Bulkloading, tape and -degrees

[Grayhand]

I am bulkloading Fomapan film to use with my Leica M4-P and Xpan.

But I have had some problems in minus degrees now..
If I put a new canister in the Xpan and let it wind up the film and then dont immediately take a photo, I get problem.

It looks like the tape looses its "stickines" in the cold.
So when I take the first photo and the Xpan start to rewind the film it rips the spol lose from the tape and no rewinding of the film into the film canister.
The Xpan shows an Error and the film is lost..

Problems yesterday at -3, today -10...

Any knowledge of -degree "certified" frosted office tape?

Ray

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Another type of tape would perhap solve the problem?

I've never had this problem. But I've never used it in freezing temperatures.
I use one of the thicker types of scotch tape.

 

[retinax]

Not to say ther's no chance another brand of scotch take will work, but I have more faith in Gaffer's tape. Had similar problems with electrical tape.

 

[Beemermark]

Move South -🙂 Do you keep the camera inside your coat between pictures as much as possible. Body heat will keep the camera warm.

 

[Ronald M]

I used masking tape for decades before moving to Leica cassetts that do not use tape.

Use 3 to 4 inches of tape. start on emulsion side and wrap around spool and finish with 2" on the other side.

Plastic cassettes give me problems now in that after 8 to 10 frames film will not feed.
Tried Leicas and Nikons. They used to work for me, not the new batch that went into the bin.

 

[Grayhand]

I use a "office" scotch tape.
Perhaps I have to find a trademark that is certified for use by polar offices 🙂

I'm a little reluctant to use thicker tape like Gaffer tape, but it might be the only solution. Apart to use commersialy produced movie cartridges, I've never had any problems with thouse in negative temperatures.
So I do not want to spoil my cameras just because of a little cold, if I can take it, they should, thats my philosophy ..

Well, I moved to the deep southern Sweden like 18 months ago to escape from the cold.
My old stomping ground had -27C this morning.
So nothing left of Sweden south of me.
But, maybe Spain ;-)

Ray

 

[Grayhand]

The real problem is the small contact surface between the spool and the tape.
There is no problem regarding tape and the film it self

 

[sepiareverb]

It is regularly extremely cold here, and I use Artist's Tape, which I have not had fail. I tape the back of the film, around the spool, then onto the emulsion side of the the film. Not the 4" Ronald uses, but 2" anyhow.

Simplest solution is to keep track of exposure count, and rewind before one gets to the very end. Not an option with the XPAN, but with the M4 it is. I use reloadable metal cassettes, Kalt type, and have had no troubles with full 36 exposure rolls. You could use/waste the first frame indoors during extreme cold, prime the cassette so to speak. Head into a shop or cafe for the reloading if need be, tho I have troubles with condensation trying to reload indoors when it gets really cold.

 

[dave lackey]

The real problem is the small contact surface between the spool and the tape.
There is no problem regarding tape and the film it self

Hi, Ray!

Good to see you on RFF! Also good to see another film shooter. I have never had the specific problem you are experiencing, but you have definitely come to the right place for answers!!🙂🙂🙂

 

[Grayhand]

Ok I will try out the Artist´s tape. Thanks for the tip Bob
I also now loaded a new cassete and "wasted" the first frame indoor to try to get a better grip while I try to get my hands on the new tape.

Thanks Dave. I realised that this was my first posts here!
I only previously sold a bunch of film cameras here, like 4 Mamya 6 with lenses and sutch stuff.
Normaly I dont shoot this micro film format 🙂
Mostly it is medium format, analog and digital so most of my time I spend on GetDPI. but I think I will be time sharing now 🙂

Ray

 

[Dwig]

Back when I bulk loaded film (long ago and far away...), I found "office" tapes a poor choice. I experimented around and found that the "freezer tape" that was sold in my grocery store was perfect. It is/was a crepe paper tape, like "masking tape", that you could write on, was water proof (read: didn't wash off in the developer and land on an image!!), and maintained adhesion and freezing temps.

 

[Grayhand]

"The trut shall set you free"

What else to use in -degrees, than freezer tape?

Thank you Dwig for making the obvious obvious to me!

Why didnt I think about that myself???

Ray