Stainless spiral reels work great -- if you get the right kind. Hewes reels are the only way to go. They load beautifully. But it's important to avoid dropping them or banging them around. Paul -------------- Original message ---------------------- From: "Mat Maessen" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > On 9/7/07, P. J. Alling <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > 1. Someplace dark to move film around, (I use a closet after midnight, > > but I'm thinking of investing in a film changing bag). > > You can get a film changing bag from B&H for $25 or so. Works quite > nicely, once you get the hang of loading film onto reels. I would > recommend sacrificing a few rolls of old/expired/cheap film (doesn't > matter color or B&W) towards the effort of learning how to pop open a > film cartridge and load it onto a reel. > > > 2. Film developing tank, (I prefer stainless steel with PVC plastic > > tops, but almost any will do). > > I like the all-plastic ones with the built-in funnels myself. That, > and I find it easier to load film onto the ratcheting plastic reels > than onto metal spiral reels. I use a tank big enough for 3 reels of > 35mm, which also comes out to 2 reels of 120 film. If you're using D76 > diluted 1:1, you'll only be able to run 2 full 36-shot reels of 35mm > film in a full tank of developer, anyway. > > > 3. Reels to match the tank, and your film format. (I prefer Kinderman, > > See above about the plastic reels. A hair dryer with a no-heat setting > (or a disconnected element) works well for drying the reels. Don't dry > your film that way, though. > > > 4. Minimum three bottles for working solutions. One for Fixer, one for > > Stop, one for Developer). You can skip the stop bath, and just rinse the > > film with water, but it's cheap and Ilford produces a citric acid > > version that's very environmentally benign. You can use a varsity of > > If you're REALLY in a bind for stop bath, go to the supermarket, buy a > bottle of white vinegar, and mix it 1:1 with water. "Standard" stop > bath is simply acetic acid, with a pH indicator mixed in, so you can > tell if it's used up. If you use rapid fixer, be prepared to do a LOT > of rinsing, or get some fixer remover (hypo clearing agent). If you > don't use rapid fixer, fix your film for a minute longer than you > think it should take, and change out your fixer often. > > > other chemicals as well to make your live easier. I usually treat my > > film with Kodak photo flo, (really just a very concentrated detergent, > > which improves chances that the film will dry spot free). Never made a > > stock or working solution. an old cap from a bottle that takes a screw > > PhotoFlo is very necessary around here, thanks to the somewhat-hard > water. I squeege my film with my fingers after treating in PhotoFlo, > and hang it up to dry. > > > 6.) Some kind of timer. (I've been using my watch, a dedicated timer is > > nice but not necessary, if you're capable of enough organization to have > > gotten this far a watch is all you need). > > Darkroom timers are actually decently cheap on ebay. Even Alton Brown > uses one on his cooking show to time things in the oven. But a cheap > digital cooking timer is more than adequate. > > Oh yeah, and when doing this in your sink at home, make sure you clean > up any mess you leave. The chemicals have a tendency to stain if left > to sit on counters and other surfaces. The darkroom I use has a strict > policy about cleanup, and a mop and sponges available. > > -Mat > > -- > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List > [email protected] > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
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