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suburban grafic · Joined: 01 Feb 2004 Posts: 19 Location: Arizona

Does anybody know of a source for either original or reproduction carriers? I'm really too old to believe in Santa Claus, but it never hurts to ask!

Have any of you ever made one out of ABS plastic?

Thanks!

Graflite · Joined: 08 Nov 2001 Posts: 103 Location: Southeast US

Other than e-*** and the occasional camera show in my area I have not had much luck in locating any extra carriers for the Graflarger.

I have a 4 X 5 inch carrier that came with my Graflarger and I had thought of making my own carrier for perhaps 2 1/4 X 2 3/4 (6 X 7 cm) for the occasional exposure on 70mm film.

I looked at aluminum sheets, but decided it was too much trouble, and then decided to make a 6 X 7 cm carrier for the Graflarger from standard black mats used for mounting prints and also for making frame mats.

However, as with other projects, I have yet to get around to doing this, but will sooner or later, but this might give you some ideas.

graflite

Nick · Joined: 16 Oct 2002 Posts: 494

I made a holder for one of my enlargers out of black matt board. I won't say it's a thing of beauty. Nor is it perfect but it works.

suburban grafic · Joined: 01 Feb 2004 Posts: 19 Location: Arizona

Thanks for your comments, I will probably first go the route of the mat board. Later, I could make something more durable of aluminum. I'm pretty good with a hacksaw and a file.

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Nick · Joined: 16 Oct 2002 Posts: 494

I'm wondering if anybody every made one out of two sheets of glass? Then at most you'd need say two pieces of light proof paper for masking smaller formats. I know the glass might will cause dust problems etc but it would seem a cheap and easy way to get a glass carrier.

RichS · Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2004 6:54 am Post subject:

t.r.sanford · Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2004 12:13 pm Post subject:

You also might consider thin model-makers' plywood. You can get birch plywood in 6x12-in. sheets, in thicknesses from 1/16 to 1/4 in., from Micro-Mark; the 1/16 or 3/32-in. gauges might work for a glassless negative carrier (a bit easier than aluminum to work with hand tools, and less noisy too). This plywood also is an appealing material for flat lensboards of the kind used by "Graphic View" and pre-"Pacemaker" press cameras. Micro-Mark has a very interesting catalog, and is online at http://www.micromark.com.

Nick · Joined: 16 Oct 2002 Posts: 494

I don't know about the Graflarger but was thinking more general. Somebody sells the special glass for negative carriers it would seem simple enough to just get a sheet cut to the right size. Normal glass carriers are expensive but don't seem special in any way.

t.r.sanford · Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2004 3:30 pm Post subject:

If possible, you ought to look for "anti-Newton's Rings" glass. I think Stephen Shuart stocks it, but the server-god won't let me onto his website this morning.

I have an old Federal 2-1/4x3-1/4 enlarger with glass carrier, and I've used 3-1/4x4-in. lantern slide cover glasses to fabricate negative carriers for odd-size negatives for enlargement with a Testrite 4x5 enlarger. In both cases, under some conditions of heat and humidity that I never quite figured out, Newton's rings become a real annoyance.

Some relief can be had by making a disposition that prevents the negative from being tightly pressed between the two sheets. A black paper mask defining the actual printed area of the negative, and another made of thicker paper cut out to center the negative, both held in place with black electrical tape, may do the trick.

Nick · Joined: 16 Oct 2002 Posts: 494

It would seem to be a relatively simple setup and it would provide the benefits of one large holder for all the smaller sized negatives.

David A. Goldfarb · Joined: 03 Sep 2004 Posts: 142 Location: New York City

Another alternative would be to buy used Omega D carriers and cut them down to fit the Graflarger. The type you would want are the simple ones that are just two rectangular aluminum sheets that bulge out at the top and the bottom edges. They have registration pins for the film, and they are pretty cheap on the used market. If you get the kind with the registration frame on the bottom, you can just remove the frame for the Graflarger.

disemjg · Joined: 10 Jan 2002 Posts: 474 Location: Washington, DC

I make sub-carriers for smaller negatives out of heavy paper stock, like 3X5 cards. Cut them to fit in your 4X5 carrier, cut the required smaller opening, and paste in a couple of strips of the paper stock to form a ledge for the negative to butt against. These are pretty easy to make as all you need is a hobby knife and some glue.