Leitz V35 Focomat light path off center?

slothroprock said:

Thanks ic-racer. Have you aligned a V35 before? It doesn't seem like they were designed to be adjusted by users.

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I just have the manual, not the enlarger. You might have to look closely for things that may have bent during storage or transport. For example focus rails can become twisted or loose. Look for tiny missing screws on the negative carriers or loose screws on the focus mechanism, etc. What you show will probably affect your printing if you use the whole frame.

These centering details are important for enlargers of all sizes. These issues need to be addressed even with an 8x10 enlarger to print 8x10 negatives full or near full frame. For example the whole stage that supports the negative holder on the L1840 is adjustable to about 2cm in all 4 directions to center the negative on the 10" mixing box; there is almost no room for error.

Not many people mention their centering procedure, so I'll speak first. All of my enlargers have the ability to move the negative around on the optical axis, either by a moving stage (as above) or by using a glass carrier and mask.
(I already have centered the lens on the mixing box as outlined above). To setup for a full-frame print, I project the image of the mixing box onto the enlarging easel. I center the easel on the mixing box image. Then I put the negative in and I move the negative around to fit in the bounds of the easel. I don't move the easel around after it is centered.

Of course if one is printing a 35mm negative on a medium format (or larger) enlarger with an 80mm lens, none of the above matters. But only Bob C can print his 8x10 negatives on 11x14 enlargers with a 450mm lens.

There's virtually little to no play in the neg carrier as it has rails that keep it centred. The lens helicoid is likewise tight with no lateral adjustment afaics.

I'd suggest removing the mixing chamber and taking a look down the light path to see how it looks down there.

If you were to draw a line from the centre of the lens straight down, where does it end on the baseboard ?

I have a V35, and I checked it last night to see if the projected image is centred. On mine, it is. Did you assemble the enlarger from the box? If not, I would check through the assembly procedure in the manual to make sure it has been done properly. I agree that there is no obvious adjustment available for alignment. I also agree that there is little scope for play in the negative stage or holder. The lamp points horizontally, so I can't see it being the problem. The mixing box is easy to locate so shouldn't cause a problem. The masking blades are prone to breaking. One of mine has stopped moving, but is not in the light path. You should check that the blades are fully retracting, and not stopping whilst still in the light path. A possible cause could be the column tilting slightly to one side. You could possibly check that with a plumb line.
I hope you get it fixed. It's a great enlarger. I've used mine non-stop since I got it in 2010.
Alex.

Thanks for all the input everyone. I've pretty much done all of the troubleshooting I can do, so at this point I waiting on word from the shop manager at Leica USA. Hopefully it's a relatively simple adjustment, as everything else with the enlarger seems perfect.

No word from Leica yet, but I just received some good news from Claudio Bonavolta at Dead Link Removed. It appears as though my enlarger is functioning properly, as the projected light from his V35 aligns with the edges of its baseboard in the same manner.

Well, Leica just responded to my inquiry, and it appears as though everything I'm seeing is totally normal. Thanks for all of your input everyone!