NEW "New Portra" 120?

[CMur12]

My least favorite Rolleiflex feature is the film-feeler. I've never fully trusted it and this doesn't help.


- Murray

 

[Jamie123]

Please see the note from Kodak on post 11. The second to last paragraph mentioned chances to the blue adhesive.

Thanks! I missed that. Glad to hear it, though. I must've not gotten the newest batch then, although I just bought the film last month and the expiry dates are all between May and September of 2021.
In any case, a few assignments and a vacation made me go through upwards of 70 rolls of Portra in less than two months so I guess a new large film order is due soon 🙂

 

[Ted Striker]

I stopped shooting Kodak film in 120 size years ago, but I have always had issues with sealing their film even back then before I dropped them. The stickers would constantly detach from the film rolls, so often that I started carrying tape with me. Before doing that I had to struggle mightily to get tape from somewhere while holding the film roll closed with my hands. Not fun when you are in a foreign country that does not speak English!


Fujifilm's stickers are absolutely bullet proof. 100% success rate. Ilford is much better than Kodak too.

 

[NY_Dan]

My least favorite Rolleiflex feature is the film-feeler. I've never fully trusted it and this doesn't help.


- Murray

I love the film-feeler - never presented a problem and it speeds up the process of loading and shooting.

 

[MrFujicaman]

I've noticed for years that Kodak's 120 stick'em on the strip at the end isn't that dependable, and that other manufacturer's is better. Price goes up and quality goes down. They got it right almost a century ago...

One of my friends used to keep Band-Aids in his camera bag for this problem.

I just carry electrical tape...

 

[Mooshoepork]

FYI you’ll see a fix for this sealing thing in Kodak 120 film very shortly

 

[CharlesDAMorgan]

My Rolleiflex 3.5F got looser as the roll progressed, but loading a roll of Portra 160 into my Zeiss Super Ikonta folder was a royal PITA, the film is just a bit too slippery and too tightly wound. Hey ho, at least I'm expecting it now!

 

[jssaraiva]

I’ve been struggling a bit with a new to me Bronica RF645 due to (apparently) this issue. Fat rolls and not able to continue after about mid roll. Anyone has experience that can share using these new glossy backing paper on this camera?

 

[froyd]

I’ve been struggling a bit with a new to me Bronica RF645 due to (apparently) this issue. Fat rolls and not able to continue after about mid roll. Anyone has experience that can share using these new glossy backing paper on this camera?

Are you putting the roll in tension during the first few convolutions? That was the advice from the manufacturer.

 

[largedrink]

The new Portra shiny backing paper makes the film harder to load on my Rolleiflex as well as my Linhof Technorama, simply because it is too slippery and slides out of the take up spool easily

 

[Doug]

Are you putting the roll in tension during the first few convolutions? That was the advice from the manufacturer.

Yes, dittos.... This needs to become a habit with any roll film camera. While the back is open and you're feeding the leader onto the takeup spool, rest your left thumb on the feed-side roll to apply tension and make sure the takeup starts good and tight. This will allow the rest of the roll to get a good wrap as you shoot and advance the film. This avoids the loose wrap as shooting progresses which fattens the roll and causes it to drag on the takeup roll recess. Ok, so I'm being redundant here but I hope it comes across clearly! 🙂

 

[Sarcophilus Harrisii]

Just got a reply from Kodak Alaris to my inquiry regarding this issue. Their tip to put back pressure on the loading spool to avoid the problems I was having might be the reason why two of my rolls loaded well, and two had the "missing sealing label" problem. I probably applied more pressure on some and less on the others.

Here is what they wrote:
In 2015- 2016 we experienced incidents of frame numbers appearing on 120-format film negatives. We’ve made a series of modifications to our backing paper in order to eliminate this issue. The most recent change was to add a primer layer beneath the lacquer overcoat of the paper. The primer coat in combination with the lacquer overcoat adds some glossiness. The paper itself is the same, and the overcoat is the same. The backing paper stiffness has increased slightly, which requires a bit more force to get a good initial cinch on the take-up spool.

Note: Without a good initial cinch, an air gap forms on the first couple convolutions of the rewind spool which does not go away as the remainder of the film is wound on the spool. This can cause a soft roll. Suggest you try putting a little back pressure on the unwind spool with your thumb while making the initial cinch on the rewind spool. That way the first few convolutions will be tight. If a good initial cinch is made with a couple convolutions of paper on the rewind spool, the remainder of the film will wind up without issue.

This may be the reason for the “after-exposure” sealing label becoming detached (i.e. it is catching somewhere in the camera because the roll is a bit loose)

Additionally, we’ve also made some improvements to the label itself, including removing the blue adhesive and replacing it with one that is more aggressive . You should find the new labels seal much better.

Thank you for shooting Kodak film, and for the feedback.

With particular reference to the Rollei twin lens cameras, from at least the 1950s (if not earlier) Rollei fitted a thin sheet of curved aluminium into the body cavity for the supply spool. It imposes a moderate braking effect to the spool by dragging on the paper backing, to ensure that the film stays snug around the supply spool until it is drawn across the film gate.

Over time the aluminium brake can lose its optimum profile and sit too close to the front of the body. Particularly if the owner is in the habit of loading quickly and pushing rolls into the cavity incorrectly. It can squash the brake. But it can be gently drawn out again, until it achieves the proper pressure against the backing paper.

The brake is fitted to Rolleiflex and Rolleicord models. Given Kodak's advice above, it might be more important than usual to ensure it's properly adjusted, if using recently wrapped Kodak films.

Here's a photo of the part involved, as installed, in this instance, in a Rolleiflex 2.8D Xenotar. It's a simple piece of thin aluminium, but like every part Rollei designed into their cameras, it has a definite purpose and precise function.

 

[jssaraiva]

Are you putting the roll in tension during the first few convolutions? That was the advice from the manufacturer.

Thanks for the feedback. Yes, I'm trying my best at that. I've read it on previous messages and I've been paying special attention to that.

I've not had this problem on Pentax 6x7, Hasselblad 503cx with A12 and Autocord RG3 but with the Bronica RF645, if I run a full roll in a few minutes, I've been having no issues. However, if I leave a roll midway through (like at exposure 5 to 7) I find that in the next day I can't advance it properly and when I give up the roll it is pretty fat.

I've been also seeing this with Lomo CN 400. Again, just on the Bronica RF645... With Portra, the expiry date on the rolls I've seen this is happening is mid 2021 (July to October).