Turned a broken scanner into a uv light source for cyanotypes or VDB

[heespharm]

so i heard someone did this and i thought it would be better than what i was already doing to process cyanotypes

i took a old broken scanner and gutted it then bought a calsun face tanner off ebay for 60 bucks and gutted it too and put the guts in the scanner... the starters and ballast barely fits also besides screwing in some components and taping up all external holes with elec. tape it was easy... one good thing is that it comes with its own egg timer and uv protective goggles...

after running it for 30 minutes im satisfied there no shorts in the system and no real heat buildup... and found exposure times a little less than 7 minutes... with no evidence of uneven lighting... next step is to tape cloth along the side of the lid to drap over the sides to prevent uv light from escaping through the sides

i think i voided the warranty

enjoy!


IMG_1702 by Heespharm, on Flickr


IMG_1703 by Heespharm, on Flickr


IMG_1704 by Heespharm, on Flickr


IMG_1705 by Heespharm, on Flickr

 

[heespharm]

Untitled by Heespharm, on Flickr
crappy iphone shot of print... lots of noise

 

[samcomet]

Wow! Fabulous thinking!! Congrats to you! sam

 

[kissssss]

This is a good idea, but you can't play with oversize.

 

[heespharm]

This is a good idea, but you can't play with oversize.

sure you can just remove the lid and place it upside down on a rack till the uv rays shine in the area you want