Agfa Finopan F

[f16sunshine]

A friend of mine has been given a box of negatives that belong to his late father.
The rolls were taken in late WW2 Germany ranging from 40-48 or so.
Most of it is 35mm Agfa Finopan F. I have offered to scan and create an electronic archive for him. There is a lot of material here all of it terribly interesting.

My "problem'' is the condition of the rolls. Most are tightly curled about themselves.
Some so tight that 36 exposures have an inside roll diameter about the thickness of a pencil (under 1cm). I have no idea how they got like this ... it is unfortunate.
They are also quite dust and dirty showing some fingerprints as well.
I have no familiarity with this film and have found little online other than some image samples and old ad material (thanks Nesster!).
I have reverse rolled a couple rolls onto Plastic Paterson spools to try and release some of the curl.
Would it be safe for me to wash and then dry these old rolls? Will the emulation survive this?
I have done this with other old films belonging to my mother although, those rolls were in much better condition from the mid- late 60's and early 70's.
Any input would be appreciated. There is some terribly interesting material on these negatives.
Also, there are a few rolls that look like Nitrocellulose. Is there any cations to take there other than the usual fire related ones?
It's a worthwhile endeavor. I would like to get a good start to have a great result.

Cheers!

 

[Trius]

I would not do anything until you are absolutely sure. The negatives have both historical and sentimental/family value.

I would contact George Eastman House. They have the most knowledge and expertise in the world regarding film stocks, their conservation and restoration.

Finopan may even have had a nitrate base, which presents issues of safety.

 

[Trius]

This page implies that nearly all film stocks at this time were nitrate, with acetate-based film starting just after WW II. Search for Finopan and scroll down a bit.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

Please keep us updated! I love the occasional archived "time machines" which show up here from time to time. This film is definitely an important record and should be archived properly in both traditional and digital media.
Good luck!

Phil Forrest

 

[Rhodes]

Didn't Keith do a similar operation with old negatives from the 30's? I do remember a thread here about it.

Here it is: http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94821

 

[sevo]

This page implies that nearly all film stocks at this time were nitrate, with acetate-based film starting just after WW II.

Beware, that paper discusses the storage of motion picture film. Most publications concerned with nitrate and acetate preservation are cine related. The motion picture industry stuck to nitrate for longer, and the canned spools of motion picture archives are the worst case scenario concerning self-destructive decay.

"Security film" was the rule rather than the exception in photography after the twenties, and indeed in many places the only film legally marketable to amateurs - but there have been local variations during the war. Finopan certainly was advertised towards consumers (where it would have been acetate), but Agfa did not name motion picture films differently, so a Finopan edge labelling does not exclude nitrate.

 

[oftheherd]

I am really looking forward to your being able to do this. Can't wait to see the results.

 

[DominikDUK]

Be careful when handling Finopan it's is at nitrate film (source deutsche Fotothek)
Contact GEH, the LOC or the National Archives for help.

Good Luck with your project
Dominik

 

[haempe]

A friend of mine has been given a box of negatives that belong to his late father.
The rolls were taken in late WW2 Germany ranging from 40-48 or so.
Most of it is 35mm Agfa Finopan F. I have offered to scan and create an electronic archive for him. There is a lot of material here all of it terribly interesting.

Interesting job. 🙂
I have done such work several times for a museum.

My "problem'' is the condition of the rolls. Most are tightly curled about themselves.
Some so tight that 36 exposures have an inside roll diameter about the thickness of a pencil (under 1cm). I have no idea how they got like this ... it is unfortunate.

Usually this came from storing of more than one rolls in one cannister.

They are also quite dust and dirty showing some fingerprints as well.

Beware here. Easy to damage the emulsion when you try to clean. This is a job for digital PP.

...I have reverse rolled a couple rolls onto Plastic Paterson spools to try and release some of the curl.

Beware here. Easy to break such old, dried gelatine when bending against the curl.

Would it be safe for me to wash and then dry these old rolls? Will the emulation survive this?
I have done this with other old films belonging to my mother although, those rolls were in much better condition from the mid- late 60's and early 70's.
Any input would be appreciated. There is some terribly interesting material on these negatives.

My usually process for such work is:
1. carefully load the film in a reel
2. let the gelatine swell 20 min in destilled water
3. run the film through wetting agent (I use ORWO F905 but only because it works good as others and I have the cellar full of this stuff...)
4. hang to dry (don't use a too heavy weight, a clip will do the job)
Mostly you get a lengthwise curl after this.
Wait until the film-surface is dried, but not too long, to hold some minimal internal residual moisture.
Cut the film into Pergamin-sleeves (glassine in English?) not acetat sleeves (acetat can't absorb the residual moisture)
and put it under some books for a week or so.
I almost always get scannable negatives in this way.

Also, there are a few rolls that look like Nitrocellulose. Is there any cations to take there other than the usual fire related ones?
It's a worthwhile endeavor. I would like to get a good start to have a great result.

Make sure it is safety film. If it is Nitrocellulose forget what I have said before, I have no experience with this.
Cut of a small piece and check, if it's flammable.

Good luck,

 

[Trius]

Yes, I realize films spooled for still cameras may have been a different base, but it if you don't know for sure it's best to err on the side of caution. Especially since still stock was originally just cut from cine film rolls. This is why I suggested contacting Eastman House. They're typically very helpful.

 

[funkpilz]

This thread is relevant to my interests. I have boxes of slides taken by my great-grandfather, and half of the films are tightly curled up with no chances of scanning.

 

[Fotohuis]

Found in a sealed box, when cleaning up the house of my father. Agfa isopan.

The end of WWII in 's-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fotohuisrovo/sets/72157594198320431/

 

[Trius]

This thread is relevant to my interests. I have boxes of slides taken by my great-grandfather, and half of the films are tightly curled up with no chances of scanning.

If they are colour transparencies, I don't think there is any danger of them being nitrate base. Someone can correct me if I'm mistaken.

 

[sevo]

If they are colour transparencies, I don't think there is any danger of them being nitrate base.

Well, it is extremely unlikely if they are colour reversal process slides - Kodachrome and Agfacolor were safety film right from the start. But slides copied from a negative may have been made on motion picture print stock, which often was nitrate!