Anscomatic tank

[mpj01]

Hello,
Just starting learning to develop, I was given an Anscomatic tank and reel to try. This may be a dumb question, but I cant rotate the tank without it leaking all over the place. I can't imagine it's supposed to do that.
If I am careful I can keep the leaking to a minimum.
Any thoughts?

Thank you,
Michael Johnston
Wabasha Minnesota

 

[Phil_F_NM]

The tank is not water tight. When you agitate, you only need to rock it back and forth a couple times then sit still till the next agitation. If you're really fickle, you could gently tap the tank on the sink to jar loose any bubbles that may have formed on the film. I do this with my steel tank and reels but I really don't know if it is necessary after first filling the tank with developer. Regardless, it is a habit I've had for a few decades and I'm not hurting anything nor anyone, so I continue to make noise every minute. I digress. You don't need to fully invert the tank, just a little movement will suffice.

Phil Forrest

 

[Bolo Kukus]

The Anscomatic fiim tank is a 1960s ergonomic gem. When I was a sweet young thing (in my early teens) in Canada in those days, everyone I knew who had a darkroom had either a Kodak or an Anscomatic tank - the latter were cheap and reliable and, I recall, super easy to load with film in the dark, unlike the Kodak ones which had ridged plastic belts in place of reels.

I no longer recall is these tanks were watertight or not, but they came with a stirring rod which had a thermometer in it, and so let the user both check the chemistry temperatures and also agitate the reel in either direction. Nobody did agitation by shaking tanks in those long ago days - the cocktail-shaker technique of agitating became popular from the early-mid-'70s when Paterson tanks took over the home film processing market.

If your tank doesn't have the stirring rod, then alas, it isn't complete.

In which case, you may want to give your Anscomatic shelf queen status as a darkroom display item, and invest in a complete (and watertight) processing tank. There are many on the market, but I doubt you'll find a new tank for C$6.95 which I recall is what the Anscomatic tank cost.

Shaking this (or any) tank too vigorously - as many of us tend to do - can cause processing problems (like bromide drag), which can cause streaking on your negatives. So beware.

I doubt that tapping the tank on the sink doesn't achieve much of anything, but as Phil F NM writes, it doesn't hurt anyone, so if it's your thing then go for it. Better to filter your chemistry before using, which I find eliminates the air bubbles.

 

[mpj01]

thank you for your replies, it does have a thremometer/stirstick that acts better as a stirstick.
Not being too enthusiastic on the agitation might be the answer.

 

[C Jensen]

Funny, I just got one on Sunday. It will be replacing the one I had from 1966. I developed countless rolls of film in mine, until I cracked the lid. I then went on the Kinderman route, but nothing was as easy to load as the old Ansco. I forget the exact recommended sequence. You fill the tank, tap it on the counter a few times, roll the stirring rod back and forth between your thumb and pointing finger for awhile, then every 30 seconds or so agitate it by rolling the stirring rod back and forth between your thumb and pointing finger a few times.
Lather rinse repeat.

 

[Bolo Kukus]

Yes, the Anscomatic was by far the best design of its time (1960s). I cut my teeth on an old Kodak tank which had a long plastic strip with reticulated edges (you have to see one to understand what it looked like and how it worked) which did the job, sort of, but was a PITA to use.

I moved on to Paterson tanks and reels in the 1970s and then to Jobo, which I now use in rotary processing. The Anscomatic reels were easyt to load - you set up the tank, tore the (120, 620, 127, whichever) film off the paper backing or popped the 35mm cassette with a bottle opener), and put the film on the reel. Easy as anything. results were always good, unlike the Kinderman orNikon metal reels which could dam

Righto, easy and gentle agitation is the way, a few turns to the right, then a few turns to the left.

I've not seen an Anscomatic for many years, but I'm chuffed to know that some are still in use after half a century.

 

[mpj01]

It's fun to hear these stories. Here I am almost 64 yrs old, cutting my teeth on vintage cameras and equipment. Isn't the learning curve great?

 

[Bolo Kukus]

Truly, yes indeed. I've just hit 70 and have been shooting/processing since age 13, but apparently this is not regarded as in any way exceptional on this web site. So many of us have done this, and are continuing to do it.


Of course I am a fount of old stories about them good old days, but nobody at home or in our local camera cub wants to hear them... so mpj01, you're it!!