Salthill Print dryer instruction manual

[msage]

I recently acquired a Salthill Print dryer with no instruction manual. Anyone know were I may get a copy? Thanks.

 

[drewallen]

Did you ever have any luck tracking down a manual for yours? I scored a used 16x20 Salthill print dryer from B&H about three years ago. No manual, but a little experimentation and I seemed to find a routine that worked for me and gave me curl-free FB prints. But I still wouldn't mind getting my hands on a manual.

 

[Ronald Moravec]

One of my lust items. I simply thought it was the Cadillac when they were new, but I had a new family and no extra $800 for a print dryer. A friend found me a Burke & James for $15 at a garage sale and it works the same, but with only 10% of the elegance.

Wash prints well so as not to contaminate the blotters.

Squeegee them off on a bath towel

Place them in the sandwich, corrigated board, blotter, print, blotter, corrigated board, blotter, print, blotter, board. Turn on fan.

I find heat to dry faster , but getting less flatness. No heat, slow fan gives best results, but takes the longest. The prints will dry with no wavy edges and perhaps a slight curl emulsion to inside. Flatten any way you want like a book weight or dry mount cooling weight. With no wavy edges to deal with, it is a simple process.

At one point they sold replacement blotter stacks only to warrantee registered owners. Interesting.

Only these blotter stack dryers give flat prints except for the 3 foot diameter drum ones which I have not seen since college, 1960.

I tried everything else. You have the Rolls Royce of dryers, so use and enjoy.

I am a willing customer if you want to sell.

 

[DAP]

I have a salthill dryer and a very old Midg-o dryer...both share the same concept (sorry I don't have the official Salthill instructions - I bought it second hand). Ronald's method of use is pretty much the same as mine. The only difference being that I have loose blotter paper that I run the prints through after I squeegee them off (on glass) and before I place them in the dryers blotter stack (squeegee --> Blot prints w/ loose paper --> place in dryer). I usually don't use the heat setting unless I am in a hurry. A bit of trial and error is needed to find a routine that works for you.

As nice as the Salthill is(they definately look expensive) I kind of prefer the more basic no frills design of the Midg-o (no timer, no fancy hinged cover, no foam sheets between blotter sandwiches, etc.). The midg-o is a dirt simple design (that seems like it would be very easy to replicate) that works just as well as the Salthill.

I often wonder why these blotter dryers were so unpopular compared to the heated flipper types and the rotary units for amateur use (where time is usually not a constraint).

 

[msage]

Thanks Ron
That makes sense. Where can I get new corrigated board and blotter? The ones I have are different then blotter sheets I have seen in the past.
Michael

One of my lust items. I simply thought it was the Cadillac when they were new, but I had a new family and no extra $800 for a print dryer. A friend found me a Burke & James for $15 at a garage sale and it works the same, but with only 10% of the elegance.

Wash prints well so as not to contaminate the blotters.

Squeegee them off on a bath towel

Place them in the sandwich, corrigated board, blotter, print, blotter, corrigated board, blotter, print, blotter, board. Turn on fan.

I find heat to dry faster , but getting less flatness. No heat, slow fan gives best results, but takes the longest. The prints will dry with no wavy edges and perhaps a slight curl emulsion to inside. Flatten any way you want like a book weight or dry mount cooling weight. With no wavy edges to deal with, it is a simple process.

At one point they sold replacement blotter stacks only to warrantee registered owners. Interesting.

Only these blotter stack dryers give flat prints except for the 3 foot diameter drum ones which I have not seen since college, 1960.

I tried everything else. You have the Rolls Royce of dryers, so use and enjoy.

I am a willing customer if you want to sell.

 

[drewallen]

Ronald: it is indeed a Cadillac model--er, maybe a Volvo. I don't find it all that frilly. It does a deceptively simple task very effectively, and the build quality is top-notch. Between it, my Versalab washer and Nova slot processor, I can comfortably process 16x20 FB prints in my 8' square darkroom.

You are correct that using heat, even on the drier's "lo" setting induces a slight emulsion-side curl. I, too, find it best to let it go slow with just the fan. (And keep the darkroom fan running, too, to help move the moisture out of the room.)

And of course, each print gets the squeegee treatment before going in the stack.

Michael: as for getting replacement blotter material and cardboard, there are some discussions on page 2 of the Darkroom Equipment/Salthill thread.
(In particular, note the posts from dancqu, who built a homemade version and sourced some similar materials.)

My curiousity is now turning toward the 1/8" yellow (non-rigid) foam sheets that are used in the Salthill model, as mine are just starting to show signs of deterioration. Foam rubber? Polyurethane? Something else?

 

[Reinhold]

A few years ago I cloned the Salthill dryer:

http://www.classicbwphoto.com/classicBWphoto/Print_Drier.html

It works just like the brand-named product...

We also discussed this a couple of years ago at:

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

Reinhold

 

[msage]

I checked the thread you referenced, the only size they had was 12x18, a little too small. The blotter sheets link was good and I will order some. Thanks for the input, please post any info anyone finds.

Ronald: it is indeed a Cadillac model--er, maybe a Volvo. I don't find it all that frilly. It does a deceptively simple task very effectively, and the build quality is top-notch. Between it, my Versalab washer and Nova slot processor, I can comfortably process 16x20 FB prints in my 8' square darkroom.

You are correct that using heat, even on the drier's "lo" setting induces a slight emulsion-side curl. I, too, find it best to let it go slow with just the fan. (And keep the darkroom fan running, too, to help move the moisture out of the room.)

And of course, each print gets the squeegee treatment before going in the stack.

Michael: as for getting replacement blotter material and cardboard, there are some discussions on page 2 of the Darkroom Equipment/Salthill thread.
(In particular, note the posts from dancqu, who built a homemade version and sourced some similar materials.)

My curiousity is now turning toward the 1/8" yellow (non-rigid) foam sheets that are used in the Salthill model, as mine are just starting to show signs of deterioration. Foam rubber? Polyurethane? Something else?