Do you bulk load your own film?

Do you bulk load your own film?

  • Yes I do

    Votes: 277 68.4%

  • No I can't be bothered

    Votes: 128 31.6%
  • Total voters
    405
I bulk load. Eastman Double-X 5222 costs $1.89 roll for 36 exposures. Arista Premium (Tri-X) is about $2.55 for 36 exposures. I still have 800' of Fuji Presto 1600 that I bought in Japan. I also still have 1000' of outdated Ilford Pan F (labeled Aristo) from when Freestyle was closing it out for $11.00/100'.

Still makes sense to me to do the extra work
 
With freestyle AP prices, it doesn't make much sense to bulk load TX.
I use bulk load for Ilford films, and considering the possibility of the end of Arista Premium, I will most probably make a transition to HP5.

The brass cassettes make a serious difference BTW.
They are easier to load (no struggling with adhesive tape) and to use (no accidental opening as with the metal reusable cassettes). But they are hardly economical (very expensive lately) and heavy.
 
Nokton48 said:
I bulk load. Arista Premium (Tri-X) is about $2.55 for 36 exposures. Still makes sense to me to do the extra work
Click to expand...

This,
I do bulk roll Arista Premium, before that Legacy Pro, and Ilford Pan F+ (expired)

I find it much more cost effective for me.. I just re-use canisters.
 

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kanzlr said:
hi folks, I just joined you bulk loaders...got some Fomapan 400 and a LLoyds loader.

are old Leitz metal cassettes still fine to use in a M2?
Click to expand...

FILCA's are for screw mount Leica's only
IXMOOs can be used in both but IIRC may create frame alignment issues in Barnacks.
 
http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6098/6866423936_0bb46e8a81_b.jpg
The FILCA and the IXM00 cassette for Leica screw-mount and M-mount. Easiest way to spot them is that the FILCA (on the left) has a black "point" or post and the IXMOO has a chrome one (on the right). There is also a small, but significant difference in the height of the outside shell. The FILCA is about 2 mm taller (visible at the bottom part of the slot) than the IXMOO. The FILCA does not go in to a M-camera - but the IXMOO will fit a screw-mount, with the aforementioned caveat that it can cause the film to "drop" and you end up with sprocket holes showing in the bottom of the image.
For some reason it wont show the image in the usual place - but if you click on the URL it will show up.
 
Last edited:
lam said:
This,
I do bulk roll Arista Premium, before that Legacy Pro, and Ilford Pan F+ (expired)

I find it much more cost effective for me.. I just re-use canisters.
Click to expand...

I reuse film canisters, too. I have a gallon-size ziploc bag FULL of Fuji canisters, and another gallon ziploc, FULL of Kodak canisters, from the local one-hour labs.

And 120 Kodak Snap-Caps, also. So I am set, loading right off the film cores, or using my four or five Watson loaders.
 
I'm not really hurting for reloadable cassettes, but am curious how some of you reuse cassettes from factory loads. Don't the labs pry them open and ruin one end? Or are they pulling leaders on the unopened cassettes?

I've had some luck gently prying the cap off factory loads and reusing them, but only did that when I happened to need some with the DX code. Partly I'm curious because I've been coming into a fair bit of old color film lately and wouldn't mind a good way to reuse the cartridges.
 
I recently acquired a couple of bulk loaders and lots of casettes by way of a lady who wanted to get her deceased husbands gear out of her house. So now I guess I'll be "rolling my own."
 
Mark,

Years ago I tried re-using factory cassettes and when one of the caps popped off after re-loading, I decided to spend the money and buy cassettes that can easily be re-loaded. I believe the factory cassettes aren't meant to be re-loaded perhaps because they don't want a different brand of film from the printing on the outside of the cassette.

I use the proverbial church key to get the cap off a film mfgrs cassette. The re-loadable ones are easy to get the cap off!

Here is a link to help you:

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/c70-Bulk-Loading-Supplies

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/c702-Bulk-Loading-Supplies-Reloadable-Cartridges
 
Thanks Bill, I do have plenty of reloadable cassettes for now. I just saw a couple people mention re-using cassettes from 1 hour labs and wondered how they were approaching that.
 
kanzlr said:
hi folks, I just joined you bulk loaders...got some Fomapan 400 and a LLoyds loader.

are old Leitz metal cassettes still fine to use in a M2?
Click to expand...

The IXMOO cassettes are fine with the M2 - but the older FILCA cassettes does not. They are getting expensive - but the advantage is that you can re-use them forever. Heavy to drag around - but no more scratches!
Check with Westlicht's Leica store in Vienna. Sometimes they have them.
 
Michael Markey said:
A quick scan of UK prices reveals that TriX is £4.38 ($6.99) for a single roll and £110.06 ($175.68) for a 30.5 m can.

HP5 is £5.70($9.01) a roll and £57.20($91.31) for a 30 m roll.
Click to expand...

Michael try a slower scan 😉
HP5 £52/30m = 18 rolls £2.89
Ready loaded £3.99
Saves £20

UK Prices Mathers

HP5 at £3.39 (Speedgraphic) Who have Tri-X at £3.69 BTW.
No affiliation economically with either.
 
Mark C said:
I'm not really hurting for reloadable cassettes, but am curious how some of you reuse cassettes from factory loads. Don't the labs pry them open and ruin one end? Or are they pulling leaders on the unopened cassettes?

I've had some luck gently prying the cap off factory loads and reusing them, but only did that when I happened to need some with the DX code. Partly I'm curious because I've been coming into a fair bit of old color film lately and wouldn't mind a good way to reuse the cartridges.
Click to expand...


Well there is a small amount of film sticking out of the used film cartridge, where the one-hour lab cut off the end of the roll. To daylight load, don't try to take the cartridge apart. I line up the perforations, and scotch-tape the fresh bulk roll (carefully) to the end of film sticking out of the old cartridge. Then close up the daylight loader and roll away.

I don't try to re-use the cartridges from the one-hour. Luckily, I have many more than enough for my needs and I'm always looking for more.
Obviously this works best with daylight loaders, since you need to see what you are doing.
 
I tried to pick up cassettes from a couple of local drug stores (New York State)that provide 1-hour service and they sell them to recyclers. This would seem to indicate that there is enough film still being processed to make it worthwhile for someone to come around and buy the cassettes for recycling.

I will need to pick up plastic or metal cassettes to begin bulk loading.
 
I am bulk loading from a month - I've got some short ends of Orwo N74 Plus from a friend and thanks God, because I am out of funds to buy film or anything photography related. Tough times for me, I am ready to shoot whatever I can load in my camera...
 
Thanks for the info. I imagined it was something like that, but didn't know if most labs opened the cassettes, or pulled the leaders these days.

It sounds a little too adventurous for me, so I guess I'll stick to reloadable cassettes. I asked because I supposedly have a bunch (couple hundred rolls) of factory load color coming my way and thought it might be worth reusing some. I may see if they pry open easily, I've had some success with that in the past, but as mentioned earlier, the reloads are not as secure.

Nokton48 said:
Well there is a small amount of film sticking out of the used film cartridge, where the one-hour lab cut off the end of the roll. To daylight load, don't try to take the cartridge apart. I line up the perforations, and scotch-tape the fresh bulk roll (carefully) to the end of film sticking out of the old cartridge. Then close up the daylight loader and roll away.

I don't try to re-use the cartridges from the one-hour. Luckily, I have many more than enough for my needs and I'm always looking for more.
Obviously this works best with daylight loaders, since you need to see what you are doing.
Click to expand...
 
taskoni said:
I am bulk loading from a month - I've got some short ends of Orwo N74 Plus from a friend and thanks God, because I am out of funds to buy film or anything photography related. Tough times for me, I am ready to shoot whatever I can load in my camera...
Click to expand...
Do you shoot colour as well as B&W?

Cheers,

R.
 
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