logan2z Posted December 11, 2018 Share #1 Posted December 11, 2018 Advertisement (gone after registration) As I mentioned in a recent thread, I'm looking to buy a better enlarging focuser and am considering the Peak 2030 - the equivalent of the older Model III. Unfortunately, Peak no longer manufactures the model I or II. Since the III only focuses within an angle of 10 degrees, is it worth buying or will any 'standard' focuser do a similar job? I see Model 1s for sale on eBay for $200 or so but I'd prefer not to spend that much if I can avoid it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted December 11, 2018 Posted December 11, 2018 Hi logan2z, Take a look here Peak 2030 Enlarging Focuser. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
pico Posted December 11, 2018 Share #2 Posted December 11, 2018 I prefer the Peak because its manufactured mirror position is precise, and the mirror is easily economically replaced. It also has a good protective, hinged protector. FWIW I have three Peak models and have found no quality differences. I cannot say that for the less expensive versions which fail in the quality of the optics and have old mirrors which tend to haze (oxidation). (Why do I have so many focusing devices? Well, in part because I bought out a photo printing company which went digital - and, btw, failed.) 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
logan2z Posted December 11, 2018 Author Share #3 Posted December 11, 2018 8 minutes ago, pico said: I prefer the Peak because its manufactured mirror position is precise, and the mirror is easily economically replaced. It also has a good protective, hinged protector. FWIW I have three Peak models and have found no quality differences. I cannot say that for the less expensive versions which fail in the quality of the optics and have old mirrors which tend to haze (oxidation). (Why do I have so many focusing devices? Well, in part because I bought out a photo printing company which went digital - and, btw, failed.) Just for my own clarity, when you say "the less expensive versions" do you mean the less expensive Peaks (eg. the 2030) or less expensive focusers made by brands other than Peak? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted December 11, 2018 Share #4 Posted December 11, 2018 21 minutes ago, logan2z said: Just for my own clarity, when you say "the less expensive versions" do you mean the less expensive Peaks (eg. the 2030) or less expensive focusers made by brands other than Peak? Brands other than Peak. All the Peaks I have are good. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
logan2z Posted December 11, 2018 Author Share #5 Posted December 11, 2018 1 hour ago, pico said: Brands other than Peak. All the Peaks I have are good. That's what I thought, thanks for the clarification. Wish I could get a Model 1 for a reasonable price but I'll probably try the 2030. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
logan2z Posted January 10, 2019 Author Share #6 Posted January 10, 2019 I found a Model 1/2000 on eBay for what I considered a reasonable price so I went for it. Surprisingly, BH Photo still carries the replacement mirrors for $25 so I picked one of those up as well should I ever need it. Looking forward to giving it a try once it arrives. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted January 10, 2019 Share #7 Posted January 10, 2019 Advertisement (gone after registration) 6 minutes ago, logan2z said: [...] Surprisingly, BH Photo still carries the replacement mirrors for $25 so I picked one of those up as well should I ever need it. Looking forward to giving it a try once it arrives. Surprising because you have not paid attention to the thread. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
logan2z Posted January 10, 2019 Author Share #8 Posted January 10, 2019 1 hour ago, pico said: Surprising because you have not paid attention to the thread. Trust me, pico, I hang on your every word ;). If you're referring to your statement earlier in the thread that 'the mirror is economically replaced' I read that but I was still surprised because: a) I didn't think replacement mirrors would be so easy to come by - especially at a retailer that no longer carrries the Peak grain focusers (the 2030 is still in production but not carried by BH) b) I didn't expect it to be quite as economical as $25 when the focusers were/are relatively expensive. Perhaps I'm too easily surprised 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
logan2z Posted January 17, 2019 Author Share #9 Posted January 17, 2019 I spent some time in the darkroom this week and had a chance to give the Model 1 a try. Great focuser, it let me check the focus of an 8x10 print from corner to corner and it helped make me aware of a small misalignment of my enlarger. Money well spent IMO. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Wittner Posted May 24, 2019 Share #10 Posted May 24, 2019 I built my own grain focuser using a regular (pretty expensive) 10X Peak focussing loupe as the viewing optic. Stunning to look through, the sharpest, best grain definition I have ever seen, over a wide, super sharp field. Unfortunately I could never find a way to suspend a focusing wire beneath it, so in the end I dismantled it and have since bought a new large Bestwell 25X focuser and that seems pretty good too, it seems to have a well developed viewing optic on a very fine adjustment helical thread, and a nice looking mirror, and a very sturdy single piece cast metal body. But in building my own unit I discovered two things. Firstly, the quality of the viewing optic is super important; the better the quality of this lens, the better your viewing experience will be. (Another excellent replacement viewing optic for the smaller Peak Grain focuser is the upper 75mm Heidosmat viewing lens from a Rollei 120 TLR, held in the tube using a roll of wrapped 120 film). The other thing I learnt is that the reflecting mirror can be very simple: I got perfect results using a scrap of acrylic plexiglass/Perspex, which provided a perfect front-surface reflection. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
fotohuis Posted May 30, 2019 Share #11 Posted May 30, 2019 I had the Peak II focuser but I was lucky to have for free a model I. So I recently sold my model II. They are not very expensive here in Holland, around Eur. 40. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
fotohuis Posted May 30, 2019 Share #12 Posted May 30, 2019 Model I is indeed more transparant and more clear then model II which I also had with the Blue filter for B&W. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.