Got JOBO Processor - need help

[Monz]

Dear All,
I have been thinking about doing my own black and white developing for a while now. Yesterday, I picked up a Jobo CPE2 processing unit from a guy in London; six hour round trip but worth it! He was clearing out his darkroom, so I ended up with loads of extra stuff including chemicals. I have read through the various Jobo leaflets, some threads on this forum and various web resources and have a reasonable idea as to what to do. However, I need help on some of the finer points.

Basic Equipment:

Jobo Unitank 1520 with plastic spirals (takes 35 and 120 film)
CPE2 processing unit
Various Graduates
Squeezie
Jobo cascade to wash tank
Jessops film retriever
Thermometer, stopwatch

Ilfosol S developer
Jessops Photochem Econostop 2
Ilford Rapid Fixer

I don’t have a darkroom but I am waiting for a changing bag from another guy on eBay; the bag should be here any day now. In the meantime, I have practised loading film onto the spiral and loading the spiral into the tank in daylight. It is a tricky business even with the light on!

I’d like to use the CPE2 processor with my first roll. My plan is as follows:

1. According to the instructions which come with the kit, I need 240ml of developer. If I use the CPE2 unit, then the tank should be rotated for 6 mins (at 20 deg C) with HP5.
2. I’ll then use stop bath for 1 minute and...
3. Fixer for 2-5 mins followed by...
4. 5 min final rinse in water using the Jobo cascade.
5. Then immerse for 1 min in water with washing up liquid in it.
6. Hang to dry.

My questions:
1.What volumes of stop bath and fixer should I use?
2. When fixing, should the tank be re-attached to the Jobo rotator or can I just invert by hand every 60 seconds?

Sorry, if this sounds like a school chemistry experiment, but any help would be gratefully received.

Many thanks.
--
Monz

 

[Gid]

Dear All,
I have been thinking about doing my own developing for a while now. Yesterday, I picked up a Jobo CPE2 processing unit from a guy in London; six hour round trip but worth it! He was clearing out his darkroom, so I ended up with loads of extra stuff including chemicals. I have read through the various Jobo leaflets, some threads on this forum and various web resources and have a reasonable idea as to what to do. However, I need help on some of the finer points.

Basic Equipment:

Jobo Unitank 1520 with plastic spirals (takes 35 and 120 film)
CPE2 processing unit
Various Graduates
Squeezie
Jobo cascade to wash tank
Jessops film retriever
Thermometer, stopwatch

Ilfosol S developer
Jessops Photochem Econostop 2
Ilford Rapid Fixer

I don’t have a darkroom but I am waiting for a changing bag from another guy on eBay; the bag should be here any day now. In the meantime, I have practised loading film onto the spiral and loading the spiral into the tank in daylight. It is a tricky business even with the light on!

I’d like to use the CPE2 processor with my first roll. My plan is as follows:

1. According to the instructions which come with the kit, I need 240ml of developer. If I use the CPE2 unit, then the tank should be rotated for 6 mins (at 20 deg C) with HP5.
2. I’ll then use stop bath for 1 minute and...
3. Fixer for 2-5 mins followed by...
4. 5 min final rinse in water using the Jobo cascade.
5. Then immerse for 1 min in water with washing up liquid in it.
6. Hang to dry.

My questions:
1.What volumes of stop bath and fixer should I use?
2. When fixing, should the tank be re-attached to the Jobo rotator or can I just invert by hand every 60 seconds?

Sorry, if this sounds like a school chemistry experiment, but any help would be gratefully received.

Many thanks.
--
Monz

Same volume of stop and fixer as developer and just use the processor for all steps. Generally you reduce the time for development by 10 to 15% from that used for the inversion method. Inversion method dev times are available from the Ilford website.

 

[Finder]

Inversion also requires more chemistry, so as Gid says, use the processor. If you can get the Jobo Lift, it will make this all much easier.

 

[Monz]

Many thanks for the comments Gid and Finder.
@Finder: this kit didn't come with the lift. I have seen pictures of the lift - it looks a bit bulky. Apart from keeping your hands dry, does the lift do anything else?

I am planning to scan the negatives and save images onto CD as jpegs or PDFs. I am also thinking about making contact prints. The kit came with a contact printer which is basically a slab with a glass plate/foam sandwich. Any tips on how to use the contact printer? What kind of paper do I need? What is the best way to expose the sheet bearing in mind that I don't have an enlarger? Do I need to process the contact paper after exposure to light?

Thanks again.
--
Monz

 

[DavidH]

Dear All,
My questions:
1.What volumes of stop bath and fixer should I use?
2. When fixing, should the tank be re-attached to the Jobo rotator or can I just invert by hand every 60 seconds?

Monz

Hey Monz - good buy - I love the cpe2.

Volumes-wise, you need enough to cover the film on the reels - I usually put in more than 240 (about 270ml) just to be sure. Use same volumes of dev, stop and fixer.

Reattach the tank for everything - you can even do the rinse on the Jobo (but the Ilford method is faster over the sink).

It comes in to its own when doing lengthy runs of dilute dev...hand inversions for 10 mins is a pain. 🙂

Couple of tips...
Measure temp inside the bottles/graduates - rather than relying on the water in the Jobo itself.
Maintain consistency with timings - it takes about 10secs to fill or drain the tank so time from start or end of draining/fill but always do it the same way - one less variable when you're tweaking timings later on for best results.
Buy another tank or two and you can get through a lot of film dev in an afternoon evening - ebay is best price for extra tanks.
Check that water in Jobo is maintained at the right level - it evaporates fast in summer - top it up before switching on the Jobo for warm up.
Need maybe 10% less time for dev - because of the constant agitation. It's a personal thing but 15% less proved too much for me.

Try some color work when you get up to speed - using the Tetenal rapid kits. It's just as easy.

cheers

 

[Finder]

Yes, the lift helps with timing. Changing chemistry is faster. Not that you have to change your chemistry with in a second or two, but it does make it smoother and more consistant.

 

[Pablito]

watch out for streaking. I was never able to get good, even results with medium format film.

 

[kully]

Although I can understand this being great for C-41 or E-6 processes which need a constant high tempreture, I always found it easier to to dev my B&W in a normal paterson tank.

If anyone wants a CPE-2 (without lift) in the UK, drop me a PM.

 

[Monz]

Hey Monz - good buy - I love the cpe2.

Volumes-wise, you need enough to cover the film on the reels - I usually put in more than 240 (about 270ml) just to be sure. Use same volumes of dev, stop and fixer.

Reattach the tank for everything - you can even do the rinse on the Jobo (but the Ilford method is faster over the sink).

It comes in to its own when doing lengthy runs of dilute dev...hand inversions for 10 mins is a pain. 🙂

Couple of tips...
Measure temp inside the bottles/graduates - rather than relying on the water in the Jobo itself.
Maintain consistency with timings - it takes about 10secs to fill or drain the tank so time from start or end of draining/fill but always do it the same way - one less variable when you're tweaking timings later on for best results.
Buy another tank or two and you can get through a lot of film dev in an afternoon evening - ebay is best price for extra tanks.
Check that water in Jobo is maintained at the right level - it evaporates fast in summer - top it up before switching on the Jobo for warm up.
Need maybe 10% less time for dev - because of the constant agitation. It's a personal thing but 15% less proved too much for me.

Try some color work when you get up to speed - using the Tetenal rapid kits. It's just as easy.

cheers

Thanks David.
The kit came with two thermometers – a mercury one for the water bath and a fancy electronic one with a probe which I guess should be used to monitor the temperature within the bottles/graduates.
The kit also included THREE Unitanks (!) with 6 spirals and a further extension tank to boot. There was also a massive tank for processing print; an embarrassment of riches.
I'll bear in mind all your tips when I get started. I am just waiting for that changing bag. Once I get used to B&W, I'd love to give colour a go.
All the best.
--
Monz

 

[Monz]

watch out for streaking. I was never able to get good, even results with medium format film.

Thanks Pablito - any tips on how to avoid streaking? Does using a squeegie help?

--
Monz

 

[Monz]

Although I can understand this being great for C-41 or E-6 processes which need a constant high tempreture, I always found it easier to to dev my B&W in a normal paterson tank.

If anyone wants a CPE-2 (without lift) in the UK, drop me a PM.

Hi kully,
I was going to get just a tank and do the B+W processing by hand but the prices for used darkroom equipment is so good at the moment and so I ended up getting the Jobo CPE2 kit. I wish I had known about your kit before I got mine 🙂

--
Monz

 

[Monz]

The changing bag arrived today and so I just ran my first roll of black and white film (Trix 400) through the Jobo CPE2. I used Ilfosol S developer and gave it 8.5 mins (rotating). The negatives are hanging in the bathroom - they look good! I hope to scan and post a few of the shots soon.

Thanks to everyone for the various advice given.
--
Monz