All About Xtol

[Trius]

The proper 😀 way to store stock X-Tol in used box wine containers. See this post and the rest of the thread.

 

[venchka]

Trius is right on target. Alas, I only have 3 liter wine in a box empties. So, I filled a half gallon container to the very top, filled the 3 liter bag & used the small amount left over to process a few rolls. Mixed August 1,2008. I finished the 3 liters about 2 weeks ago. Refilled from the half gallon jug. Everything is still fine.

 

[visiondr]

What about the alleged tendency for X-tol to work well for weeks, even months, then go bad very rapidly? I'd hate to have "sour" developer when I have a roll to process. Nor would I like to be processing a roll only to discover upon completion that the developer had lost it's potency. Is there some way to know if your X-tol is up to snuff before you use it? That assurance is part of the attraction of one-shot liquid developers like HC-110 and Rodinal for me.

 

[M like Leica M6]

What about the alleged tendency for X-tol to work well for weeks, even months, then go bad very rapidly? I'd hate to have "sour" developer when I have a roll to process. Nor would I like to be processing a roll only to discover upon completion that the developer had lost it's potency. Is there some way to know if your X-tol is up to snuff before you use it? That assurance is part of the attraction of one-shot liquid developers like HC-110 and Rodinal for me.

I just copy my answer from some friends in a different forum:

1.

"XTOL doesn't really have any serious sudden death issues other than being attentive to not let it become grossly exposed to air. This horse has been beaten to death over and over and people still think it will fail on them in 2 weeks."

2.

"Thank you, that is so true... you can identify untalented craftsmen easily: they complain about tools and material instead of improving their methods. Every time someone has a problem developing a film properly with one developer he will try the next film and/or developer. But if he used XTol the first thing he does is posting a new question "did my XTol turn bad?" in several forums, and then people who never used it repeat that nonsense. Maybe he were better off by contemplating about questions like:
- "What is a thermometer good for?"
- "Why should I read the datasheets?"
As the newspaper people say: you can not print excuses instead of a great photo.
But so many people are easy prey for providers that promise heaven on earth with their miracle films and miracle developers. Even the CEOs of such companies put their trousers on one leg at a time and offer other companies' products with a lot more marketing bla, new labels and twice the price. Only the customer's self-deception helps them getting away with it. May I suggest: buy original films from the manufacturers and don't fall for false labeling, use the recommended chemistry, RTFM and work exactly as described. If the results are not good, don't blame it on the manufacturer in the first line."

3.

"One note: all the hype about failure was in 1996 - that is TWELVE years ago and affected only:
- one-liter packages
- 1996 version of Tmax 100
- 1:3 dilution with old developer
The films, XTol, the package size and the datasheet are changed in the meanwhile..."