BESELER and Vivitar enlargers and a box of accessories

Hi Everyone,

 

As I mentioned in my 1st post I occasionally come across discarded photo equipment.Would like to learn more about it and in the process find people who might be interested in any of it. Would like to earn a few bucks in the process if possible, but just keeping stuff away from the landfill and giving it a second life makes me happy too.

 

So... The other day I picked up two photo enlargers and a box of accessories. I am trying to learn more about all these pieces. In particular, which of the accessories go with which enlarger and what are the "orphaned" ones used for.

 

1. BESELER 23C Series II Universal Colorhead Darkroom Enlarger

2. Vivitar Enlarger E32

 

Both appear to be functional, or at least, don't have any obvious signs of damage.

 

Photos are posted here. Can post more photos if needed. Also, I will try answering any questions to the best of my ability.

 

Thank you!

Looks like you have pretty much an entire darkroom there. The 23CII is a very good enlarger and covers up to 2 1/4 x 2 1/4. It looks like an earlier one; later ones are black and eventually they redesigned the bulb holder (taller) to reduce hot spots. The 75 mm lens is suited to medium format. You'd want a 50 mm for 35mm film. They call it a color enlarger because it accepts filters, but it's not a color head. Really only useful for black and white. Hopefully you can find somebody that wants it, and the rest. The problem is, IMO, all the enlargers the world will ever need are already out there. It's nearly impossible to sell them. I have a 23CII out in the garage I'd happily give to anybody that actually wanted to use it, as opposed to flipping it. I gave away a motorized Bessler 4x5 enlarger some years ago. Maybe you can find school photo club or community darkroom, but even those are scarce these days.

Looks like you have pretty much an entire darkroom there. The 23CII is a very good enlarger and covers up to 2 1/4 x 2 1/4. It looks like an earlier one; later ones are black and eventually they redesigned the bulb holder (taller) to reduce hot spots. The 75 mm lens is suited to medium format. You'd want a 50 mm for 35mm film. They call it a color enlarger because it accepts filters, but it's not a color head. Really only useful for black and white. Hopefully you can find somebody that wants it, and the rest. The problem is, IMO, all the enlargers the world will ever need are already out there. It's nearly impossible to sell them. I have a 23CII out in the garage I'd happily give to anybody that actually wanted to use it, as opposed to flipping it. I gave away a motorized Bessler 4x5 enlarger some years ago. Maybe you can find school photo club or community darkroom, but even those are scarce these days.

 

Thanks Conrad. So I am wondering if I will be easier to find people who would want some of the parts/accessories rather than the enlargers themselves. Do you see any of those that might be more valuable? I saw similar development tanks being sold on eBay but I suspect that those might be odd one-offs rather than a trend.

You are probably going to get best results posting the enlargers (with accessories) for local pickup - packing & shipping problematic and expensive. Parting things out might work, but could be a PITA.

The Kodak Daylight Developing tank, bulk film loader, similar small things might be posted "Best offer" plus actual shipping. As you know, there are also the other online sales sites, so you could double up. Good luck with your efforts.

You are probably going to get best results posting the enlargers (with accessories) for local pickup - packing & shipping problematic and expensive.

 

And HOW! I once 'priced out' a "free" complete darkroom (minus the room) and the shipment cost was gigantic.

The Besler is also a bit of a pain to ship unless you know how to take out the condensers and can pack them separately, plus the head flops unless padded and taped in position. It would be a shame to part it out, and there usually isn't much call for the individual parts. You'd end up throwing most of it away.

Update: both enlargers are gone, the box of accessories + the lens from the enlargers are still available