Paterson reels quality

Paterson reels quality

  • Squeeze it and pull out as gently as possible

    Votes: 72 35.8%

  • Pull the reel apart

    Votes: 81 40.3%

  • I use either method at times

    Votes: 11 5.5%

  • I use steel reels

    Votes: 37 18.4%
  • Total voters
    201
like2fiddle said:
Ok, I have a question then. Do all Patterson reels come apart? I've never really tried, they seem so tightly put together. I do my 120 with a different system because of this. Can someone please explain if there's a way to know whether a Patterson reel is meant to come apart so that I don't break it trying. And then, how do you do it?
Click to expand...

That seems to be the original reason I pulled it apart. My reel from Adorama just snaps together and apart nicely. The reels from Paterson are very tight.

So the pull-apart voting camp probably consists of people whose first reel came apart easily. So it just became natural to them to take it apart and then get the film out.

At the other extreme are people who do not even know if their reels can be pulled apart.
 
As far as I know the Paterson reels all come apart...hold one side in your left hand and then grab the other with the right and then twist clockwise...you should hear and feel a click...they should separate then...
I have always pulled them apart to unload film but either way should work fine...
I have several different versions of the Paterson reels...some have a black dot to line them back up others have a notch...the older reels IMHO are the better ones...heavier plastic and chromed ball bearing/lock...
I also try and keep the two halves in sets never mixing them...that's just me though...
 
I use both methods on Patterson reels. Sometimes I pull them apart, at other times I curve and pull the film out. The thing I dislike of the Patterson tanks is the leaking when inverting them. There is a chance that I can get a number of steel reels and developing tanks. Do you like them better than Patterson's system?
 
No vote possible for me.

I don't curve film and gently pull it out.
I lift the end and pull up and out in one fell swoop. Nothing but the sprocket holes are in contact with the reel. No damage is going occur, unless you are King Kong. 🙂
 
Whatever works, I say.

I use steel reels but I started with Paterson plastic. I never pulled a reel apart except to clean or expand to do 120 film. But that was decades ago and they may be made differently now.

To clean plastic reels, pull them apart and scrub with BonAmi cleaner and a soft toothbrush. For some reason, my plastic reels needed cleaning like this a lot more often than the stainless ones I use now.
 
Dogman said:
Whatever works, I say.

To clean plastic reels, pull them apart and scrub with BonAmi cleaner and a soft toothbrush. For some reason, my plastic reels needed cleaning like this a lot more often than the stainless ones I use now.
Click to expand...
I have to clean mine frequently. If I don't, loading film gets ever more difficult with each new film loaded. I don't know what BonAmi is, I use regular dishwasher detergent. Works well enough, but the plastic has turned brownish after years of use anyhow. Dogman, do you prefer steel reels/tanks over Paterson's?
 
Being a hoarder of Paterson reels (latest count about 110!), I find that pulling the film off them is easy. Just lift the end over the "clip" end (the one with the two steel balls and extended ridge) and just pull it out in one motion.
The only time I take them apart is when i use them for 120 film (which is rare). The only thing that I do to them to clean them, is to let them float around in the "tub" when the second batch of film is being washed. The overflow from the tank goes into the tub and then drains over the edge. So far no problem with residual fixer or anything.
However. I have found that if you use a last bath with Photo-Flo, this tends to stick on the reel and cause "foaming" the next time you use the reels.
Some of my reels go back a long time. I used to do various E-4/E-6 runs with them and that will cause them to discolor, but with no adverse effect when used with bl/w chemicals.
The reason for the amount of reels is that occasionally you have one that does not work properly (usually the steel ball has popped out) and has to be discarded (only throw out the 1/2 with the missing ball - the other half can be used if ever the ball pops from another one). There are also times when I have big batches (30-50 rolls to run) either after a trip or through procrastination and they do take 12-24 hours to dry properly and this way i have a supply of dry reels on hand.
 
In the gang darkroom at work reels get taken apart and left in the sink apart, then gets mated up with another half of different vintage. Several reels are impossible to open now, several put back together out of alignment are as if welded closed. I like stainless.
 
HuubL said:
I have to clean mine frequently. If I don't, loading film gets ever more difficult with each new film loaded. I don't know what BonAmi is, I use regular dishwasher detergent. Works well enough, but the plastic has turned brownish after years of use anyhow. Dogman, do you prefer steel reels/tanks over Paterson's?
Click to expand...

Yes, my preference is steel over plastic. Both work fine and it's really just in what you get used to using.

Plastic did seem to require more cleaning when I used it. Tom mentioned Photoflo and that's probably one of the reasons my Paterson reels needed frequent scrubbing.

BonAmi is a powder cleaner that is non-abrasive. It has always worked well in the darkroom for me when stuff got really raunchy.

http://www.bonami.com/enviroment/
 
nikon_sam said:
As far as I know the Paterson reels all come apart...hold one side in your left hand and then grab the other with the right and then twist clockwise...you should hear and feel a click...they should separate then...
I have always pulled them apart to unload film but either way should work fine...
I have several different versions of the Paterson reels...some have a black dot to line them back up others have a notch...the older reels IMHO are the better ones...heavier plastic and chromed ball bearing/lock...
I also try and keep the two halves in sets never mixing them...that's just me though...
Click to expand...


Ok, thanks Sam, I'll try this tonight.
 
eerrr a mix of both
I was lucky to buy 2 extra patterson reels for a buck each at a ditz camera store to complement by besselers and Kalts
I like the Kalts with the big "lip" better for 120

To get them really clean, borrow your mom-in-law;s toothbrush and scrub them a bit
if the stain is very stubborn you can use a paste of baking soda (bicarbonate) and a few drops of water
with the aforementioned toothbrush. Side effect is a lot of teeth whitening
 
The only problem I've had has been the steel balls jamming. It's a real PIA! Film gets crumpled and when you finally do get it all on to the reel (by force, usually) some of the film inevidibly touches and you get the chocolate blobs on some of the frames. I will double check next time to make sure the balls are rolling freely before I load them-could make for a better day...

BTW, I just pull in one fell swoop. Never had a problem unloading!
 
HuubL,
Concerning Paterson versus steel: Been there, done that. No, I didn't like steel better. Loading is more difficult to do and I found it hard to be sure the film had been reeled on properly. If you mess up with a Paterson it simply won't take anymore film. Reason for my experiment was the same though: leakage with inversion, using the super system 4. Very annoying. But I discovered, as apparently many have before me, that it's preventable. Put the lid on, lift it along the edge, push the centre (air will flow out) and close it again (now with a lower air pressure in the tank). This seems to stop leakage effectively.
Anyway, by all means try steel, as it seems to work for most members contributing to this thread, it's just not for me....
 
lshofstra said:
HuubL,
Concerning Paterson versus steel: Been there, done that. No, I didn't like steel better. Loading is more difficult to do and I found it hard to be sure the film had been reeled on properly. If you mess up with a Paterson it simply won't take anymore film. Reason for my experiment was the same though: leakage with inversion, using the super system 4. Very annoying. But I discovered, as apparently many have before me, that it's preventable. Put the lid on, lift it along the edge, push the centre (air will flow out) and close it again (now with a lower air pressure in the tank). This seems to stop leakage effectively.
Anyway, by all means try steel, as it seems to work for most members contributing to this thread, it's just not for me....
Click to expand...
That's what I do and it still doesn't stop the leaking...🙁 I guess my tanks don't close well anymore.

Oh, and thanks for checking out my camera collection.
 
rogue_designer said:
huh - I've always curve the film in and pulled it straight away from the reel in roughly 1 ft lengths... then adjust my grip, and do it again.

it never even occurred to me to take the reels apart. Not in thousands of rolls have I damaged film taking it off the reel.

*shrug*
Click to expand...
Same here.

Cheers,

R.
 
lshofstra said:
Pherdinand, I'm in the province of Groningen, bound to run into you sooner or later..... I'll be wearing a rangefinder....
Click to expand...
OK, looking forward to it 😉
here's how i generally look (in the summer, a bit friendlier)
so u can recognize me 😀
 

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paterson reels

paterson reels

My 2cents, I bought my first tank and reels in 1971, still using them today. These are the 1st generation Paterson. The reels were a semi-transparent whitish plastic (now brownish) that snapped together, the two halves do have to be aligned properly. I have reserved these for 120 film as they load 120 better than my newer (25 yr old ) reels. My newer (25 yr old ) reels do snap lock together, one side is molded with a channel in the core that mates with the ridge in the other half, when they are aligned and pushed together to the 35mm size you then twist them till you hear a "click". I have marked the core shafts with a Sharpie so it is easy and quick to align them. The 25 yr reels are made with a different plastic, solid white, plus I have even newer 15 yr old tanks and reels made by other companies, Omega, Kalt, Costar that are a copy of the 1st generation Paterson, they work well but not as smoothly as the Paterson. They all leak because the gasket shrinks over time, I have fixed some of the gaskets with silicone caulk. I rinse them in hot water when finished. Very few problems with the 1000's of rolls that I've processed. I do not have any experience with the new System 4 tanks.
RandyB🙂
 
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