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  #1  
Old 21st December 2016, 01:36 PM
Garry Garry is offline
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Default Enlarger Test Help PLEASE!

My Durst M605 arrived today. Unfortunately the packaging was extremely damaged. I took lots of photos, and I contacted the seller before even opening it. On opening I have found some damage to some of the components. The main one that I can see is the toothed riser rail used to raise the head. It has some teeth missing. There is some damage to one of the knurled knobs too. None of this overly concerns me, and reckon I could repair most of that myself. But, I want to carry out some kind of test to see if it is working.

Can anyone suggest any test I can carry out to see that the basic operation is okay? I haven't built my darkroom yet, so can't actually develop an image, but want to see if it is operational. Thanks in advance for any help,

Garry
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  #2  
Old 21st December 2016, 01:52 PM
John King John King is online now
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Default Damaged equipment

My first reaction is why did this happen and have you approached the seller and told him that it arrived in a damaged condition?

Are there any of the broken bits (Teeth of the column or anything else) in the packaging? If not then it may have been damaged BEFORE it was sent out. Either way then you should try to claim for the damage which will have to be done by the owner or from the courier.

My advice would be, don't meddle with anything until you here from the seller and the courier.
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  #3  
Old 21st December 2016, 02:14 PM
Garry Garry is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by John King View Post
My first reaction is why did this happen and have you approached the seller and told him that it arrived in a damaged condition?

Are there any of the broken bits (Teeth of the column or anything else) in the packaging? If not then it may have been damaged BEFORE it was sent out. Either way then you should try to claim for the damage which will have to be done by the owner or from the courier.

My advice would be, don't meddle with anything until you here from the seller and the courier.
I have contacted him, yes. I took photos as I was unpacking also, and there were a couple of damaged teeth in the packaging. I know what you are saying, and I will be seeking compensation of some kind. There is some damage to the riser which I think was there before the sale. I am going to contact the seller again, with photos of the packaging, and what I found when opening, to see what he comes back with.

Thanks,

Garry
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  #4  
Old 21st December 2016, 02:24 PM
Mike O'Pray Mike O'Pray is offline
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Sorry to hear about this Garry. If the bits of teeth are in the packaging then it does sound as if it might have been broken in transit but all I can say is that if this is the case then the packaging must have been very flimsy or its handling was truly atrocious.

I have a 605 myself and it looks to me as if would take a lot to break teeth.

It is easy for me as a bystander to say this but unless the damage to the teeth can be fully and easily repaired at no cost to you plus the other damage you speak of I'll be inclined to try and get my money back and write it off to experience.

Mike
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  #5  
Old 21st December 2016, 02:26 PM
Alan Clark Alan Clark is offline
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Garry, It is important when using any enlarger that the negative-in the carrier- is parallel to the lens plane , when viewed both from the front and the side. If it isn't you won't get corner-to-corner sharpness. An easy way to test for this is to take a negative with no value, or even a clear strip of film if you have one, and scratch a cross near each corner with a needle. Then put it in the carrier, raise the column, and in a darkened room switch the enlarger on and focus it. All four x marks should be sharp. If they are not, it's not the end of the world! I am not familiar with your enlarger but I bet it has some means of grub screw adjustment to allow you to alter the angle , probably of the lens frame, to correct mis-alignments.
If the enlarger has been damaged in transit and you can't get all corners of the negative sharp, then the enlarger won't be much use.

Hope this helps.

Alan
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  #6  
Old 21st December 2016, 02:33 PM
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GoodOldNorm GoodOldNorm is offline
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http://lnx.phototeka.it/documenti/DURST_M601.pdf
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"Tea is surely the king of all drinks. It helps against the cold, it helps against the heat,against discomfort and sickness, against weariness and weakness". Heinrich Harrer.
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  #7  
Old 21st December 2016, 02:36 PM
John King John King is online now
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Default Damaged enlarger

I hope you do get your money back. The spares situation for your enlager may very well be nil so it will be a write off. Especially the riser gear teeth.

If you have to look elsewhere for an enlarger, you could do a lot worse than contacting a company called 2nd Hand Darkroom who are based in I think Oxfordshire they always have a good stock of used enlargers (more than are shown on the website). They are NOT over priced!

I have bought quite a bit of darkroom kit from them in the past and they are very good. If they send items out they are always meticulously and securely packed. Ask to speak to Simon, the owner.

Good luck
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Old 21st December 2016, 02:48 PM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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Sorry to hear about this Garry, I would carefully go over the enlarger and take photos of any damage, and record any broken parts in the packing, which must have been pretty poor, There could be a case for some payment from the carrier, also, if any damage looks like it was there for a while then I would say that the seller shoiuld take it back with a refund, Personally, I prefer to buy from a reputable dealer, such as Second hand darkroom supplies, some of his enlargers are very reasonable, especialy the Meoptas, which I can say from personal experiance, ( I have used one for at least the last 15 years without problems), Good luck in getting this matter resolved, As far as testing, checking the corners with a scratched negative is very good advice
Richard
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  #9  
Old 21st December 2016, 03:02 PM
big paul big paul is offline
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what would be a good idea is to ask here if anybody has enlargers for sale in the area where you live ,you never know there may be a FADU member just down the road from you who has a spare one for sale ,as they say, it cost nowt to ask..
hope it all turns out ok for you


www.essexcockney.com
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  #10  
Old 21st December 2016, 03:05 PM
Garry Garry is offline
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20-20 hindsight is a wonderful thing!

I've contacted the seller again, and I await to see what he suggests.
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