Negative carriers for an LPL 4500II enlarger - 3D printed?

[Melvin J Bramley]

I have the opportunity to replace my bi plane inspired Beseler 45MXT with a more space aged LPL 4500II.
Alas the LPL has NO negative carriers but on the plus side has a variable contrast module.
The cost of negative carriers for this enlarger has become prohibitive so I am considering 3D printed carriers.
What considerations should I have with this product as the LPL4500 G has a powerful lamphouse.
Would 3D printed carriers warp?

TB

 

[MattKing]

You might get more of a response if the thread title referenced Carriers for LPL 4x5 enlargers.

 

[MattKing]

It is interesting to me that the prices on KHB's website for LPL 4x5 negative carriers - which fit both LPL and Omega D series enlargers - are quite a bit less than the prices for Beseler carriers.

 

[warden]

Would 3D printed carriers warp?

3D printing/rapid prototyping has come a long way over the past years as far as durability, heat resistance, etc are concerned. If you go that route are you planning to design and print the part yourself with your own printer or have a professional service do it for you? A service will have more options, but at a cost of course.

 

[4season]

I don't recall the carriers getting particularly warm.

BTW, I used one LPL carrier for everything: 4x5 anti-newton glass. I suppose it's a little less convenient than having individual carriers for each format, but it's a lot more universal. I did have other carriers, but liked the freedom of being able to print outside of the image area of the film.

 

[Light Capture]

I don't recall the carriers getting particularly warm.

BTW, I used one LPL carrier for everything: 4x5 anti-newton glass. I suppose it's a little less convenient than having individual carriers for each format, but it's a lot more universal. I did have other carriers, but liked the freedom of being able to print outside of the image area of the film.

+1 on this.

I'm using one glass carrier. It would be worth getting anti-newton glass carrier for largest format and making masks for smaller formats that would go under or above carrier.
If masks go under carrier, it would be easy to center negatives.

 

[albada]

I have the opportunity to replace my bi plane inspired Beseler 45MXT with a more space aged LPL 4500II.
Alas the LPL has NO negative carriers but on the plus side has a variable contrast module.

Another consideration is that the basic tungsten lamphouse on the Beseler 45MXT is easy to convert to LEDs if you're handy with metalwork and electronics.

 

[Melvin J Bramley]

Looking for files to produce a 3D negative carriers for a LPL 4500II.
The ones on line do not have the centring bars .

Failing that ; any affordable neg carriers of 35mm, 6x4.5 and 6x6 would be welcome .

 

[MattKing]

Threads combined and Thread Title changed

 

[Pieter12]

I don't remember who the eBay vendor was, but I bought a 3D printed 6x7 carrier for my Omega D5. Hasn't had much use to date, so I can't say anything about the longevity.

 

[4season]

There's a whole bunch of 4x5 glass carriers on That Auction Site, at prices starting at around $120: Well worth it, I'd say, since it's really the one and only carrier you'd need to buy.

Not an ideal subject for 3D printing, as it's little more than a couple of sheets of aluminum, glass, and a hinge. But you could certainly DIY one in a more conventional manner.

 

[Roger Cole]

I bought a 6x7 for mine from a guy on eBay who 3D prints all kinds of carriers for multiple brands and models of enlargers. Haven't used it yet (new darkroom is still being built and the old one is basically too full of other junk to use now anyway plus - no running water. With a new one complete with running water and proper sink is just around the corner I'm hardly motivated to go back to working with a holding bath) so I can't say how well it works, but he seems to sell a ton of them with good feedback.

 

[Roger Cole]

There's a whole bunch of 4x5 glass carriers on That Auction Site, at prices starting at around $120: Well worth it, I'd say, since it's really the one and only carrier you'd need to buy.

Not an ideal subject for 3D printing, as it's little more than a couple of sheets of aluminum, glass, and a hinge. But you could certainly DIY one in a more conventional manner.

I'm allergic to dust. Glass carriers are a non-starter. Yeah I know, they do hold the negative flatter. But... four more surfaces to try to de-dust? No thanks.

 

[Roger Cole]

I don't remember who the eBay vendor was, but I bought a 3D printed 6x7 carrier for my Omega D5. Hasn't had much use to date, so I can't say anything about the longevity.

Probably the same guy I bought mine from. Easy to find, just go on eBay and search for negative carriers and he tends to come up, or maybe 3D printed carriers. I needed a 6x7 as I got everything else I needed with the enlarger so I was actually searching for a 6x7 carrier for an LPL 4500II and found the guy selling a very wide variety, printed to order.

 

[koraks]

I just printed a 6x6 carrier for my old Durst 138; previously I did a 4x5". It's an experiment; let's see how it goes. The engineering isn't all that complicated. It's just two pieces of material with an aperture in the middle linked together in some way, usually a hinge. There's many ways to skin a cat. I didn't bother looking online for ready-made designs; it's pretty straightforward to CAD something yourself. Autodesk Fusion 360 can be used for free for personal, non-commercial purposes.

 

[choiliefan]

Is the surface finish on the printed ones smooth enough that it won't scratch the negatives?

 

[koraks]

I don't expect many problems in this respect. With good printing quality, a level surface is pretty smooth and devoid of any sharp edges or protrusions.

 

[mgb74]

I wonder if you have to take any special care in storage, such as storing them flat.

 

[Patrick Robert James]

I see single carriers for not a lot of money. If you can afford a box of paper you can afford a negative carrier.

Omega carriers fit too, but you have to deal with the screws that protrude from the cam surfaces. If you want to remove those screws and glue the cams to the carrier they should go right in. You need the rectangular ones, not the larger spring ones.