It is my imagination that people want enlargers now?

I picked up a Beseler 45M on Craigslist locally a few weeks ago. I needed a 4x5 enlarger, and this was the first I'd seen come up for sale at a reasonable price. I ended getting two lenses(50mm Schneider and 135mm no-name) on board, 4x5, 6x6, and 35mm carriers, two Gralab timers(one the nice digital ones that I like, the other the great old traditional analog ones that have been darkroom fixtures for 50 years), plus a bunch of trays and other odds and ends like some small safelights. The total was $220 delivered to my front door. I could have saved $20 by going and picking it up, but was a bit anxious about whether or not it would fit in my car.

That brings me up to 3 enlargers in my tiny spare bathroom that serves as a darkroom, and I'm frankly out of space. Even though I CAN do 35mm on the 45M, my Focomat V35 is staying as a dedicated 35mm enlarger. It's by far and away the nicest enlarger I've ever used, and I happened to get a really good deal on it at a local shop-the store owner had bought it that day, and the manager was upset with him because it was taking up too much space. I ended up walking out with it(no Focotar, but a 50mm El-Nikkor that's tracks close enough for 8x10 and 11x14 that I can get it into range with fine focus) along with a nice easel and a Gralab digital for I think $175. I keep watching for a 40mm Focotar, but they bring more than I paid for the enlarger

That leaves me with a Beseler 23C, which honestly will be redundant as long as I can find 645 and 6x7 carriers for the 45M(I haven't even looked on Ebay, but I'm sure I can find one). I'm thinking that it will likely go on Craigslist once I take care of that. It will likely go in package with all the carriers I've accumulated and perhaps a lens, and I'll be happy to get the $150 back that I paid for it a few years ago. It's a great enlarger-I just need the space!

The GOOD enlargers are going up in price generally, especially in the form that people want, like anything with a multicontrast head. Run of the mill enlargers are stagnant because no one wants them.

I think that is the general trend with photography these days. The good stuff is going up because people want the best, and the run of the mill stuff is toast.

About 8 or so years ago I bought a Saunders/LPL 4550 XL off of Craig's List for $200. It had been on CL for over a month before I decided it was worth the two hour drive to go get it. The person I bought it from said I was the only one to contact her. Unreal. I got way more than the enlarger too and sold most of the other stuff. These days I doubt it would last more than a few days.

The sad thing i've seen over the years, and I'm sure most of us have seen it, is the disposal of great darkroom gear. I remember a DeVere on Craig's List that probably ended up being junked. I'd imagine that there are more good enlargers in landfills than there are good enlargers in use. Sad.

The difficulty in shipping, combined with the range of questionable quality/condition, makes judging the market on something like an Enlarger a bit weird.

The fact that you can find local postings for high value isn't always a good sign that stuff is selling at that price. I can list packs of chewing gum for $1000 after all.

Even if some do sell at that price, that isn't a good sign that those aren't weird outliers - Especially if lower priced units that do come up get snatched up quickly. This can lead to an apparent market that looks high valued than is really fair to suggest it is, because the overall market value gets clouded out by the convenience factor market value. Ie, those who decide they need it, and need it now might represent a small fraction of the overall market, but impact the perception of it far more than they really deserve to.

The family business of a former classmate uses this idea to their advantage for some classic car parts - They do everything they can to be sure they buy any of the larger, harder to ship, parts of some classic cars that come up on the market in their region, stash most of them in the back of a warehouse, and slowly sell a handful at inflated prices. They even manage to reinforce 'brand loyalty' to their shop by being renowned for ability to find these 'rare' parts in a day or two "even if they're not in stock"...
They apparently make a good business out of slowly selling parts from a handful of cars to gearheads in their early 20s, buying the cars back when said gearhead has their first kid and needs to buy a minivan, and then parting it out piece by piece back to the next gearhead in line.

I have 6 of them all 4 x5 and nobody is offering me anything, I am going to give two of them to The Halide Project.

I look at Craigslist Every Week.
I am 50 miles from San Francisco and 50 Miles from Sacramento.
I see the same enlargers, regardless of price, sit on The List for months on end.

Bob, I would be very surprised if nobody in GTA wants a 4x5 enlarger. Have you tried putting them on Kijiji?

I got super lucky a few years ago and scored a Beseler 45MX here in Calgary, along with paper, trays, tongs, timer, condenser and minolta 45a heads along with other goodies. Felt like I had absolutely robbed the guy. 20 years ago such a kit would have gone for thousands of dollars. Such setups seem to be in demand, but only for low prices. This is one of the main attractions of film photography: That you can shoot, develop and print for less than $1000.

CMoore said:

I look at Craigslist Every Week.
I am 50 miles from San Francisco and 50 Miles from Sacramento.
I see the same enlargers, regardless of price, sit on The List for months on end.

Click to expand...

That nay be partly because the people selling then don't respond to inquiries . I don't really need another enlarger but something interesting to me was/is on the SF Bay area Craigslist. I inquired and never heard back, yet I see the ad being repeatedly renewed. People are strange .

My Omega D6 with a slew of lenses, carriers accessories and a Multigrade 400 light source came from Craigslist a few years ago.
I paid a decent price for it, but I think it would sell for more now to the right buyer.

Burlington Camera.
Their basement is full of enlargers. They sit where for years. Nobody is buying them.

My first enlarger cost me $40 and came with an entire darkroom setup including paper and chemicals. That's the last time I paid anything for an enlarger, now they find their way to me as people want to get rid of them and know I'm still using the equipment.

I'd say that younger people that are more serious about analog are driving a bit of demand, but this will vary depending on your location. I have a 35mm/6x6 enlarger and a 4x5 enlarger, both are omega. I'm actually in the market and actively searching for an 8x10 enlarger for my lab. I'm totally willing to pay for packing it up and shipping, however, very people people selling enlargers are willing to ship the things. The 35mm/120 stuff, sure, but 4x5 and larger, not so much. The 4x5 I bought was advertised as a complete enlarger (including lens) and they were willing to ship, so I bought it. It showed up minus the lens and minus the post. After much back and forth with the seller, I never got the post or lens and ended up just sourcing those separately. I have a feeling that I'll be sourcing all the 8x10 parts separately as well simply because they're big enough nobody wants to pack them up and ship them. I'm willing to make a road trip to get one as long as I can do it over a weekend or something.

CMoore said:

I look at Craigslist Every Week.
I am 50 miles from San Francisco and 50 Miles from Sacramento.
I see the same enlargers, regardless of price, sit on The List for months on end.

Click to expand...

It sounds like we live in the same area... PM me if you want or need access to a dark room. I can make mine available. It's in Petaluma next to Friedmans.

I have a Beseler 45M with a bunch of neg carriers, lens boards, a custom magnetic baseboard, condenser, 45S head and cold light head I need to sell. Maybe it is finally time to list it.

I'm in the market for a decent 4x5 enlarger.
I just purchased an Intrepid 4x5 and a Schneider-Kreuznach 180mm lens.

So if anyone is selling, I'm looking.

Ko.Fe. said:

Burlington Camera.
Their basement is full of enlargers. They sit where for years. Nobody is buying them.

Click to expand...

Did you let them know they are down there? Nothing on the website about it.

ic-racer said:

Did you let them know they are down there? Nothing on the website about it.
View attachment 219728

Click to expand...

It is traditional, family and close by people run shop for many decades. They are not posting their listings on the net.
You need to come in person to see what is available.