor. I gave her $100, which was probably overpaying considering that no one else would have bought it, but it was clean and fit into my master darkroom plan.
 
I've had several offered that way over the past few years and have been able to redirect them to others who were interested.
 

same story, renter a car and drove from New York City to up state New York for 60 miles and paid $100 for Beseler 67, trays, 8x10 easel, ilford paper. that happened in 2012
Silly me, I see now and then on craigslist people offering their enlargers for free you just go and pick it up
I also got lots of paper for free.
 
people

People with our....affliction...want their loved ones to have a good home long after we can no longer care for them. Other folks realize nobody wants the darn stuff except the occasional looney and it is too tiring to wait for one of them to drop out of the sky....
 
Now all you need is a really dark room to put all your booty in. This is where the adventure begins!
 
Most of my darkroom was a gift. Beseler MX45, 50mm Nikkon lens, timer, thermometer, plastic reels & tank, and safelight. I purchased a paper safe, trays, tongs another lens and a couple proper lensboards.
 
It happened to me. A guy gave me enough equipment to completely fill my Honda CRV so that I had to move the drivers seat all the way forward and drive from Chicago to Denver with the steering wheel in my belly. Really top quality stuff, too.

I've been on the other side, too. When we last moved, I gave away my beloved 1977 KZ650 that hadn't been on the road in 20 years.
 
I must be living in the wrong state.


Principal Unix System Engineer, Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems(retired)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register