im excited tomorrow i pick up

cyberspider said:

i think i may have to look for a better enlarger this one seems more like a toy kinda one its very plasticy

Click to expand...

Maybe it is a kids starter enlarger. I have kids this age, but already have an enlarger for them.

hmm its the same model so i have a kids toy great so i see i need to keep looking

hey would you be willing to scan that Manuel for me i dont have one thank you

You can probably sand off most of the rust on thr easel, but the, you'll have to repaint it in that same yellowish color. There are also some good deals on "the bay" for them. The Durst is a prety darn good unit, specialy for free. What lens (if any) came with it? Free is always good!

isco-gottingen 1:5.6/50

is what it says its plastic and fixed i cant take it out
on the top there is 3 flat lenses that sit under the bulb

So what if its an entry level enlarger, for what you paid for it, its a good starting point. A little clean-up and start printing. We all started somewhere, my first enlarger was a 1940's era diffusion machine that I had to make a negative carrier for. Use it, and keep an eye out for a more versatile machine.

oh i plan to use it out of interest what paper do i need to print photos
thanks

If you have or plan to buy variable contrast filters, then get some resin coated variable contrast paper. The alternative is graded paper, and you will have to buy two or three different grades to start, also rc based. Get an inexpensive paper to start, as you will go through lots of it while learning.Personally, I wouldnt print over 8x10, and cut it to different sizes as needed. Get some Dektol, or whatever brand of paper developer is cheap and handy, use the same stop and fix that you have for film, just segregate the stuff used for film from paper. As you become more proficient, you can start to experiment with different papers and films. In the meanwhile, stick with one film and one paper and learn them well. Keep an eye out for deals on photo paper in the classifieds, as well as more gear for the DR.

Obviously, I did not tell you a specific brand of paper, there are lots of different ones available. Just buy as cheap as you can for now, you will know when you are ready to make the jump to expensive "art" papers. besides, there are plenty of folks here that will give their opinion of which brands you will want(because its theirs).

Cheers

That picture of the enlarger manual is from a fleabay acution.
I'd certainly try to use it. I'm a little stumped on the negative carrier issue. With the thousands of enlarger users on APUG, I'm sure we can get figure out how you can make prints with it without the manual.

I'd tried to find some pictures of the J35 online to see how the carrier fits into the head, but no luck.

I did find this advertisement for the J35 from 1969:
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...&ved=0CBwQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=durst j35&f=true

I also think you should use this enlarger at least to learn the basics. For now I'd even clip a single negative frame so you can at least try out the enlarger. The issue about how to fit a 35mm strip into the carrier may need more photos showing how the carrier fits into the head before it can be solved.

here are some more shots got the neg thing round the right way now
only prob is in the photo i posted on the right you see that peace of black square card with a hole

well it fell out from somewhere no idea where though