LAB-BOX ... who is using one and are they worth the money?

[Keith]

No one seems to have them in stock which means supply/production may have ceased or maybe demand has just outstripped supply. My neighbour, who has dabbled in film occasionally, was thinking of getting one and my curiosity was piqued by his interest.

 

[wlewisiii]

Don't know about them, though I've thought about it since it's supposed to be better than the original Agfa Rondinax 60 for 120 film. I do have the Agfa Rondinax for 135 film though and I really don't feel any need to replace it. It just works and it plays really well with both D-76 and Diafine my 2 preferred developers.

I will probably just buy an Agfa for 120 eventually instead (Devil you know, etc.)

 

[stevierose]

I bought one when they first came out. Honestly, I found it to be too fiddly for me and not versatile enough. I did not enjoy the constant cranking. It did not always load properly (may have been poor technique on my part). If you used the smaller recommended volume of chemical you have to turn the crank constantly. I you don't want to do that you must fill the whole box with chemical which ends up being a lot for one roll. You can only develop one roll at a time. I think if you are willing to use something like Df96 developer/fixer, and you are happy doing one roll at time it would be OK. I find using a regular tank and a dark bag/tent allows me more flexibility and seems easier to me.

Having said that, I have a nearly new LabBox in excellent condition which I used for no more than 5 or 6 rolls of film with both 35mm and 120 film modules.

 

[Tsai]

I've been using it for the last few months, bought mine with the 120 set on Cinestill brand new.

Agree with other response so far, it is fiddle-y but it does make things dead simple in conjunction with Cinestills Df96 or c41 kit.

I didn't have too much experience with traditional Paterson or Jobos so this made things easy for a beginner like me.

 

[Ordinary Guy]

I think the use case for the piece of equipment is very narrow. If you're traveling with limited space and want to develop individual rolls of films, this is the way to go, i suppose. However, if you're developing at home, the ease and versatility of a Patterson tank is only slightly larger in terms of overall space needed to store. Reading the countless reviews when this item came out made me never want to buy one.

Reading what StevieRose wrote just follows what I've read before, almost pointless to go down this route.

 

[armadsen]

Pros:
- Doesn't require a darkroom/bag/tent, can be used entirely in daylight
- Very easy to load (I've never had any problems with it loading incorrectly, either)
- I think cranking for agitation is nice. I fill the whole tank.

Cons:
- Fiddly, mostly because it has a bunch of parts that need to be taken apart and cleaned
- Uses a lot of chemistry, or else you need to do constant agitation
- Maybe it's just me, but I often spill a bit when pouring chemicals in/out
- The thermometer lid that came with mine died literally after one use, I think because it got a little liquid on it?
- Limited to one roll at a time.

All in all, I like it, but the annoyance of cleaning it every time outweighs the convenience of loading. I've pretty much just gone back to my stainless steel reels and tanks.

 

[ocs302]

Anyone used both an Agfa Rondinax and a Lab-Box? Is the Agfa better/easier use to get good results? My experience was similar to StevieRose with the Lab-Box. About a year ago I got an unused Agfa Rondinax with a collection of other camera and equipment. I haven't used because I figured I would get the same results as the Lab-Box. BTW if anyone wants one drop a note.

Thanks

 

[KoNickon]

The Lab-Box is very intriguing to me. I've never learned how to develop film myself and this sounds pretty foolproof for a beginner. Loading film on reels, especially in a changing bag, strikes me as something that's hard to do right and I'd probably get really frustrated. I can appreciate that those who are used to developing have their own ways of doing it, based on hard-won experience, and for them the Lab-Box's shortcomings may be obvious, and thus not worth it.

 

[wlewisiii]

For an absolute beginner doing only a couple of rolls at a time, the rondinax or lab-box are a good option in my opinion.

 

[Freakscene]

No one seems to have them in stock which means supply/production may have ceased or maybe demand has just outstripped supply. My neighbour, who has dabbled in film occasionally, was thinking of getting one and my curiosity was piqued by his interest.

I am pretty sure that manufacture was contracted once in association with the Kickstarter and they probably added some anticipated number they could sell. Once those were sold, they may be gone if Ars Imago decide not to make more.

They have them in stock, by the way:

LAB-BOX + 2 Modules (Orange edition)

www.ars-imago.com

I have used one, and the Rondinax. I didn't have any loading problems, and found that filling it with distilled water immediately after use cleaned it adequately for the first ~20 rolls, after which it did need a proper clean. Not using wetting agent in the tank helps a lot with keeping things clean. The 10-12 year-olds I taught photography did fine with it too.

I wouldn't use one for my own work because I would always have more than one roll and if I forgot how to load steel reels I could only suspect some sort of dementia.

Marty

 

[maryland_fotos]

Works well for a roll at a time. But yes, I rinse the parts in running water very thoroughly and individually after each use (some parts are tiny and need to watch they don't get washed down the sink 🙂 ). I would check places like bh and freestyle. I see some types in stock.

I have had a couple instances where the 120 reel got a bit stuck and I lost some frames. I learned to make sure the tank was all completely dry after that. 35mm has been straightforward, again lots of cleaning of parts every time.

 

[agentlossing]

I have one, and I like it a little more every few times I use it. It is fiddly, like others have mentioned, but if you give it time and patience, it gets a lot more easy to use as you get a feel for it. I find it a good Rodinal box, using 490ml at 1:25 or 1:50, intermittent agitation. Those saying the constant agitation method gets tiresome are completely correct, but I think the results doing that are decent.

The main things to keep in mind is not to overfill it (it will leak without visually showing that it's overfull), and when loading the film to make sure everything is lined up perfectly. The metal clip needs to be in the center, the film guide needs to be fully sunk into the center of the reel to start out or you risk the film winding only onto the outside of the reel. My cutting blade doesn't return on its own anymore so I have to be sure to pull the lever back down fully so I don't risk scratching the film when winding.

Sounds tricky, right? But processing analogue film is an analogue process. It's not like a Patterson reel isn't tricky in its own way. So, for me it was worth it, but I can also understand someone losing patience with it.

 

[Godfrey]

I've had the Lab Box since the Kickstarter completed. I also have a few Agfa Rondinax-35, Rondinax-60, and Rondix-35 tanks. They're what I use for nearly all my film processing since 2008.

Compared to the Rondinax-35 and Rondinax-60, the Lab Box works about the same and lets me use the same basic tank for both 35 and 120 formats. There are things about all three that aren't exactly great, but none of them are show stoppers.

The key is that the Lab Box is (presumably) available new and the newest Agfa Rondinax is forty years old or more. Therefore you can presumably get new parts for a Lab Box a bit more easily than for any of the Agfa tanks.

B&H Photo and at least four other US vendors lists the Lab Box as "in Stock", both new and used.

G

 

[Keith]

I've had the Lab Box since the Kickstarter completed. I also have a few Agfa Rondinax-35, Rondinax-60, and Rondix-35 tanks. They're what I use for nearly all my film processing since 2008.

Compared to the Rondinax-35 and Rondinax-60, the Lab Box works about the same and lets me use the same basic tank for both 35 and 120 formats. There are things about all three that aren't exactly great, but none of them are show stoppers.

The key is that the Lab Box is (presumably) available new and the newest Agfa Rondinax is forty years old or more. Therefore you can presumably get new parts for a Lab Box a bit more easily than for any of the Agfa tanks.

B&H Photo and at least four other US vendors lists the Lab Box as "in Stock", both new and used.

G

Thanks G ... I just looked and B&H have a used 35mm Lab-Box for $130 which is reasonable after the currency conversion and postage isn't horrific. I'll mark that as an option. 🙂

 

[Gordon Moat]

Anyone used both an Agfa Rondinax and a Lab-Box? Is the Agfa better/easier use to get good results? My experience was similar to StevieRose with the Lab-Box. About a year ago I got an unused Agfa Rondinax with a collection of other camera and equipment. I haven't used because I figured I would get the same results as the Lab-Box. BTW if anyone wants one drop a note.

Thanks

Just remembering my trials and errors in college (graduated 1998). I did have a few times I loaded a reel wrong. It was always a bit challenging, to the point when we weren’t watched I switched to paying for lab processing. I always did my own prints in college, but used labs for processing as often as possible.

 

[ranger9]

I have one, and as others have said, it's fiddly at first, but eventually I got used to it. Even though I also have tanks, reels, and a changing bag, I seldom break them out unless I want to develop multiple rolls at a time (the Lab-Box is strictly a one-roll-at-a-time device.) The things I like most about the Lab-Box are that it's tidy (it doesn't leak at all, as long as you handle it carefully) and that it's possible to develop partial rolls with it for testing strange films and such (via an undocumented hack.)

I don't know that I'd recommend it for first-timers, though -- it IS expensive compared to a simple tank and reel, and there's a risk that you'll discover you just don't enjoy developing film and find you're out a substantial investment. Another problem that's specific to the 120 film module is that I usually lose the first frame off every roll, although that might be partly due to my camera (a Mamiya Six.)

I made a YouTube review of it a few years ago, which I think is still pretty legit:

 

[ray*j*gun]

I have and use one for both 35 and 120. The only complaint I have is you can only do one roll at a time. I suppose that's a mixed issue in that you can custom develop each roll independently. I would say the main fail is not getting the leader centered when pulling the film onto the spool.

I hope they reappear; I think it's good for the film market.

 

[agentlossing]

I have and use one for both 35 and 120. The only complaint I have is you can only do one roll at a time. I suppose that's a mixed issue in that you can custom develop each roll independently. I would say the main fail is not getting the leader centered when pulling the film onto the spool.

I hope they reappear; I think it's good for the film market.

Oh yeah, another thing to point out: you cannot reuse the reel and tank before you've dried it out. Winding film onto the reel when wet is a big no-no and will mess up the placement and ruin your film. Ask me how I know.

 

[tbhv55]

No one seems to have them in stock which means supply/production may have ceased or maybe demand has just outstripped supply. My neighbour, who has dabbled in film occasionally, was thinking of getting one and my curiosity was piqued by his interest.

A lot of good comments in this thread, Keith. I have a Lab-Box and I have used it several times, and overall, I find it a good method for developing. I have even used it (successfully) for developing with caffenol. 😮

The Lab-Box does have its faults and/or limitations. But, of course, most things do. 🙂

 

[agentlossing]

Yeah, if at any point the Lab-Box sounds unreasonably tricky, just pause and remember what it's like loading film onto reels in complete darkness (or a changing bag) when you're new to it.