Reel loading problems: Plastic

[titrisol]

Could be many things:
- Did you cut the film so that the corners were not square?
Plastic spirals feed better if you cut the corners slanted/rounded

- You said the camera had not been used in a while, did you have to exert excessive force to winde the film at any point?
that could have damaged the sprocket-holes thus making it more difficult for the film to be fed in the spiral
Check if the sprockets are smooth or if some have "bumps"

- Make sure your reels are dry, I generally open them and leave them to dry over paper towel/newspaper overnight before putting them back in the tank

- It is wise every so often to clean your reels
use your mom-in-law toothbrush and some baking soda to scrub them clean
rinse and dry over paper towel.

 

[Thardy]

Could be many things:
- Did you cut the film so that the corners were not square?
Plastic spirals feed better if you cut the corners slanted/rounded

- You said the camera had not been used in a while, did you have to exert excessive force to winde the film at any point?
that could have damaged the sprocket-holes thus making it more difficult for the film to be fed in the spiral
Check if the sprockets are smooth or if some have "bumps"

- Make sure your reels are dry, I generally open them and leave them to dry over paper towel/newspaper overnight before putting them back in the tank

- It is wise every so often to clean your reels
use your mom-in-law toothbrush and some baking soda to scrub them clean
rinse and dry over paper towel.

Hi;

The corners were cut pretty much square. I'll try rounded corners next time. I can see how the sharp corners can snag when engaging the ball-bearing area.

I did notice that one of the spokets did become damaged at some point which most likely added to the difficulty.

I did develop a roll last night after cleaning and drying the spool, and loading went better, not perfect but better. (36 exp is quite difficult to load)

I took another look at the reel and I now believe it is not the premium reels by Arista. I believe this may be adding to the difficulty.

In any event, I will look into a little equipment and keep at it. Even with the challenges, it's still fun.

 

[sepiareverb]

If the film sat partially shot on not rewound in the camera for a while and was rewound right before you went to develop the flat part of the film while in the gate of the camera might have made winding a little harder. That the film came off the reel leads me to this.

 

[Pherdinand]

i don't know what was wrong bu i had the same issue with two rolls of neopan 400 (the only neopan400 i ever developed). The reels were not new, but other films slide quite easily into them. Taffer (former rff member) told me he had similar issues with neopan400. A diabolic film (or a batch of it).
Indeed if the reel is a bit wet, forget about loading it. But if dry...should work!right?

 

[Thardy]

Update:

I tried titrisol's (and others) advice and meticulously cleaned the reels. I then got rid of any moisture by putting the reels in the oven at about 110 degrees f for several minutes. I also cut the film in a more round shape which makes it easy to slip unto the ball-bearing area.

I guess I'll keep up this behavior ( bordering on superstition ?) since it has saved me all sorts of frustration.

Thanks

 

[Ronald_H]

Ok, I just ruined a roll because of similar problems. Missed this thread so I posted one of my own. Strange thing is that sometimes things go ever so smoothly, somethings it's a disaster. Can't figure out why. Doesn't seem to be influenced by the film I use (Ilford FP4+, HP5+, Kodak Tri-X, Fuji Neopan 1600). I just cleaned two reels thoroughly, hopefully things work better next time.

 

[ElrodCod]

36 exposure rolls can be iffy. You're pushing a long flexible strip of film into progressively tighter & tighter spirals from the outside in. It doesn't take much of a glitch to foul things up. 24 exposure rolls are much easier. Back in the day the choices were 36 and 20; that's what I use when I roll my own.

 

[titrisol]

36exp should not be hard to reel in!

Practice with a waste roll if you have not been in the darkroom for a few weeks
and get good spirals, clean them and keep practising

Ok, I just ruined a roll because of similar problems. Missed this thread so I posted one of my own. Strange thing is that sometimes things go ever so smoothly, somethings it's a disaster. Can't figure out why. Doesn't seem to be influenced by the film I use (Ilford FP4+, HP5+, Kodak Tri-X, Fuji Neopan 1600). I just cleaned two reels thoroughly, hopefully things work better next time.

 

[fawate]

The Arista premium reel seems to be very interesting, especially to load these 120 rolls. Can someone tell me if it can fit a Paterson tank, one of the Super System 4 ones?
Thanks in advance.

 

[oscroft]

Today I tried to load the same type of film, but 36 exp (found in a camera I have not used for a long time.)

Bit late on this, but just spotted the above - "found in a camera I have not used for a long time".

Had the film, by any chance, been tightly reverse-wound on the camera take-up spool for some time?

That can give problems if you rewind it and develop it straight away - it can be worth leaving it in the can for while after rewinding.

 

[Thardy]

Bit late on this, but just spotted the above - "found in a camera I have not used for a long time".

Had the film, by any chance, been tightly reverse-wound on the camera take-up spool for some time?

That can give problems if you rewind it and develop it straight away - it can be worth leaving it in the can for while after rewinding.

That probably was the problem. I tried over and over and just buggered the film up in the end.

Now I have no problems with 35mm, but I unsuccessfully tried to load a 120 size roll on the plastic reel today. I finally gave up and turned on the lights to practice.

Oh well.

 

[shadowfox]

thardy, here is what I use to copy my negatives for digtial use:

John, that is seriously awesome 🙂
I like the transparent resin (?) blocks.

 

[lorriman]

I use 50mm Pentax screwmount macro lens, I'm not sure which one. I had to give up on scanners. I get more tones, zones, gray scale, whatever with this device. I do have to do levels on almost every image, but not autolevels. But it is also fast: one minute for aroll of 24.

Here is one, recently done:

Marvellous! How does colour film come out, and is that a special daylight CFL?

I do a similar trick with holding a colour neg up to a blue sky and snapping it with my fuji F30 from 5cms (as close as it gets, gives me about 1MP of info, I think). I find WB set to incandescent/tungsten gets me the best result.

 

[williams473]

I have used Patterson reels and tanks for years and found that new reels kept clean work again and again, but I can only echo that they indeed must be dry as a bone. Did you say you're loading in a changing bag? I only do that as a last resort. I find it much easier to load standing up in some open space. Find an interior room (i.e. no windows) or like me, a closet, and light proof it by taping or gluing some black felt around the lip of the door. Then turn out the lights in the room, having taken the time to walk throughout the house threatneing family members with bodily harm should they enter the room and turn on the light. Then lock yourself in and load - I find that gravity helps keep the film straight as it spools onto the reel. Also I allow the film to slide through my fingers as I load it to keep a little tension on it, and to feel when the end of the spool is close. If the reels aren't new, I often have to help the film along, especially 120 - just a light touch with my thumb on top of the film on top of the reel to make sure it moves forward with the twist.

Don't waste money on metal reels - they have a steep learning curve, and they look cool, but as was mentioned if they're not brand new you'll never figure it out because they were probably bent at some point. I might start trolling Ebay for good used plastic reels or just buy a brand new set of plastic reels - it would be worth the money to rule out the frustration, and to lose frames due to loading is the worst! Good luck!

 

[andrealed]

One minute using a hairdryer on the reel just before using it and you will forget for ever moisture problems. Don't trust your fingers....the reels are ALWAYS humid.

 

[ElrodCod]

The Arista premium reel seems to be very interesting, especially to load these 120 rolls. Can someone tell me if it can fit a Paterson tank, one of the Super System 4 ones?
Thanks in advance.

Yes...they fit Paterson tanks.

 

[fawate]

Gary,
Thank you!

 

[Darkhorse]

I've never not been able to adequately spool a roll of film until today. I had a roll of Neopan 1600 that just wouldn't take. I was certain the reel was bone dry, and I hadn't even used it in a number of weeks. But I tried, and tried again and eventually the roll was tossed across the room amid some very loud obscenities.

 

[Thardy]

I've never not been able to adequately spool a roll of film until today. I had a roll of Neopan 1600 that just wouldn't take. I was certain the reel was bone dry, and I hadn't even used it in a number of weeks. But I tried, and tried again and eventually the roll was tossed across the room amid some very loud obscenities.

When my daughter started her photography class in school she hipped me to the Samigon Reel.
She loaded hers perfectly the very first time trying. I ordered a bunch from BHphoto.com.

I highly recommend them especially for 120. 🙂

 

[Rayt]

The Arista Premium reel in the picture looks exactly like the AP brand reels I got. Stick to Patterson if you like plastic reels. I really had trouble loading the AP reels for 135 and 120.