Reloadable Cassettes 35mm

wjlapier

wjlapier

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What has been the most reliable manufacturer still selling reloadable cassettes? Can you reload after using once or does the cap get bent and isn't usable any more. And what about DX coded for 400ISO? The DX coded isn't as necessary though--I might just shoot this film in a CL only.
 
I picked up a few generic plastic ones at a local camera shop back when I briefly experimented with redscale. IIRC less than $1 each.
 
Got about 20 Kaiser plastic screw-top ones and I've reloaded them about 3 times each now. No problems there.
 
Been using Kodak Snap-Caps for decades. Come to think of it, that's probably how old the thirty I still have are.

They are designed to be able to "Snap" the "Cap" off the metal cassette with a thumb or finger each time you unload the film. The caps don't fit nearly as tight on the metal cassette as a new roll of Tri-X or other 35mm film.

Best,
-Tim
 
To resurrect the old thread - I have a question. Foma sells reloadable metal cassettes with plastic spools. They come pre-assembled and I'm a bit confused - do I smack the stem on a surface to pop the end off? and then sort of wedge it all back together? How do I know it's going to be light tight?
 
Roger and Frances to the rescue, literally from beyond the grave: Choosing Reloadable Cassettes | Roger and Frances

Pull the cassettes apart and put them back together in the light a few times to get a feel for it. If they are firmly reassembled they should be light tight if they are properly constructed. Whether you need to learn to reassemble these in complete darkness to load them depends on whether you use a daylight loader (no, you can see what you are doing) or load them manually (yes, you need to load in darkness).

I’m still using Foma metal cassettes from the 1990s from before Foma moved to crimped cassettes. They are the same as the Acupan one in the Roger and Frances article - Acupan was relabelled Foma 200 or 800. I miss the 800.

Marty
 
Ok - I’m just not very familiar with this type (only plastic twist off). So I should be pushing these apart and back together?
 
I tried the plastic type. An end of an unused roll unscrewed on its own. I assumed that it was exposed to light.
Not sure if they're all like that, but since then I use metal cassettes only. They're getting quite hard to find lately.

Chris
 
For metal cassettes; put your thumb and your index finger on opposite sides of the cassette near the top, squeeze the two fingers together and remove the top cover with your other hand. Do the same to put the top cover back on the cassette. DO NOT use a bottle opener or cassette opener on reloadable cassettes!
 
Steinberg2010 said:
To resurrect the old thread - I have a question. Foma sells reloadable metal cassettes with plastic spools. They come pre-assembled and I'm a bit confused - do I smack the stem on a surface to pop the end off? and then sort of wedge it all back together? How do I know it's going to be light tight?
Click to expand...

I don’t shoot enough 35 to justify reloading anymore but for thirty years or so I smacked the end of the spool on my loading table (in the dark of course) and popped the cap off. I’m talking about Kodak metal reusable cassettes.

In the late 60’s Kodak and other manufacturers changed the way they made their cassettes. Prior to that the caps were made different and could be easily removed and then reused. There was a ridge around the rim of the cap that snapped into a groove around the end of the cassette and secured it nicely. Around the late 60’s manufacturers started tightly crimping them on and the cassette was no longer reusable.

I still have a bag full of cassettes and think I have some. If I find one later I’ll make a quick snapshot and post it. I know I still have some of the metal screw top film cans Kodak and Agfa used to put their cassettes in instead of a foul wrapper or plastic can. The metal cans were very nice.
 
Here are some of the old cassettes from the 60’s. It appears Ilford continued to use the old design well into the 70’s and possibly later. Fuji also used a reusable cassette until somewhere around the late 80’s or early 90’s. I might be wrong about the dates though.

Notice the metal cans Kodak used. Agfa used a metal one without a threaded cap. I may have one somewhere I can show.
 

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ChrisPlatt said:
I tried the plastic type. An end of an unused roll unscrewed on its own. I assumed that it was exposed to light.
Not sure if they're all like that, but since then I use metal cassettes only. They're getting quite hard to find lately.

Chris
Click to expand...
Yes - I have a bunch of plastic cartridges and so far they've worked ok. I don't like the felt shedding (seems to be a quality problem with all the current brands available stateside. I ordered 80 metal reels from FOMA. Sadly they don't ship to the USA so I had to use a relative in Spain to forward them on...
Kai-san said:
For metal cassettes; put your thumb and your index finger on opposite sides of the cassette near the top, squeeze the two fingers together and remove the top cover with your other hand. Do the same to put the top cover back on the cassette. DO NOT use a bottle opener or cassette opener on reloadable cassettes!
Click to expand...
This is the answer I was looking for. I'm guessing that slamming them down on the surface is too much force (it didn't feel like the right method when I tried it yesterday).
x-ray said:
Here are some of the old cassettes from the 60’s. It appears Ilford continued to use the old design well into the 70’s and possibly later. Fuji also used a reusable cassette until somewhere around the late 80’s or early 90’s. I might be wrong about the dates though.

Notice the metal cans Kodak used. Agfa used a metal one without a threaded cap. I may have one somewhere I can show.
Click to expand...
Thanks - useful to see that the snap cap is noticeably different from mine which are more of a friction fit.
 
I remember when Ilford made their cassettes reusable...I had a bunch of them back then, I have no clue what happened to them.
I use a set of Honeywell Nikor openers when using factory cans these days and if you're real careful you can save the cassettes and reuse them...they will press together nicely if you haven't distorted the parts.
I have many of the yellow Kalt cassettes that look like the Ilford cans that "x-ray" posted...and a few other types.
I open them by gently squeezing the side the spool doesn't protrude through and pulling up on the lid...when closing I twist the lid to make sure it seated correctly.
 
People should be aware that many camera manufacturers (Leica, Nikon, Pentax, Canon, Zeiss, Exacta, to name a few) made really nice brass 35mm re-usable film cassettes for specific models of their cameras. These are without a doubt the best reusable cassettes one can get, particularly the ones that open up when the back is closed so that there's no light-trap in contact with the film to potentially scratch it. They generally go for around $15 a piece, expensive compared to plastic but 1000% nicer and they never ware out

Nikon F2 cassette
 
I really want to find some of these, but I don't know whether they would be compatible with my loader. Every time I see them they are $$$...
 
One reason I became an Ilford film user in the early 1980's was because of the reusable metal cassette.
Once I got a look at my HP5 negatives I was hooked.

I sure miss old HP5 (non Plus+), as well as the old Tri-X.

Chris
 
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