Fuji Microfine

I bought 10 packets from Megaperls last month. I'll drop them an email and see if Fuji has stopped making chemistry and if they have any remaining stock. I'd like to get as much of it as I can before the supply dries up. Hmm... I wonder how long until they stop producing B&W film? That'd really be a shame if that ended up being the case. 🙁

Ash
 
I sent an email to Megaperls regarding the status of Microfine. Dirk replied that Fuji has no plans to discontinue that particular developer as far as he knows. It was Artdol and Fujidol E that were discontinued along with some other miscellaneous chemistry,

Regards,

Ash
 
If fuji recommends developing Acros 100 in Microfine stock solution for 7 minutes at 24 degrees C, and for 8 min 45 sec if used at 1 plus 1 dilution, how long do you think it should need at 1 plus 3 dilution?

I have just about enough developer left in the bottle for 1 plus 3 for the one film I would like to develop, and do not want to make up another litre of it right now.
 
I won't be able to answer your question, because Fuji does not officially recommend a dilution any less concentrated than 1:1 but perhaps this might help you to make a guess by extrapolating times from the available information.
If you find the pdf. of the Neopan Acros 100 (135 size) data sheet, you will find that the time you have listed for processing 1:1 is incorrect.
Fresh, unused, Microfine will develop the first roll at 7 minutes @ 24deg Centigrade as you noted. However, the developing time for for fresh developer mixed 1:1 @ 24 deg Centigrade is not 8:45, it is 10 minutes.
Microfine is a great developer for Acros, but potency falls off fairly rapidly as it is used. You get do do 8 rolls, total, from a 1 liter batch of Microfine, with times increasing with every other roll, more or less.
I'm curious as to how you use the developer if you have ended up with what seems to be around 100 ml of stock solution, which, I am assuming, is still unused stock solution.
Anyway, my main reason for posting is to provide the correct developing time for 1:1 @ 24deg C, which is 10 minutes, not 8:45. Hope this helps.
 
Thank you.

I have been using it 1:1 and I think I have developed 4 35mm films in it (150ml each) and 1 roll of 120 (250 ml) so I have used about 850 ml. I would need 250 ml for the roll of 120 I would like to develop at 1:1, but only 125 ml at 1:3.

I got the developing times from the pack of developer itself.
 
As it turned out, I had 110 ml of stock developer solution left in the bottle. I made it up to 500 ml (enough to cover a 120 film in the tank) and developed it for 15 minutes at 24 deg C. The negatives look quite reasonable.
 
Dear Forum Friends,

I also just purchased 1 bag for trying.

For the usage I have a bit of understanding problem, and nowhere I can find a detailed description.

Maybe you know about it?

When I make this 1 liter of finished developer from the bag, it says that it can be used 8 times.

But what if I always only use like 250 ml?
Can I then just separate this 250 ml and can use this 8 times and after this start using the remaining 750 ml portion by portion?
Or, if not, just use ¼ of the bag and make only 250 ml and keep the rest for later?

If I use only 125 ml and add another 125 ml distilled water, the same applies just the development time would be 10 minutes like described above?

On the bag I see only 10 minutes in general for the first 1-2 developments, then 11 minutes and so on but on the lower table but for 20 C. The 8:45 minutes at 24 C I see in upper table for the 1:1...but my Japanese is not really existing, so I am just guessing from what I seem to recognise.
The "massive dev chart "and my apps all seem to have no info about this developer...

Anybody has a clue and can please share with me?

Thanks and always good light, Miguel
 
One package of Fuji Microfine will develop 8 rolls 36 exposure rolls of 35mm film if used as a stock solution. (There are directions on the package for 1:1 which would give you more rolls, but Fuji does not really recommend using it at less than stock strength. That's it. Then you mix up another liter from a fresh package.
You need to mix up the entire package of powder to make a liter of developer. Since there is no way to accurately determine if the contents are equally distributed in every quarter package if trying to mix only 250 ml at a time. Definitely not recommended.
No, even if you tried to weigh out a quarter of the powder to mix up 250 ml of solution, you can't get 8 rolls processed in 250ml of solution. One pack of powder, you get 8 total films developed then you discard the now exhausted solution and mix up another pack in another liter of water. 1 liter = 8 films. That's it. It is possible to use it at 1:1 or even more dilute, but, speaking only for myself, I much preferred the results at stock strength. YMMV.

Using the recommended stock solution develop as below:
First two rolls 10 minutes at 20 deg C.
3rd and 4th rolls 11 minutes at 20 deg C.
5th and 6th rolls 12 minutes at 20 deg C.
7th roll 13 minutes at 20 deg C.
8th roll 13 minutes 30 seconds at 20 deg C.
Continuous agitation first minute, then 5 seconds agitation per minute after that.

If developing two rolls in one tank simultaneously, just time it accordingly. 10 minutes for first tank with two rolls, 11 minutes for second tank with two rolls etc.
Develop, then dump your used developer back into the bottle with the rest of the unused stock solution. So basically, like a replenisher.

It is a real nice developer for ACROS. That is the only film stock I have used it for, so cannot comment for others.
 
Thanks a lot Larry for the excellent and detailed explanation.
Now it is very clear and I will also do it exactly like this.
Even though I hoped my ideas would also work, to get a bit more usages out of the raw material...

Thanks again and happy weekend, Miguel
 
According to an old web page by Ryuji Suzuki, based on some evidence (MSDS) he guessed the composition to be along these lines:

"Microfine is a ultrafine grained developer supplied in dry powder package. This
formula somewhat resembles a cross of D-25 and Microdol. The developing
agent is metol (3-7%). The solution contains a large amount of sodium sulfite
(70-90%), some sodium chloride (7-15%), and a small amount of sodium
phosphate monobasic (0.5-1.5%) to make the solution pH very weakly alkaline."

and from the same article:
"Recent packaged developers by Fujifilms do not have a published formula. Here
is a list of developers whose MSDS is available. Fujifilm's MSDS omits
ingredients whose contents is below one percent. Therefore, agents typically used
in small quantities must be guessed and filled in. This includes phenidone (or its
derivative), potassium bromide, and benzotriazole. However, benzotriazole is
difficult to prepare in dry form and therefore less likely to be the antifoggant of
choice for these products."
 
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