Film leader retriever - some kind of mean joke?

[akptc]

Well, it finally worked but I think my "puller" is defective - it took many, many tries. I tested it also on loose film, the grip just isn't there. I will have to try something better built (maybe a $6 one 🙂)

Then again, a bottle opener and some electrical tape sounds pretty good too...

 

[jano]

I have one that looks like that.. everyone's advice is good, but that never worked for me, too. After about a dozen rolls, I think I know how to do it.

Pull the "a" and "b" to the back position.

Stick all three tongues into the casset.

DIFFERENT: roll that nubby on the film in the rewind direction, until you hear a very, very faint click

Now push the first tongue all the way up.

Again.. rotate the nubby in the rewind direction, slowly, next to your ear, as smoothly as you can until you hear the faint click.

Now stick the second tongue all the way in.

Go ahead and pull it out.. slowly, and make sure you leave the nubby free, otherwise you rise preventing it from rolling out.

Hope that makes sense...

 

[akptc]

I have one that looks like that.. everyone's advice is good, but that never worked for me, too. After about a dozen rolls, I think I know how to do it.

Pull the "a" and "b" to the back position.

Stick all three tongues into the casset.

DIFFERENT: roll that nubby on the film in the rewind direction, until you hear a very, very faint click

Now push the first tongue all the way up.

Again.. rotate the nubby in the rewind direction, slowly, next to your ear, as smoothly as you can until you hear the faint click.

Now stick the second tongue all the way in.

Go ahead and pull it out.. slowly, and make sure you leave the nubby free, otherwise you rise preventing it from rolling out.

Hope that makes sense...

- What did it for me was to understand that I needed to initially push the top, long tongue in just a bit, so that I knew which of the 2 possible clicks I was hearing. I now did it a few more times, seems to work.

 

[back alley]

.... huh ???? Joe is that really you that put up this post? ;- )

Yours worked first time. What was it, did you really want stainless steel?

right after i sold that one to you...i broke mine. i had that second one around as a back up and never needed it, so i sold it. and then i broke mine.
not so lucky all the tiime.

 

[derevaun]

I've had pretty good luck with this contraption.

 

[That Guy]

😕

No tools for me. I've always just smashed the top of the canister on the counter or floor a few times. Four or five good whacks and it'll open, and without damaging the cansiter (so it's reuseable). An old trick I picked up a long time ago. I just tried it with my "test" roll and it opened fine. Just make sure you're in complete darkness if it's good film. Installation is reverse of removal.

FWIW...

 

[akptc]

... I've always just smashed ....in complete darkness...
FWIW...

I like this. I think this would have a very calming effect on my nerves... 🙂

 

[jaapv]

Piece of stiff plastic with doublesided sticky tape at the end - works great costs 0.05 $.... There is one caveat with all these things . they all open up the velvet light-trap at the entrance slit of the canister. It is advisable to use these gadgets in low light to prevent film fogging.

 

[Socke]

I have an Ilford branded one, the manual said, executive summary 🙂, to wind the film back until your hear a click, insert the first tonge and wind forward until you feel resistance, insert the second tonge and pull back both.

Works fine!

 

[pshinkaw]

Those thinsg sometimes completely refuse to work for me. I went back to my 1969 version.

Take a piece of film, trim a little of each corner where the peforations are to make a trapezoidal tongue. put a piece of double stick tape on the end. Insert, wind the spool OUTWARD until it stops. Wind INWARD about 1/2 turn. If the piece of film gets drawn inward, pull it out. If it doesn''t, try again. Takes an average of about three trys.

-Paul

 

[yossarian]

Andy, you may find this hard to believe, but that's what I used during the four years
I worked at a lab. Some are better than others, of course, but once you get the feel
for it the thing becomes second nature. I have NEVER been good at manipulating
devices with my hands, but I'll bet I could win speed trials with one of those. Short
rolls are more difficult since they aren't as tightly packed.
I agree you may want to try another sample--just don't give up. Once you get it you
won't even remember all the grief you went through.

Fred

 

[akptc]

... insert the first tonge and wind forward until you feel resistance, insert the second tonge...

I went looking for the 2nd tongue, labeled "B" on my puller, turns out it was stuck, i.e. the "B" handle that pushes it out did not move. Reading your post just now, I tried to force it out and it worked. I've got two tongues now ... 🙂 Funny thing is, I'd already managed to retrieve the film a couple of times with the 2nd tongue stuck inside. What a silly thing this is! Thanks again for everyone’s advice, I am now a happy user of a cheap film retriever that works 😀

(Fred, you are right - patience is everything)

 

[berci]

One of my cameras makes the end of the film to curl and that caused the same problem with my Ilford film retriever.

Although it might have been that i was using it on Tri-X. 🙂

Anyway, if the end of the film is too curly then it can be tricky.

Bertie

 

[Honu-Hugger]

One of my cameras makes the end of the film to curl and that caused the same problem with my Ilford film retriever.

Although it might have been that i was using it on Tri-X. 🙂

Anyway, if the end of the film is too curly then it can be tricky.

Bertie

This could be the problem I encountered; Alpa spools put a tight bend on the end of the leader. The unusual (even for me) amount of cursing that was taking place when I attempted to use this contraption got my wife's attention. She also could not get the device to work and agreed the instructions, at least with my version, were woefully inadequate. I derived great pleasure in taking it out to the garage and smashing it to bits with a hammer -- the destruction alone was worth more than twenty-fold what I paid for the piece of crap 🙂D). I've always popped the lids on anything I'm developing at home. If I inadvertently wind a leader into an otherwise useful roll I'll sacrifice it -- film is cheap!

 

[Andy K]

- What did it for me was to understand that I needed to initially push the top, long tongue in just a bit, so that I knew which of the 2 possible clicks I was hearing. I now did it a few more times, seems to work.

You really need to push the top 'tongue' all the way into the cassette first, then turn the film spindle in the direction required to rewind the film, listen for two clicks, a quiet click and then a slightley louder click, when you hear the louder click then insert the second tongue, and gently withdraw both together.

If you still have trouble gripping the film, then slightly between the two retriever tongues before inserting them (a licked finger will do). It doesn't matter because the film will get wet in developing anyway.

 

[JohnL]

Edited in respect to akptc in order to remove perceived prurient content ... :angel:

Take a piece of exposed and developed film and cut it to about 6 inches long. Slightly moisten one end and thread it carefully into the canister until it's about a couple of inches inside or you feel resistance. Then try to wind the film __out__ of the canister by turning the shaft. When you meet resistance with this, jiggle the film and pull gently, while still trying to wind the film out by further gentle twisting. Usually works.

Actually, this has never failed for me. Total equipment cost $0.00.

 

[berci]

How long shall we lick it?

Is three minutes too long?

;-]

 

[JohnL]

The devil is in the details ...
How can I respond to this? Should I take it seriously?
It just needs to be slightly moist.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

A paper clip? Hmmm... got plenty of those all over the place at home and in the office.

You bent a hook on the end... And then?

BTW, I saw a film retriever in Central Camera for $8. When I asked for a demonstration of how to use it, nobody in the store could do it. Of course, I didn't buy it.

 

[Tarzak]

A paper clip? Hmmm... got plenty of those all over the place at home and in the office.

You bent a hook on the end... And then?

OK.

I bent a 90 degree bend in the end of an unfolded paperclip - about 1mm of wire sticking up. Then I bent a gentle radius in the wire, away from the 'hook'. Wind the film tighter (away from the slot) until you hear feel the leader go past the slot. I wind it just a bit more (yes very accurate measurement there). Stick the paper clip in so that the hook and curve are flat with the film slot. You can feel when it hits the canister on the inside, pull back a bit then wind the film so that it heads towards the slot. You can feel it touching the paper clip, no guarantee that it's on the top side of the clip but that's what you're after. Best guess as to where the sprocket holes are, turn the clip 90 degrees and gently pull towards the slot.
It did work after I finally realised that I was trying to grab the short end of the leader instead of the long end.

The $3 doohickey sounds like a marvelous innovation.