Russian(?) UPA-510 enlarger lens

[buze]

I picked one of these "suitcase" enlarger, to act as a "stable" and measurable source for my 4x5 contact prints (and with contrast control) and replace the dodgy bulb I was using.

However, the enlarger works great, it has a neg carrier etc so I played a bit at enlarging some 35mm negs, while I usualy just scan my film..

Anyway, the few 8x10 I did with my RC paper looked great and that got me interested in making more "wet prints" !

Anyone know of a good replacement lens for this enlarger ? The only article I found that mention it says it's indeed M39, but with a lens mount that requires "thin" lens base. The lens that comes with the enlarger seems to do the job, but lacks clicks for the aperture ring, and I find that annoying. I also suspect it's not the sharpest glass in the box...

 

[Ole]

A Meopta 50mm Anaret-S might do the trick.

I don't know of any Russian enlarger lenses that might work, the only one I have any experience is the IN-90U 75mm lens. That one's good, by the way!

 

[Jim Jones]

The 50mm f/3.5 i50u lens on my Russian Raduga ul A-5 suitcase enlarger seemed sharp in a quick test. An EL-Nikkor 50mm f/2.8 or f/4 also works, although without the enlarger's autofocus.

 

[srs5694]

If it takes an M39 (39mm thread mount) lens, then anything should work, provided it doesn't have protrusions that would cause problems. The worst-case scenario is that you'd need to dig up some extension tubes to get the lens outside of any tight recesses. Also, Soviet and Russian enlargers and lenses are generally built with bellows that have a movement range closer to the negative than is common in Western enlargers and lenses, which can make focusing difficult when mixing Soviet/Russian and Western enlargers and lenses.

If you're interested in Russian lenses, check (there was a url link here which no longer exists) I'm not the thread-starter, but I did post to it with my experiences. You can get the Industar-96U and Vega-11U lenses described in the thread pretty cheaply on eBay. Right now there are four Vega-11U lenses (including three in the eBay "stores" section) and one Industar-96U. Both types show up with some regularity.

Note that most Industar-96U lenses come with an extension tube, so if you've got a good 50mm lens but can't mount it because of tight clearances or if it doesn't focus properly, you might consider getting the Industar-96U just for the extension tube.

 

[ZorkiKat]

Most Russian enlarger lenses for 24X36mm don't have click stops and stop only to f/11. The only Russian enlarger lens I encountered to have click stops is the Vega 11-U. Its "neck" is fixed.

Russian enlarger lenses tend to have long barrels (or necks) because the helicals (most of their enlargers used tubes rather than bellows) were rather short. This design is a left over of the times when 35mm shooters who developed and enlarged their own pictures were expected to use their camera lenses on their enlargers. One lens, the Industar 96-U-1 has a removable neck.

Other than the lack of click stops, the Russian enlarger lenses are fantastic buys. They're cheap, for about $5.00 or so, you get a four element anastigmat. The basic EL lenses of the West or Japan are just three-element types.

Jay

 

[buze]

Thanks guys; the enlarger I have has the I96 already, but it's not crystal clear, the back group is a bit hazy, there might be separation of the elements there..
Yes it is mounted on a tube, but when I tried to adapt another M39 50 (Jupiter 3) on the tube, I can't seem to be able to focus on the board.
And the lens won't fit in the (small) M39 base mount...

So thanks for the tip on the Vega, I'll try to pick one up; if on top of things it has clicks it's really all I need !

 

[srs5694]

Given what you say, I agree that your I-96U is bad. Mine (I've actually got three; I'd offer to sell you one cheap, but shipping from the US to the UK would likely be ridiculous) produces prints that are quite good, at least up to 8x10 (I may have done an 11x14 or two with it, too). My Vega-11U is a little bit better, and if you want click stops, it's better from that perspective, too. You could also try any old Western or Japanese enlarger lens (a Rodagon, Componon, or Nikon, say). My hunch is that it would work fine when attached to the extension tube you've already got from your I-96U, but I can't guarantee that.

 

[buze]

Thanks I now have a Vega-11U on the way.. I also picked a INDUSTAR-90U 75mm f4 that I will try to adapt to enlarge 6x6s; the ground glass diffuser (?) is large enough, and I'll need to figure out is how to make a neg carrier.

Oh, speaking of neg carrier; the 135 one that comes with the enlarger is a bit "leaky"... When using small apertures I can see (white) light reflecting from the bits of chrome of the neg carrier (and the walls) and reflect back on the base of the enlarger, probably doing a bit of fogging work.. I "cured" it with a piece of black plastic that I install in/around the neg carrier, but I was wondering if I was missing some part.. Or if it is "normal"

Otherwise that small enlarger already gave me quite a few wonderful 8x10s, that was quite unexpected !

 

[ZorkiKat]

The enlarger, being designed for 35mm, may not have a condenser which can evenly illuminate anything larger than 4X4 cm or a focusing helical which can extend far enough to allow a longer 75mm lens to focus for smaller print sizes.

Jay

 

[buze]

yes I realized that the lens focussing tube is indeed 6cm in diameter, it will be useless for 6x6 square (unless I discover a biogon-like very short flange lens).

Oh well, I don't have the room for a MF enlarger, I will survive with 35mm and contact printing 4x5

 

[ZorkiKat]

Oh well, I don't have the room for a MF enlarger, I will survive with 35mm and contact printing 4x5

Some 6x6 enlargers are not much bigger than those made for 35mm. For instance, the Japanese enlargers from the 1960s-70s (branded LPL, Prinz, King, &c) are rather small. The Meopta Opemus (the original version) is really very compact. Of course, the Russian enlarger in the suitcase is indeed tiny compared to other 35mm-only enlargers.