[dwross]

I'm very interested in making my own dryplates as well. I need a little pointing in the right direction. I'm thinking cheap I still need to find 4x5 plateholders

It's been a little hard lately to find plate holders, at least at a reasonable price. Fortunately, that's not a problem if you're willing to do a little woodworking. Find some old wood film holders. They're still pretty available, and beat-up is just fine. What you want to do is take each apart and convert a two-sheet film holder into a one-plate holder. It's pretty intuitive, but here's a few instructions. http://www.thelightfarm.com/Map/DryP...PlatePart6.htm

Congrats on stepping into a great process!! Good luck and fun.
d