what to look for when buying used enlarger?

[goforbokeh]

thank you spyder2000 for the information.

this weekend i'll start dusting the D2 off and give it as thorough cleaning as i think i can do. it's my first enlarger so i'll be extra careful.

you are right, there is a lensboard and what appears to be a retaining washer with threads that was just loose. to get to it, i had to loosen the two silver thumb screws in the photo and then rotated the plate around until it dropped into my hand.

it looks like a circle but with two opposite sides slightly flat.

so this must be the standard flat lensboard for the omega d2.

thanks again

 

[goforbokeh]

Thank you for the link to Classic-Enlargers.com

The owner of that site is extremely knowledgable and so helpful.

Thanks!

I have a D2 and love it. $60 is a good price for one. check the bellows. The older ones can kinda crumble and develop pinholes. Tiny tiny ones wont really do any harm, but something to look for. If you can, bring a small flashlight with you and shine it thru from the inside and look for holes. THough you can get replacement ones if need be.
HEre is a cool OMega enlarger site with a forum as well. THe owner of the site is very knowledgable and sells replacement parts as well as whole enlargers.

http://www.classic-enlargers.com/

 

[venchka]

$60 for an enlarger that isn't ready to print (lens, negative carrier, etc.) is too much to pay. By rounding up two free darkrooms, I was able to put together everything I needed to print 35mm, 6x6 & 4x5. The only thing I need to buy is a 6x7 neg. carrier and lens for 6x7. All of the little bits will eat up a big chunk of change if you have to buy them.

Keep looking. Free, complete darkrooms are out there. I ended up with several good lenses, negative carriers, film tanks & reels, lots of trays, timers, Beseler print tanks & roller base, safelights, print dryer, grain focuser, etc., etc. Even a free enlarger is no bargain if you have to buy all of the accesories. On the other hand, a free Omega D5-XL Super Chromega enlarger was a real bargain for me.

 

[BigSteveG]

Look for something that is complete. Trting to cobble one together with parts from different vendors can be frustrating. Look for a Durst. They're the next best thing to Leitz enlargers. But they are available in Large Format sizes.