What to do if I have the slows?

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Pfreddee

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I generally don't rush through a 36-exposure roll of film. Sometimes it will take me a month to get through a roll, especially if I'm going back and forth among my collection. I currently use Kodak HC-110, which is easy to make up on an ad-hoc basis. But I was wondering, how do you other slowpokes out there handle things if you're mixing up, say, D76? It doesn't have a long shelf life after it's mixed, or does it? How do you manage with developing 1-2 rolls a month with a developer like D76? I'd like to use it on Tri-X.

Thanks to all who reply.

With best regards,

Pfreddee(Stephen)
 
I'm more intermittent than slow, but it works out to be the same thing - one roll of film to process one month, than 3 rolls, than no rolls than maybe 4 rolls another month. Therefore I stopped using D76 and Xtol as I was tired of tossing out partially used and either bad developer (D76) or untrustworthy developer (Xtol). I have standardized on HC110 (generally dilution H) and Rodinal because of their long half lives. They may not be the overall best, but they are always ready when I need them.
 
When I used D-76 I would keep the Stock solution for up to 6 months without any problems...
But having said that I no longer use D-76 for the same reason...it would sit for 6 months...
These days its either HC-110 or Rodinal...
Maybe if you get the smaller packets and make a Quart of Stock solution it wouldn't hurt as much if you have to throw it out...
And don't try to divide up a larger packet to mix up a smaller amount as the ingredients will not divide equally and you could have developing issues...that's what I've been told...
 
I store a gallon of D-76 stock solution in 3 1L bottles, instead of one big bottle, so I can open them one at a time. That way it stays good for 6 months.
 
Chris101 said:
Use D76 as needed:

http://sargentwelch.com/ohaus-compact-scales/p/IG0036740/
Click to expand...

NO! You do not want to measure a portion of the D-76 powder to mix. That powder actually consists of a number of individual chemical powders mixed together. You must mix the whole package of powder at once because if you take out just part of it, you will probably not get the correct amount of each individual chemical contained in the D-76 package.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Stephen,

If you want a chemical with long shelf life that you can mix just the amount needed, like HC-110 or Rodinal, but with the finer grain associated with D-76, I'd suggest Kodak Tmax Developer. Its more expensive than many developers, but you'll spend more wasting most of your D-76 when it expires on you. To save money, Tmax can be diluted 1+7 instead of the standard 1+4 dilution. I actually prefer this dilution, as it gives more manageable developing times. The 1+4 dilution gives very short times that can give uneven developing if you are not careful.

The developing time for Tri-X in Tmax Developer diluted 1+7 is 9 minutes at 68F/20C. Agitate first 30 seconds and then two inversions of the tank every 30 seconds. I shoot it at EI-320 but I do that with D-76 too. if you insist on shooting it at box speed, you'll get close enough results. Its only 1/3 stop difference, I'm a perfectionist so I notice the difference. Most don't. Kodak doesn't give developing times for Tri-X in Tmax at the 1+7 dilution. I worked this out by testing it myself and it works well.

Its a widely believed myth that Tmax Developer is for Tmax film only. It was actually designed to push Tmax 400 and Tmax 3200, but it actually works great for most films at normal developing times and film speeds. Here's some Tri-X shots:

iron-bathtub.jpg




inside-job1.jpg


Both shot on 35mm Tri-X, developed in Tmax Developer 1+7 as noted above.
 
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Same story here. I now use 24-exposure rolls and HC110 developer.

How long will an opened bottle of T-max developer concentrate remain usable?

Chris
 
I don't know how long the shelf life of Tmax Developer is. There is an expiration date stamped on every bottle, but I suspect that it applies to unopened bottles, not open ones. I've kept open ones that were not past the date for almost a year with no problems...the stuff seems to last a long time.
 
Chriscrawfordphoto said:
NO! You do not want to measure a portion of the D-76 powder to mix. That powder actually consists of a number of individual chemical powders mixed together. You must mix the whole package of powder at once because if you take out just part of it, you will probably not get the correct amount of each individual chemical contained in the D-76 package.
...
Click to expand...

It works fine Chris, I've done it. Just mix the powder well, then dissolve 55 grams in 450 mL of hot water. Cool and dilute to 500.
 
Lots of good ideas here.

I'm a slowpoke, as well; for me, HC110 dil H is the answer. Easy-peasy:

2738532008_24c73f1e93_z.jpg


The most inconvenient thing left is hauling out the Rubbermaid container that has my chems in it. Well, I'm lazy, so I'm a bad example.


Cheers,
--joe.
 
Chris101 said:
It works fine Chris, I've done it. Just mix the powder well, then dissolve 55 grams in 450 mL of hot water. Cool and dilute to 500.
Click to expand...

I did a few experiments on this and it works - within limits. Chris is a perfectionist - so am I - if you want consistent, predictable density, sooner or later mixing up smaller amounts will disappoint. With Tri-X/D76, you'll be unlikely to get an unprintable/unscannable negative, but given that there are plenty of good liquid developers that also save you the hassle of mixing up a small amount of powder every time you want to develop a film, there's no reason to do it. The main thing you can't control is how evenly the powder has been mixed prior to you getting it. The different chemicals have different average granule sizes and surface textures and they tend not to be perfectly mixed. The density of a test strip of film taken from one ond of a bag of Kodak D76 was ~8% different to one developed in powder taken from the other end. If you open the bag and sonicate the contents loose they tend to sort - after 10 minutes on a sonicator I got a ~15% change in density. This is less likely to happen in the bag because it is vacuum sealed and thus held quite tightly.

ChrisPlatt said:
How long will an opened bottle of T-max developer concentrate remain usable?
Click to expand...

I have used very out of date (2-3 years) TMax and TMax RS (not the same thing) developers in a pinch (I'd run out of everything else and had a pressing need for some results) and it worked fine - the solvent is a glycol and consequently the product seems to oxidise very slowly. But you can buy it in a quite small bottle (to make 1 gallon) and as always I'd recommend following the manufacturer's recommendations, including about product expiry.

Marty
 
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What do I do?
I use one-shot liquid developers. I like ID-11 (D76) but unless you have volume to put through you end up wasting it.
I choose Rodinal 1+50 for ISO 125 and lower and Ilford DD-X 1+4 for ISO400 films. (I don't like what Rodinal does to HP5+)
And if I have a number of films I'll mix a batch of Prescysol EF because I can develop different film types together for the same processing time and get excellent results.

Also, I've shifted towards using my Rolleis much more than my 35mm RF's. With only 12 shots to a roll there isn't that long wait to finish a film, and the negative quality is great!
 
Leigh Youdale said:
I've shifted towards using my Rolleis much more than my 35mm RF's. With only 12 shots to a roll there isn't that long wait to finish a film, and the negative quality is great!
Click to expand...

I must admit my first thought was 'set yourself up to bulk load and roll 12 exposure rolls', but using 120 is even better. Using 6x9 might make the slows disappear altogether.

Marty
 
Pfreddee said:
I generally don't rush through a 36-exposure roll of film. Sometimes it will take me a month to get through a roll, especially if I'm going back and forth among my collection. I currently use Kodak HC-110, which is easy to make up on an ad-hoc basis. But I was wondering, how do you other slowpokes out there handle things if you're mixing up, say, D76? It doesn't have a long shelf life after it's mixed, or does it? How do you manage with developing 1-2 rolls a month with a developer like D76? I'd like to use it on Tri-X.
Click to expand...

I use Xtol as my standard developer, and what I do is: budget 20€ per year on developer. Whatever I don't use within 6-10 months, I throw out, and mix up a new batch. At 10€ per 5 litres, I don't see the point in being cheap with developer.
 
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