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Focomat 1c Colour


Susie

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Hi All.

 

Last Saturday I collected the Focomat 1c Colour that I won recently on ebay. Generally it is in good condition, came complete with the illuminated enlargement scale, and a Focotar 4.5cm lens (the first version from 1953), and the anti Newton ring disc.:)

 

I'm hoping to get round to cleaning it up and re-wiring it in next day or so.

 

There are a couple of things missing however - the locking catches on the helical focus ring (the fixed side to the catch is there), and the Leitz easel. Can anyone help with these?

 

Oh, the price? £42.00! ($65 for you across the pond)

 

Susie

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  • 2 weeks later...

Buy a second one for "parts"

 

The lens was substituted for a proper era lens which was much better. The 1953 lens was designed for 5x and the image starts to fall apart on 8x. Look for a large front element one or Focotar 2.

 

The Leica wood easel is a pain. Any 1" high one should work fine. I use the V Track from Saunders. Or you can shim up a standard easel to 1" high.

 

If you find a the big 14x17 white base , it is more than 1" high so the head needs to be clamped higher on the column. There was a proper collar spacer. It is an even bigger pain to use than the wood easel.

 

The 8x10" ++ with the white base is beautiful to use and is the best one I ever found for up to its designed paper size which is almost 11x14. It will be used, so test to be sure all the blades are square and the auto clamping is functional. If it has been dropped, it is toast.

 

It is a great machine with all the parts like the anti Newton filter under the condenser. You will want to use one of these.

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Not sure what you mean by the locking device, is it the one attached to the silver ring with a small screw below? See attached photo !

 

If that's it, well eh I don't need two, do I? I guess the previous owner of my 1C, hmmm I have had it since 1985 or so, had a second position . . . I have never used it, so it always just kind of hitchhiked along

 

I am afraid I have some different opinions . . . to the 2nd poster, no offence meant, mate!

 

Sounds to me you do not need to buy a 2nd one for parts - this lens you've got is actually fine, stopped down twice it gives sharp-to-the-edge grain with up to 50X60cm prints (20/24). Plus it has beautiful character. Having said that, the Focotar-2 and the Schneider-made Focotar are both beautiful lenses, always worth trying to find one. - the wooden Leitz easel that takes 40X50 paper is very ok, yes it should not be damaged. Very easy to work with. - For an easel like that you need to put the enlarger/paralellogram in the highest of the two positions on the column: about 30cm up from the groundboard you find two holes and hopefully a nice pin inside one of them. No pin? Find a nail that fits and saw it off & sand the sawed edges . . .

 

Your Focomat has small (red marked) holes in different places, you should put a drop of sowingmachine oil in them. Clean wel the other parts, where the system "brakes" in particular and do not use any oil there. Clean the column with some terpentine, let it dry and use some white vaseline all over the column. Don't touch this column with your bare hands, this will cause rust . . .

 

When you open the lamphead, it is easy to take out the condensor, you just need to turn the upper ring that's locking it down into position. Use a lot of light when you do this and look well at all the parts before placing them somewhere. This way you will know how to put them back. The glass of the condensor on the upper side is often covered with a thin layer of dust, just wipe it off with a soft cloth . . .

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  • 4 weeks later...

The two chrome focus position "sliders" are to allow the user to preset two focus positions, one on the auto focus easel and a second position on the baseboard for those who would chose to put paper directly there.

 

The original Focotar is optimized for 5x so says the Leica catalog. I have had 3 or 4 none of which hold a candle to the Schneider or Focotar 2. So I have samples of all.

 

The issue with the wood easel is there is only one stop for the paper, upper left, and it is all to easy to get the paper cocked crooked. The one for large paper is even more unforgiving, be it the white or oak model.

 

The best easel is the small white laminate covered one as it has full paper width stop and auto clamping mechanism as the top/blades are closed. It be nearly impossible to miss load this one.

 

Don`t clean the condenser dry. Treat it as a lens which it is.

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