Solar Printer ~ Shiny New Box

It pleases me like nothing else to be able to say I finally have a fully functioning UV printing box; 20"x24" effective printing area, and it' a pretty one if I do say so myself. I designed it and my old friend with the magic touch blueprinted it before we began constructing it. It was laid out from my design specifications, and built in two days. Including running around town trying to find some not so easily found items, like Mylar sheeting.

There will be photos of the finished product once it has been set into place in PJ's darkroom, where he has opened a spot in waiting, in the new hand coated section of the darkroom. Woo Hoo! What I can say at this time that won't need an image is that the print area of the printer is a true 20"x24" to accommodate the large printing frames for the gum prints, or a contact print, which for me would be 16"x20". Perhaps in the future. This area is lit with 8 20W T-12 fluorescent tubes, spaces 3/4" apart, eight inches from the table top surface. Give or take a smidgen. The secondary consideration to the printer was finding the optimal printing height from the bulbs. The height makes a difference, as it would when using the sun's intensity factors for print scale. We added two skirts at the base of the printer's sides, which allows for 7" of increased height if needed. Being this is the prototype printer it was designed for alterations for testing purposes. Once the corrected height is found, if different from the default position, the next printer will be built at that default height. The final addition was adding a slide position just below the bulbs for a clear-textured diffusion panel that can be slid in or out for diffusion or bare bulb printing. There should be no banding of any kind even at 8", with the bulb spread as it is.

My friend has an interesting sense of humor, thus the silver plate he secured on the front of the printing box is - Flash In The Pan ~ No. 1 - stamped on it. I was thinking The Solar Printer. He was insistent, being he was instrumental in the structural integrity and building, as well as using his seven layer marine ply, and tombstones, I picked my battles carefully. Flash In The Pan it is. This is the friend that holds eleven world speed records on a turbo charged BMW with side car. He was having fun here. We basically created the Binford 3800 Turbo Pro Solar Blaster. The type of printer that can turn a print into total black in under 23 seconds.

He did begrudgingly acknowledge that if other photographers had a bad Jones for a solar printer of that size, he would be willing to accommodate for $500...... it was left at that. My printer even has a printer door that closes when printing, with custom chrome ball knob. Another outlet of my friend's unique styling of things. He likes identifiable unique. Sometimes referred to as Steam Punk. Soon, there will be photos to show.