Luminous Landscape Forum
Equipment & Techniques => The Wet Darkroom => Topic started by: WalterEG on September 28, 2012, 08:19:05 am
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I am wondering if anybody has experience with these and can offer some opinions good or bad.
Thanks,
W
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With any tube developing 8x10, I water soak first, then develop.
However, and this is important, I place my water and / or chemistry in the tube first, then place my film in. I find in the past if I place my film in first then added the water or chemistry, sometimes the film would stick at some spot and I would get uneven development. So take tube, add chemistry, then add film - all in the darkroom of course. : ). It should work fine.
The use of a water per-soak is because you can "burn" - for lack of better words - your negative in a tube due to the constant rotation and agitation. I find for both my 4x5 and 8x10 I have to cut back on the strength of my developer.
My " formula" that works for me is a five minute per soak, followed by 10ml of pure HC 110 syrup in 600ml of water, and then in a tube for anywhere from 8 to 10 minutes, constant rotation, but not all one direction. Remember to reverse every 2 minutes or so. Maybe even every minute is better. Your mileage will vary. Stop, fix, wash etc as per normal
Good luck
Joe
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Thank you Joe,
I always pre-soak and that is partly why I had sought opinions. I watched the video on Fred Newman's site and he does not pre-soak. He places the film into a dry tube and when he puts the chemistry in he starts be waving the tubes about like Ricky Ricardo for 15 seconds. That was the bit that has a question mark over the tubes for me.
You have set me straight and I am grateful.
Cheers,
W
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Pre-soaking is not necessary for the 4x5 or 8x10 BTZS film developing tubes. The BTZS film processing tubes were designed by Phil Davis and pre-soaking is not necessary for processing. By shaking up the BTZS tubes continuously for about 10 seconds - like a cocktail shaker - the emulsion is coated & then spinning the tubes as in the video is all you need to do. When Phil & I used to do workshops, there was never a question of pre-soak vs. no presoak - it just surprised everyone working in the light. Fred Newman
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Thanks Fred.
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I use the 4x5 tubes and don't presoak-no problems.