2x3 sheet film processing

abruzzi · Apr 2, 2020

Don't know if the Medium Format forum or the Large Format forum is the better place for this.

Anyway, I'm likely buying a Linhof baby Technika, and while my plan is to outfit it with a roll film back, it comes with the GG back and some film holders. I like Foma 100, and Freestyle has Arista 100 and 400, rebadged Foma, in the small size, so I figured I'd give that a try as well. So on to how to develop. I came across this 2x3 film holder that fits the paterson tank. Its a bit dear, but not that bad considering the likely low volume these sell at. Has anyone used these? Are they relatively easy to use? Any issues?

https://20thcenturycamera.com/colle...9-2x3-quick-load-6-sheet-film-processing-reel

Paul Howell · Apr 2, 2020

You might get better results in the darkroom thread, I have not used the Patterson, but used a similar system in my old Yankee Tank, I think the patterson will work well as it empties in short order. My only concern is that making use you a developer that will develop 6 sheets in a relative small amount of developer. As this is likely somewhat rare, the price is what I would expect to pay.

k.hendrik · Apr 2, 2020

Combiplan tank takes 6 '2x3' sheets. or when your handy maybe 12!

abruzzi · Apr 2, 2020

Paul Howell said:
You might get better results in the darkroom thread, I have not used the Patterson, but used a similar system in my old Yankee Tank, I think the patterson will work well as it empties in short order. My only concern is that making use you a developer that will develop 6 sheets in a relative small amount of developer. As this is likely somewhat rare, the price is what I would expect to pay.

so 2.25x3.25 is 7.3 square inches. 4x5 is 20 square inches. The Stearman SP 445 tank I have for 4x5 developing develops 4 sheets or 80 square inches in 500ml of solution. Six sheets of 2x3 is 43.8 share inches, and this unit requires 500ml as well, so I'm guessing it isn't too bad (and a patterson also develops 1 roll of 120 (with 8 6x9 frames) in 500ml), so I don't think it would be bad.

Paul Howell · Apr 2, 2020

Your right, I hadn't thought it through, likely got hung up on sheet film and confabulated 4X5 with 6X9, 6 sheets is 6 frames less than 8 frames on a 120 roll.

juan · Apr 2, 2020

I tray developed 2x3 until I got some hangers in that size. And yes, I have to use a darkened bathroom.

mgb74 · Apr 3, 2020

Nikor made this holder a while back. It requires a tank slightly taller than many 120 stainless steel tanks.

jtk · Apr 3, 2020

The Nikor was excellent. Still have a Combi...it's far more fussy than one Nikor but it also handles 4x5.

ic-racer · Apr 3, 2020

Since you have some of the little film holders, you might want to try this:
https://www.photrio.com/forum/threa...1-4-x-3-1-4-film-holders.156089/#post-2023817

Donald Qualls · Apr 3, 2020

ic-racer said:
Since you have some of the little film holders, you might want to try this:
https://www.photrio.com/forum/threa...1-4-x-3-1-4-film-holders.156089/#post-2023817

Aha, that's cool. I might have to look for some 2x3 Graflok film holders, I could use those on my RB67. WAY cheaper than a Coyote Camera Works back, though significantly less convenient.

Pioneer · Apr 3, 2020

I have been doing a small amount of developing of 6x9 sheet film just to test my Baby Graphic but I have been using my new SP-810 sheet film developing tray from Stearman Press to develop the film. It is made for 8x10 but can be configured to develop 4 sheets of 4x5 film as well. I set mine up in the 4x5 configuration and use it for 6x9 as well.

If you haven't looked at these new daylight trays from Stearman Press I have to say that they are pretty handy, especially if you work with odd sizes. They are made to handle one sheet of 8x10, 2 sheets of 5x7 or 4 sheets of 4x5 depending on how you configure the tray. But I have found they also handle 4 sheets of 6x9 (6.25x9.25) as mentioned and 6.5x9.5 (whole plate) as well. Once loaded these trays can be used in daylight so are pretty handy.

abruzzi · Apr 3, 2020

the instax looks fun, but I don't have an instax camera at the moment to reinstall and develop. Does the film holder hold the instax in place, or do you have to affix it in some way?

The stearman tray looks interesting and might work for me, though moving up t 8x10 isn't going to happen anytime soon. It is clever how it works.

Everything is now on its way to me (other than film). I want to see everything closeup before I order the consumables.

David A. Goldfarb · Apr 4, 2020

I usually use the Nikor sheet film tank, which is a round tank adjustable for all sizes (most now obsolete) from 2x3” to 4x5”, but I also have sheet film hangers and can have done it in open trays. They all work. Open trays are best for low volume. The Nikor tank does 12 sheets at a time. If you’re cranking them out, go for tanks and hangers.

The plastic reel you show works like the Nikor tank, but the Nikor holds 12 sheets, and the tank is larger in diameter.

Donald Qualls · Apr 4, 2020

If you can find a Nikor, and if you can afford one. They were relatively scarce (only eBay intermittently), and selling for well over $100 for tank and film holder, missing the film retaining band (a rubber band works, but I can see it being finicky to get just right in the dark), fifteen years ago. I wanted one then, I'd love to have one now, but I can't see them costing less now. The Mod54 fits a standard Paterson tall tank that a lot of photographers already have, and sells new including tank for about what the Nikor system brought fifteen years ago, but I'm not sure that one is adjustable to hold smaller film (seems like it depends on the film being at least about four inches on direction or the other).

Adjusting or hacking the Stearman Press 8x10 tray seems like a good way to go, especially if you shoot sheet film smaller than 4x5 in any quantity. Otherwise, you can build a decent (if not very chemistry-frugal) daylight tank out of ABS drain pipe parts and a piece of black ABS sheet. Film wraps around inside the pipe; 1 1/2 inch size holds 4" dimension, 2 inch size holds a 5" sheet, three-inch holds 8". You can build one of these for ten bucks or so in pipe, the trick is finding a piece of black ABS sheet stock to glue inside the cap that gets the filler tube. There might be other ways to construct the light trap, however.

btaylor · Apr 4, 2020

lots of people don’t like the the Yankee Tank. I got one when I was 12 when I bought a Baby Speed Graphic so I could develop the film- it was cheap and it worked. I still have it and used it after a long hiatus for my first 4x5 negs (it’s adjustable). It works fine, I never had uneven negatives and a new one is $35 at B&H. Use a developer like HC110 dilution H and you won’t be concerned about how much chemistry it uses. Otherwise it is hard to beat the Combiplan, you can find them on the ‘bay for about $80.

Donald Qualls · Apr 5, 2020

btaylor said:
lots of people don’t like the the Yankee Tank <snip> It works fine, I never had uneven negatives and a new one is $35 at B&H.

Obviously you can't invert that. How do you agitate without just dumping your chemistry out? It's tempting to me, because of the price and the fact I'd be able to develop more sheets at once than I can with my ABS pipe tanks.

cjbecker · Apr 5, 2020

Is there a reason you don’t want to develop in trays? I find it just as easy as developing 120 or 35mm in a tank. Actually easier, no poring chems, have all the trays ready to go, and I time off a metronome. It uses very little chems also, if thats a deal for ya.

mgb74 · Apr 5, 2020

The complaints I've heard about the Yankee tank are a) inconsistency due to lack of agitation and b) requires a lot of chemistry. I wonder if both issues can be address by stand development with very dilute solutions.

btaylor · Apr 5, 2020

Donald Qualls said:
Obviously you can't invert that. How do you agitate without just dumping your chemistry out? It's tempting to me, because of the price and the fact I'd be able to develop more sheets at once than I can with my ABS pipe tanks.

Ha! Indeed, inversion is not an option. I just slosh the tank parallel to the film slots, 10 seconds every minute. What can I say? It works.
I have never done tray processing, I am too worried about scratching, and I don’t like sloshing film around in total darkness for the duration of the process.

cjbecker · Apr 5, 2020

Not going to say I never scratch sheet film, but its never been an issue for me. And i don't do any sloshing, just pull the bottom sheet out and lay it on top. Each sheet once per min, 1 sheet every 30 sec, 2 sheet every 30, 4 sheets every 15, 6 sheets every 10. And flip end for end every 2 mins or so. Super easy, and very relaxing.

Donald Qualls · Apr 5, 2020

First, sometimes a photographer hasn't got a full darkroom in which to tray develop, but still want/needs to process sheet film. Second, I've done sheet film in trays a few times, only once more than two sheets at a time, and the one time I tried it with four, I wound up with a huge scratch on one of the four. With a Yankee, if it works well, I can process a dozen sheets at once -- which (equivalent to three rolls) ought to require 750 ml of chemistry anyway to have the same ratio as steel reels in a standard 35/120 stainless tank. This also has the huge advantage of being a quarter the price, with three times the sheet capacity, of a Stearman Press 4x5 tank (though their tank looks very nice and well thought out, a hundred bucks is about a month's photo budget, including equipment and chemicals as well as film); twice that of a Mod54 plus three-reel Paterson tank.

abruzzi · Apr 6, 2020

cjbecker said:
Is there a reason you don’t want to develop in trays? I find it just as easy as developing 120 or 35mm in a tank. Actually easier, no poring chems, have all the trays ready to go, and I time off a metronome. It uses very little chems also, if thats a deal for ya.

Not enough space. My dark room is very small, and for paper I use a vertical setup because I don't have space for regular trays.

David A. Goldfarb · Apr 6, 2020

When I process 2x3" in trays, I use 5x7" trays, which don't take up much space.

Dan Pavel · Apr 6, 2020

I changed a Jobo 4x5 Spiral Reel to accept 2x3 sheet film and now I can develop it in the Jobo tank. It's quite easy to do it and with the Jobo tank in a Jobo CPE 2 rotary machine I need very little developer.

Paul Howell · Apr 6, 2020

btaylor said:
Ha! Indeed, inversion is not an option. I just slosh the tank parallel to the film slots, 10 seconds every minute. What can I say? It works.
I have never done tray processing, I am too worried about scratching, and I don’t like sloshing film around in total darkness for the duration of the process.

Although I have used my Yankee tank in a very long time, when I did use I used a developer with a longish development time, in the dark loaded the tank, added the developer, set the top and turned on the light while agitating, then turned off the light dumped the developer, added the stop, repeated for fix, finished the rest in room light. Cant say it's my favorite method but does work.

If I have only one or two sheets I develop in a paper drum with a motor base, if more that few then I use hangers and deep tanks.

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