Leica Focomat IIc

[RattyMouse]

Anyone hear of this enlarger--> Leica Focomat IIc?

Good? Bad? OK?

 

[Ron789]

It's not good, bad or OK..... it's superb!! Best enlarger up to 6x9 ever built.

 

[RattyMouse]

Interesting. What would this enlarger be worth today ?

 

[Mick Fagan]

Great enlarger, great price, (when new, it was about the price of a good second hand automobile) and great to work with in a busy darkroom. Limiting factors could be if it has been worked in an industrial environment. That is, worked day and night every day of the week for years, or decades. If that is the case, then there could be a couple of worn items.

The first items that could wear if heavy use has occurred, may be the auto focusing cams. If so, it is not an issue if you focus each and every time you do a print, which I would suspect is what you would do, as I generally did.

The enlarger, as far as I remember, came with a 60mm and a 100mm lens, these lenses are on a lens turret, which makes changing film sizes quick and incredibly easy.

All in all a great enlarger, I had one for about a year in my home darkroom, finally got rid of it to make way for an LPL 4x5 with a colour head. If I could have afforded to keep it, I would have, but as it was restricted to 6x9 as a maximum format and I was needing to enlarge 4x5" format, it went.

Mick.

 

[shoot6x7]

Last I heard about $1,500
To get best value out of it, you need the right lenses to allow the autofocus part to work. The 100mm focotar-2 lens is supposed to be nice, the 60mm not so much. Older versions had Elmar 90mm I believe, not as good as the 100mm.

I passed on one of these feats of engineering instead I went for a Durst M805 with great enlarger lenses.

 

[Ron789]

"To get best value out of it, you need the right lenses to allow the autofocus part to work. The 100mm focotar-2 lens is supposed to be nice, the 60mm not so much. Older versions had Elmar 90mm I believe, not as good as the 100mm."
If clean and undamaged, all the original lenses for the 2c are excellent. Mine has a Focotar 60 (not Focotar-2) and a V-Elmar 100. I recently did some test prints comparing these lenses with a Focotar-2, Companon-s, Rodagon, EL-Nikkor, Computar and a few others. At full opening there are some marginal differences, at F/8, no noticeable difference whatsoever.

 

[RattyMouse]

Would you recommend this enlarger to a total beginner? Someone who has never printed before?

 

[chip j]

It's always great to start w/the best. Then there's no where else to go, no wasted time and money--not to say frustrations, on something lesser. A beginner is supposed to LEARN, isn't he?

 

[Helinophoto]

I got one from a clean-out after a photographer had died a couple of years ago.

To be honest, I was not impressed.

It's, built like a wwII battle tank, as heavy as a car and the auto-focus is "ok" (not really something I need anyway), you set the focus manually and the focus stays when you alter the print-size.
Optics was.....meh, brightness was meh.......also, you cannot make huge enlargements anyway, when it is at it's highest, then that's it.

I had it for a few days, cleaned it up and tried a few prints (since I also got some old-ass Kodak and Agfa paper), the only thing that didn't work properly, was the focus/gear lock wire. It was ruined, but I fixed that by using a completely normal Leica cable-release.

The relatives called me up a few days after I picked it up (I got everything for free and wanted to save it from the garbage, as they threatened to throw everything out if no one wanted the stuff).
Apparently, the widow had been pretty crazy angry about the decision to give that enlarger away (new-price and car was mentioned), so the relatives begged humbly if they could take it back.
I said ok, if I could keep some of the other darkroom-smalls (Kodak yellow/green light, Kodak-beakers, trays, etc).

I find my Durst 670 BW to be a far more user-friendly enlarger; Easy to operate (once the correct condenser and lens-board is inserted), heavy but manageable and I can tilt the head and print on the wall if I need to go huge.....it's not 6*9, but 6*7 is good enough for my application anyway.

Never regretted my decision, I honestly didn't like the Focomat IIc one bit, it had some original optics (cannot remember the name), but it wasn't any sharper or more defined than my lenses for my Durst, so....

Certainly not worth 15 big ones.......get a Kaiser, Durst or some other newer model with good optics and life would most likely be much easier. ^^

Maybe I'm swearing n the church here, but that is my honest opinion

 

[Ron789]

Helinophoto..... the enlarger you got may have had some flaws, like any enlarger that has a decades-long history. You CAN make huge enlargements with the 2c, all you need to do is raise the head manually to the top of the column and then focus manually, or turn the head and use floor projection. Brightness on a 2c with the original lenses should be great for MF and OK for 35mm; if not, something is wrong with the lamp, the condensors or the lenses.
I've been using Durst and Leitz enlargers for years now. Being decades old, every enlarger I purchased needed some Tender Love and Care. Over the past couple of years I've been using Durst M805, Durst Laborator 138s, Leitz Valoy 2, Focomat 1c, Focomat V35, and Focomat 2c. I'm currently selling the Durst M805 and the Leitz Focomat V35. I'll stick to the Focomat 1c, Focomat 2c and Durst Laborator 138s (for large format).
A Leitz Focomat 2c in good condition, with clean, original lenses and well adjusted is a superb enlarger and a joy to use. A good Durst (like the M805 or 138s) is equally good but lacks the autofocus and some of the other extra's the Focomat 2c brings.
If you can buy a Focomat 2c in good condition for a fair price - say 500-800 Euros / Dollars - it's a great deal!

 

[Loren Sattler]

RattyMouse, I answered an ad for a IIC in Toledo in the past few months. I passed on it because it was very heavy. I use a laundry room for darkroom work, so I my enlarger needs to be portable. The IIC is very heavy, perhaps as much as 80 lbs. The unit was in excellent condition with original lenses etc. Price asked was around $1500. It may still be available. Send me a PM if you want me to follow up on it.
I was interested in the IIC for 6 x 6 work. I have a Leitz IC for 35mm which is a dream to use because of the auto focus feature on the Leitz enlargers. I do not believe the brand of the enlarger affects the print quality. It is about convenience and efficiency.

 

[RattyMouse]

Maybe I'm swearing n the church here, but that is my honest opinion

Glad to have all opinions!

 

[Saganich]

Upload pictures. There are a lot of pieces that go missing from these that are very difficult to find. The black versions are less $$ anywhere $600 to $1200 depending on the condition. The Grey versions are the best and in top condition fetch over $2,000. I've seen people selling dysfunctional versions of these for high price because not to many people know what they are supposed to look like. I have a 1C and IIB (older version of the IIC) and work very well.

 

[John Koehrer]

If you're looking and use VC papers, They used a unique filter drawer design. Because there's so much
space in the lamp house it uses a rod that extends out the back. If it's not there, they've become a bit
difficult to find for reasonable money.
I fabricated one myself, just a simple copy; works fine.

 

[chip j]

BTW, it won't do as good a job on 35mm because it has 2 condensers; the 1c has only one.

 

[Ron789]

BTW, it won't do as good a job on 35mm because it has 2 condensers; the 1c has only one.

It actually does excellent for 35mm. Comparing my test prins from a Focomat 1c and a 2c, they are equally good. The 2c actually has a more even light distribution than the 1c, due to the larger condensor.
The only downsides printing 35mm with the 2c:
- inserting the negative is not as simple as in the 1c,
- exposure times tend to be longer (unless you put a very strong lamp in the 2c),
- you cannot choose your lens, only the lenses designed for the 2c will fit (but since those are amongst the best enlaring lenses ever, you won't mind).

 

[chip j]

I LOVE my Fujinon EX, Komuranon S, & Angenieux enlarging lenses, & they'll all fit my 1c.

 

[Trask]

I LOVE my Fujinon EX, Komuranon S, & Angenieux enlarging lenses, & they'll all fit my 1c.

And do you need to adjust for any differences between these lenses and the Leitz lenses, especially concerning the autofocus mechanism? I understand that the autofocus is designed to operate with easels of a specific height (25mm/1 inch?) with Leitz lenses, so perhaps non-Leitz lenses throw off the autofocus system?

 

[Loren Sattler]

The autofocus for the IC can be set up for other lenses and easels. For lenses, I believe you need to adjust the autofocus cam. For a different easel height than the standard Leitz 1 inch, you adjust the enlarger head height on the column and clamp it at an appropriate height. This is a simple adjustment.

 

[chip j]

+1

 

[chip j]

I LOVE my Fujinon EX, Komuranon S, & Angenieux enlarging lenses, & they'll all fit my 1c.

CORRECTION: the Fuji EX will NOT focus on a 1c; Luckily I have a Valoy 2 on which it works fine!

 

[Arklatexian]

Reputedly one of the finest enlargers ever made for small/medium format (up to 6x9 I think).

What sort of shape is it in? I believe Kienzle has parts for the Leitz IIc.

+1

 

[Patrick Robert James]

CORRECTION: the Fuji EX will NOT focus on a 1c; Luckily I have a Valoy 2 on which it works fine!

Yup. I can second this. I've had fits trying to get my 50 EX to work with the Focomat. It must be a different focal length. I can get it focussed at the ends, but it will be out in the middle. Really love that lens too. And I sold my Focotar 2 and Minolta lenses which both worked perfectly. I still have a Neonon which does work, and a Computar that I haven't tried yet.

 

[chip j]

Why on earth did you sell the Focotar 2 ( I have 2 of 'em)?? I have the Neonon also--a spectacular lens--makes the chrome on my classic car shots look heavy & lucious. Also have the Minolta.

 

[Arklatexian]

Upload pictures. There are a lot of pieces that go missing from these that are very difficult to find. The black versions are less $$ anywhere $600 to $1200 depending on the condition. The Grey versions are the best and in top condition fetch over $2,000. I've seen people selling dysfunctional versions of these for high price because not to many people know what they are supposed to look like. I have a 1C and IIB (older version of the IIC) and work very well.

Saganich, are you sure that the "black" version is a Focomat 2c? I have a Focomat 2a (older and with less features) and it is painted "black". What few 2c enlargers I have seen were grey, Possibly some of the earliest 2c Focomats were painted black. I know all of the 2a enlargers were black. (watch someone prove me wrong now)..........Regards!