film drying...best way

[mjarecki]

I have been having trouble with my film that I process at home drying with a huge curve in the film, making scanning a bit difficult. Anyone out there know a way I can prevent that? Or at least make it less of a curve.

thanks

-mj

 

[robklurfield]

sleeve it, then place a couple of heavy books atop the sleeved negs.

 

[wgerrard]

Keep the film strip as straight as possible during drying. Attach a second film clip to the bottom of the strip. Or, hook a paper through a sprocket on the last frame and, with a rubber band, attach it to something else that holds the strip horizontally.

 

[robklurfield]

silly me... you asked about DRYING. I meant after drying though I think some other posters use weight during drying, too.

sleeve it, then place a couple of heavy books atop the sleeved negs.

 

[mackigator]

I use two wooden clothespin at the bottom of the strip while drying. No extreme curving yet.

 

[imokruok]

I like the generic metal film clips that pierce the film at the top and bottom. Secure and heavy enough to do away with most bending. After I sleeve the dried negs, they go into a binder with plenty of other sheets on top of them until I'm ready to scan. By the time I take them out again, they're usually flat. Like others said, you could accelerate that process with some heavy books.

 

[robklurfield]

I use metal clips at the bottom when drying which pretty much solves the longitudinal curling. You need the heavy books to get at the lateral curling though. or, you can watch curling on the olympics.😀

 

[gm13]

As much as I like Tri-x, Arista Edu ulta, or Fomapan 400 dries awfully flat in comparison. Less expensive too at 2.19/ 36 exp.

 

[glim]

If you are hanging it to dry with a clothespin on the bottom for weight and it is still curling along its length after it is dry and the weight is removed, the air it is drying in is too dry. Foma films in 120 are notorious for drying with a curl, but I dry mine now in a tall coffin of a box that keeps the humidity from the film in the box, so the drying is slowed down and the film now dries perfectly flat.

You might try steaming up the shower or something similar, then hanging the film up there to dry more slowly.

 

[imokruok]

You might try steaming up the shower or something similar, then hanging the film up there to dry more slowly.

I also like to steam the shower first because it seems to knock down the dust in the air.

 

[amateriat]

When I got back into processing my own five years ago, I went to the (considerable) trouble of finding an electric film dryer (Prinz, via That Darn Old Web Site). The film is weighted the usual way - metal film clips - and seems to dry reasonably flat (Kodak and Ilford films in this case). Using weights while drying the film is the bigger deal, however; the electric dryer mainly expedites the drying process, which might be a bigger deal to me than others.


- Barrett

 

[Rob-F]

I hang the film vertically with a light weight at the bottom. Some weight is needed to keep the film from trying to curl up lengthwise. But too much weight will cause the film to curve across its width--apparently by stressing it. A yellow plastic film clip at the bottom is the most weight I ever use. A single wooden clothes pin is really adequate. I use photo-flow before hanging the film. I don't know if it contributes to flatness, though. My film comes out ruler-straight lengthwise, and very slightly curved across the width.

 

[Ronald M]

Tape ends to prevent scratching. Wind emulsion out in 3 " dia circle. Clip with clothes pin.

After 24 hours it will be 95% flat. Good enough to scan.

48 hours sleeved and under weight makes it perfect.

 

[MichiganBill]

😀 I always flatten my negatives with photo magazines. I figure it will make them better by osmosis. (Though would it help if I kept a few magazines in the fridge with the unexposed film?)

 

[pesphoto]

yup, hang to dry with a weight on the bottom. I use weighted film clips

 

[nathanp]

..too much weight will cause the film to curve across its width--apparently by stressing it.

That's an interesting point. I've had a few issues with newton rings when scanning, which I think are due to the length-wise curl in the film. I've been hanging my film with a plastic clip that has a 9v (PP3) battery taped to it. I'll try the next one with less weight!

 

[mjarecki]

thanks everyone who responded with advice, I will be processing again this week and I think I will give the shower recipe a shot!
-mj

 

[bwcolor]

Late to the party, but I do the same as everyone else, but the final results depend upon the brand of film that I'm scanning. If you are having problems, try a different film. I use a bathroom shower stall with hot water in the sink. The stainless reel gets clipped to the bottom of the film strip. Upon cutting, the reel sits in hot water to remove remnants of photoflow. Even with this approach, some film brands curl more than others.