Value of Darkroom Equipment

<p>I apologize if this is the wrong forum for this, as I'm not sure where to ask. Please guide me to the right place if here is inappropriate…<br /><br />I have a fairly complete darkroom set up that I inherited from my grandfather. While I have stored it for over 10 years with hopes of building a darkroom, it just isn't going to happen. So I'm curious what the value of this equipment might be… or where to look to figure this out.<br /><br />It is all heavy-weight high-grade equipment and, by my best guess, is mostly from the 70s and 80s. I am completely rusty on my darkroom knowledge, but here's some of the stuff I have:<br /><br />4x5 Enlarger with Omega Dichroic II Color Enlarger Head<br />4x5 and 35mm Film Carriers<br />Enlarger Lenses<br />Easel<br />Focus Scope<br />Dodge/Burn Tools<br />Prinz Print Dryer<br />Safelight<br />4x5 Film Holders<br />Developing Tanks<br />Developing Trays<br />Loupes<br />Glass Chemical Bottles<br />Funnels<br />Beakers<br />Timer<br />Thermometer<br />more<br /> <br />Any help with this would be much appreciated. I will be sad to see this stuff go, but I'd rather it get used then get dusty.<br /> Thanks,<br /> James</p>

<p>The reality is that it is not going to get used, and it has no value. I have 4 beautiful enlarges myself but they are just decoration now.</p>

<p>Anyone who wants darkroom equipment can go onto kraigslist in any major city and have their choice of dozens of sets of equipment to pick up for free. As you know price is determined by supply and demand. There is lots of supply and no demand, therefore Free.</p>

<p>You won't get much for it but you will get something - I would not give it away for free. Check completed eBay auctions and also your local Craigslist - that should give you an idea - don't get your hopes up though. I bought an 8x10 Durst enlarger for close to nothing - these things used to sell for amost to 20K new, but nobody wants them anymore.</p>

<p>I'd say about $250-$300 max</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p>I would not give it away for free.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>I would. As long as the person you're giving it away to has a tax number and will give you a receipt for a decent fraction of the catalog prices, you'll get more out of it than you ever would selling it. If you're in the US, a college or university is a good choice, as is the Salvation Army thrift store.</p>

<p>About 15 years ago -- when film was still in regular use -- I bought a used Omega D2 B&W enlarger with a similar set of accessories for about $300. The color head would have made the same outfit worth probably $500 at the time. I think Aslan is right -- you'd be doing good if you could get about $250 for it today. One challenge is selling a 4x5 enlarger is that they are big and heavy to ship, so shipping costs cut into what someone is willing to pay for it online. Packing the unit in a way that it won't come out of alignment and the condensors, lenses, etc. won't be damaged requires some care and something ends up cracked when it''s received by the buyer you've got a problem.</p>

<p>I read that some college RPI? would not allow darkroom work as it used " CHEM-I-cals"<br>

and they were bad.<br>

seems I take a few snide comments FILM<br>

NO NO Digital is the thing.<br>

Look I do not want to start a d vs F debate<br>

but there is a lot to be said for film especisally B&W<br>

color slide film is rapidly becoming history.<br>

but color negative is alive and well<br>

Kodak thinks so.<br>

I would look for someone that really wanted to do developing and printinmg<br>

I have most of the same stuff<br>

except for the color head it is the same.<br>

I will use it. not give it away or selling it.<br>

let my Heirs do that.</p>

<p>Thank you for the feedback.<br /><br />I like the idea of donating it to a university. It would be great to give to the lab that I spent many fun hours in during college.<br /><br />So as a follow-up question… Since darkroom gear has nearly zero value, how do companies still manufacture it? And it's not cheap to buy... For example, the Omega lamphouse is still in production - virtually unchanged for 30 years - and sells (or does it?) for $2000. I guess if all the tooling is there and the product is unchanged, it wouldn't cost much to make. Still, how do they stay in business? (BTW, I think I got a "C-" in economics ;)</p>

<p>James</p>

<p>You are not the first person to think of donating to a university. I was given an Omega by a guy who tried to donate it and they wouldn't take it. I think you will find the same reaction. <br>

With many times more enlargers worldwide than people still doing the chemical thing I can't imagine why production is still taking place.</p>

<p>Two months ago, off of craigslist, I bought a nearly new Chromega D5 XL, 3 Schneider lenses mounted on a turret, all major carriers from 35mm to 4x5, boxes of slightly expired paper, developing trays and easels from 8x10 to 16x20, lots of tanks, focusing equipment, thermometers, and all kinds of stuff: $200. I replaced my aging Beseler 45 Dichroic.</p>

<p>James, I would post an ad on craigslist. Make the price a little more affordable for college students. Depending on what lenses you have with it, $250 is fair, but less likely to sell quickly. Lower the price a bit, more if the lenses are average quality. At least you get some cash and some kid gets to experience film.<br>

<br /> I typically sell several darkroom sets to photo students this time of year. They're snagged at estate and garage sales earlier in the year, cherry-picked for good lenses to sell on eBay, and then sold in the Fall for Photo 101 classes.</p>

<p>"4x5 Enlarger with Omega Dichroic II Color Enlarger Head"<br>

A brand new Omega Dichroic Color enlarger runs into the thousands of dollars(check B&H or Freestyle magazine). Beseler is still making them and selling them as far as I know. I would love to have one myself, but just don't have the room.<br>

About 10 years ago enlargers were going like hot-cakes on eBay as professional photographers switched to Digital. Someone must have been buying them ? I purchased a Beseler 23C with a Dichroic head about 8 years ago. I just recently upgraded the Head for one in mint condition and I still enjoy working in the traditional darkroom although for business purposes I switched to Digital. Rather than selling it, why not just keep it, you might just like it.<br>

Maybe you can build a darkroom and rent it out to college kids interested in developing their own film. Don't beleive the hype ! there are still allot of people out there that are very interested in the traditional darkroom, if only as a hobby. </p>

 

<p>You have to be lucky in your timing to sell most darkroom equipment for any significant price. There is simply too much on the market and not that many people into DYI processing. I bought an LPL dichroic head enlarger that B&H is still selling for $1100 new for $75 last spring, and it came equipped with two very nice 6 element lenses. If I had not had the rest of the required equipment already, I would have been happy to buy a complete setup (for up to 6X7 format negatives) for something in the $200-300 range. I expect that the enlarger companies will discontinue models, and eventually dwindle in number because the demand for new equipment simply is not there.</p>

<p>There are small groups, mostly defined around black and white art photography, which are focused (no pun intended) on film media, and if you found one in your area, that would be an ideal place to advertise your equipment.</p>

<p>It is still worth more than inferred above, at least for the smaller number of us still doing both darkroom (film based) and lightroom (digital) work. Many amateurs who bought darkroom equipment 10 or 20 years ago didn't use it overly (like a lot of things, it requires an effort to get great results). We have two camera stores (not of the Walmart or Future Shop type) in my city, out of about a half dozen, that still provide a wide range of film and a decent selection of chemicals and photographic papers (mainly Ilford). Less than before, but it is not dead yet, and like some ancient processes, is likely to stay around for the hobbyist, if not the professional.</p>

<p>If you want an accurate value, become a membeer of eBay and look up closed auction statistiques. You will see what the buyer has actually paid for the lens, enlarger or associated equipment.<br /><br /></p>

<p>About 7 years ago I got a Bessler 23C with Componon and two negative holders at a thrift store for 35 dollars.</p>

<p>It sat there for a month with the priced dropping week after week.</p>

<p>Another enlarger was for 35mm; a Durst M301? with Componon. I could have grabbed this for 25 bucks; but I figured I might let another get it. I already had a mess of great enlarging lenses and a Omega C600 and old Testrite diffusion rig.</p>

<p>These enlargers were from a local college; they dumped their entire wet darkroom 7 years ago. They do NOT want any donations of non digital stuff; or old chemicals either.</p>

<p>What you have sounds like a great 4x5 darkroom rig; try to sell it locally to avoid massive shipping and boxing.</p>

<p> What is one man junk is another mans tools. A new drafting machine can be many hundreds of dollars; one scale lists for 80 bucks. The same stuff on ebay goes for next to nothing.</p>

<p>There are government agencies that under no way can they legally buy certain items "used".</p>

<p>Thus as a dealer of some oddball stuff; if the about obsolete brandnew gizmo costs me 60 bucks and list for 80; the purchasing agent cannot buy that item as a demo or refurb that costs me 10 that I sell for 30.</p>

<p>It can be the dumbest item that has no life or safety issue; ie is a dumb shovel for the grounds keeper to plant flowers for the parades.</p>

<p>It really is not about saving money or common sense; it is completing the order. The new item will look the demo item in the first day. Even If I garranty the demo items they cannot buy them.</p>

<p>This use to happen when I bought school darkroom stuff 30 years ago for a local school. All their enlarging lenses had to be NEW to meet the beloved beancounters rules. The kids would tear stuff up; get fingerprints all over the new lenses. One week of usage would look like mine in many many decades.</p>

<p>Thus the government school beancounters would not let me buy a used Componon from Olden; KEH or a shutterbug private person. They just paid 3 to 10 times more for a brand new lens; to please the bean counters rules.</p>

<p>When I was a kid in Indiana; there was more of a sense of value. Most all the darkroom stuff we used was bought used. That was in an era when folks cared about waste.</p>

<p>The Governments "have to buy new" helps often with complex stuff; one does not get a mess of issues. For simple things; unless their is a human in the loop one has stuff being bought new for absurd prices.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>BTW, I bought another Beseler 45 color enlarger about 5 years ago off of fleabay. Won it for $75, but the shipping was $147. That's one of the reasons they don't sell well when they have to be shipped.</p>

<p>The main impediment to selling enlargers and bulky or heavy darkroom gear is the high cost of shipping. Enlargers are both bulky and heavy to ship. I nearly sold one of my enlargers several times around 2007-2008. The price of the enlarger itself wasn't the problem. The buyers backed out when they realized how much it cost to ship. I couldn't even give away a carton containing several packages of recently expired RC and fiber printing papers because nobody wanted to pay for the shipping for an approx. 20 lb carton.</p>

<p>Even with counter top enlargers the baseboard tends to weigh as much as the rest of the bits combined. Some folks even asked if I'd be willing to part it out and sell only the smallest, lightest bits. (Which may explain why there continues to be an oddly specific market for used Durst enlarger bits, such as the oddball lens carriers and negative carriers.) So you might consider offering to omit the baseboard to save shipping costs, with the understanding that the buyer is responsible for providing a baseboard (or simply bolting the enlarger to a large work surface on a cabinet).</p>

<p>If you're willing to take the time to split up the darkroom gear, including parting out the highest demand bits of the enlarger, you may have some success selling it rather than giving it away. I did that for awhile with smaller items until ebay was no longer cost effective for occasional sellers.</p>

<p>For example, you mentioned a non-specific "safelight". One of the items rookies routinely skimp on - which they quickly regret - is a safelight. They'll waste money on colored light bulbs or makeshift filters that fog their printing paper. Meanwhile, even an old fashioned beehive type safelight fixture would do the trick and you can still sell them for less than the price of a new entry level safelight while still making it worth your effort to ship.</p>

<p>Other items that can be shipped cost effectively include: enlarger lenses, lens carriers, negative carriers, timers, thermometers and focusing aids.</p>

<p>Items I'd generally consider giveaways would include most developing tanks, trays, beakers, funnels, dodge/burn tools (these can easily be fabricated at home), and similar items for which there are readily available substitutes.</p>

<p>Print dryers are odd ducks. Years ago they were considered indispensable. Nowadays you'll see many recommendations to air dry, use blotter books or other makeshift solutions. But if you print enough fiber prints nothing quite matches a good dryer for consistency and minimizing random buckling and waving. But few people will be willing to spend the money to ship a large print dryer until they've become thoroughly frustrated with the makeshift methods. By then, most folks will be past their experimental phase and will have either moved on to RC paper or abandoned the darkroom completely. (I've kept my single sheet Arkay dryer because while it's slow and inefficient, nothing beats it for minimizing wrinkled, buckled prints. And those hot air print dryers were the worst - useless for anything other than RC prints.)</p>

<p>Easels are odd bits as well. The better quality adjustable easels are still worth selling (and buying used). But the all-in-one type easels for printing everything from 8x10 on down are giveaway items. Again, easels are under-appreciated by most rookies until they tire of makeshift substitutes.</p>

<p>You might also consider options for shipping worldwide. Occasionally I see requests from photographers who live in areas where darkroom equipment is scarce so the only option is international sales and paying the higher cost for shipping. Just depends on whether you have the time to deal with parting out the various bits, or arranging for international shipping.</p>

<p>If you want the best return, do some research on completed sales and part it out on eBay. There is demand for certain items. There are specific easels, for example, that can go for $300-400. Good enlarging lenses can go for $100-150, maybe more. I've seen sets of three Kostiner print tongs go for $70! That was a couple of years ago, but they are still a prized item. Condition is very important, so if you have items in good condition, make sure your photos show it. Others have mentioned cost of shipping as a drawback, and I agree that the best bet with the enlarger is to sell locally. Also be prepared for the fact there will be virtually no demand for many items that are still in usable condition, no matter how costly they were when originally purchased. The demand these days is highly specific.<br>

My feeling is that there are two basic options. Take the generous donor route and try to find someone you can give it all to. Or, do some research and part it out for the best return. I think the worst option is to sell the entire package at what will have to be a low price, only to discover that an easel, for example, could have sold for more than you got for the whole deal.</p>

<p>A friend left me her deceased husband's camera equipment(a full Pentax Spotmatic kit with several lenses), to see if I might sell it. While she didn't care about the proceeds, I would like to provide her with that. Not familiar with the equipment, I would have to research the individual value of the lenses if I did not sell it at a very low price or give it to a young person. There may be one or two lenses that are particularly sought.</p>

<p>Like Waldo, I suggest you start with a detail list and an eBay research of sold items. Like Lex, I believe you should consider identifying the hotter items and sell those, perhaps giving the rest to someone who needs them. It can take a bit of trouble to do. Or you can simply give it all away. Someone will certainly be happy as they will have lucked out.</p>

<p>Some of these things have a habit of coming around, 10 or 20 years down the road. Although the logistics of future materials availability might be a problem, revival in film may be like the small revival in LP recordings. Tiffany glass was hugely unpopular from the mid 30s on, until interest was revived and you know the prices of that stuff today. Perhaps apples and oranges, but the ability to get a Focomat IIc enlarger, formerly $7000 or $8000, or a Durst L1200 enlarger (4x5, probably one of the few best), each for only about $1000 today including two of their better lenses, is a wonderful windfall for some.</p>

<p>Thanks for all the feedback and suggestions. I hadn't really considered parting out the equipment, but I can see how it might make good sense. I'll have to go through it all and do a little research. I'll report back if/when something comes of this.</p>