A couple darkroom questions...

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

Yep. I have a funnel for each chemical, same like I use for developing film at home. But they aren’t that large, so despite my best efforts, first couple pours out of the trays were still a bit messy. I’ve got it down now.

And I’m glad to hear that my printing sessions so far are not too long to have the chemicals exposed to the air. I’m keeping track of each paper that is used with a counter - and I plan on erring on the side of caution with renewing the chemicals.

Thanks for all the help and tips folks! Really appreciate the community here.

Don_ih · Mar 24, 2025

Motopreserve said:
I plan on erring on the side of caution with renewing the chemicals.

Probably a good idea. Paper is much more expensive than developer.

Sirius Glass · Mar 24, 2025

jimjm said:
I'll only leave chemicals in the trays if I'm stepping away for a few hours and I plan on resuming later that day. I also place a sheet of acrylic over the developer tray to reduce oxidization of the developer during that time. This isn't necessary for the other chemicals, though. When I'm done for the day I'll pour them back into their bottles. If I've processed a large number of sheets, I often just dump the developer and start with a new batch the next day. Using a funnel makes it much easier to pour chemicals back in the bottles.

I leave the chemicals in tray for a few hours of over night, but I always put developer back in a bottle with the air squeezed out.

Sirius Glass · Mar 24, 2025

Motopreserve said:
1. I read about the issue of negative popping. The B-22 did not come with the heat-absorbing glass accessory and I do not have glass neg carriers. I found that KHB carries a new version of the heat absorbing glass - but the cost of shipping from Canada to US is nearly as much as the product itself. I found a NOS version that I believe was for a D-2 for only $3, and figured I might be able to modify it for use on the B-22. This one is smaller than the B-22 lamp housing, so I made a holder that will situate it securely up inside the lamp housing (above the condensers). Unlike the KHB version, this one has split glass - which seems was standard for Omega branded heat absorbing glass inserts. I assume this was to compensate for heat expansion? My question is: Will choking down the light path to a smaller diameter (62mm down from 86mm without insert) impact the bulb's performance by the time light gets down through the condensers/lens etc? Also, is there a reason that the KHB solution has eliminated the split in the glass? Are there issues with the original split style? (Pics attached)

Wait to see if the negatives pop before searching for heat absorbing glass.

MattKing · Mar 24, 2025

With some types of trays, the way they stack means that one tray can be used as a lid for another.
I nest my 11x14 trays in larger 12x16 Paterson trays. Surprisingly, the combination is easier to pour from than a single tray - possibly because it is more rigid than a single tray.
I pour the chemicals back into bottles I use - 1 tray contents per bottle - even if it is only going to be a few hours.

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

MattKing said:
With some types of trays, the way they stack means that one tray can be used as a lid for another.
I nest my 11x14 trays in larger 12x16 Paterson trays. Surprisingly, the combination is easier to pour from than a single tray - possibly because it is more rigid than a single tray.
I pour the chemicals back into bottles I use - 1 tray contents per bottle - even if it is only going to be a few hours.

I’ve been doing the same. The enlarger came with some bottles. After a thorough cleaning - only one was junk, so I’ve been using those for this first round of chemicals. I’ve had good luck with the glass bottles with my developing chemicals, so I may move to those down the line. But it was nice not to have to lay out the cash for some of these things (trays, tongs, bottles etc) to get the darkroom up and running. Plenty of other things to spend cash on

@Sirius Glass sound advice. I’m waiting to see if I notice any issues before making any moves. I had already purchased the Omega D-2 glass since it was less than $3 - with the thought that I could modify the glass mount if it would help. I have a metal shop which makes small mods like this fairly easy and no cost other than the time it takes.

Might be able to get back in the darkroom tomorrow to put into action all the tips and suggestions I’ve gotten here on the thread. Thanks again all!

snusmumriken · Mar 24, 2025

At the risk of pointing out the obvious, your negatives are more likely to pop if your exposure times are long. If you have a grain focusser, you can check this by setting the lens aperture wide open, focussing to get the grain at the centre of the image sharp initially, then checking back every 30 seconds. If you reach your maximum likely exposure time without the grain going perceptibly out of focus, there’s no reason to worry about heat-blocking glass.

Some people seem to like long exposure times because it’s then easier to do dodging and burning. Personally I prefer them shorter to avoid popping. In case it helps as a reference, my exposures are typically around 20 sec at f/8, for a 10x enlargement (12x16 from 35mm).

On the subject of pouring…it’s possible that you are over-loading your trays, which does make them wobble diagonally when lifted. You don’t need more than a centimetre or so of liquid in the tray. For reference again, I use just 1 litre in a 12x16 tray.

ic-racer · Mar 24, 2025

koraks said:
This may be unrelated, but I was gifted a heat absorber for my Durst 138 and that appeared to be an intentional 2-part filter with a neat vertical split in the middle. I suspect it's made that way to allow some thermal expansion of the glass esp. in the center of the light path. I don't know if the same logic was applied to this particular enlarger/filter. I've also never used the heat filter in my setup, so IDK what optical effects it may have.

I suspect it's intentional.

Exactly! For example the Bolex M8 projector, with its 500W lamp, has a three piece glass. My 2000W Durst enlarger has a 21 piece glass.

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

ic-racer said:
Exactly! For examplr the Bolex M8 projector, with its 500W lamp, has a three piece glass. My 2000W Durst enlarger has a 21 piece glass.

View attachment 394541

21 piece glass??? I have a headache just thinking about making that

Ian C · Mar 24, 2025

Here is the heat-absorbing filter for the B22 with condenser head. Apparently still available from KHB.

Heat Absorbing Glass for Omega B22, B7, and B8 Enlargers

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

snusmumriken said:
At the risk of pointing out the obvious, your negatives are more likely to pop if your exposure times are long. If you have a grain focusser, you can check this by setting the lens aperture wide open, focussing to get the grain at the centre of the image sharp initially, then checking back every 30 seconds. If you reach your maximum likely exposure time without the grain going perceptibly out of focus, there’s no reason to worry about heat-blocking glass.

Some people seem to like long exposure times because it’s then easier to do dodging and burning. Personally I prefer them shorter to avoid popping. In case it helps as a reference, my exposures are typically around 20 sec at f/8, for a 10x enlargement (12x16 from 35mm).

On the subject of pouring…it’s possible that you are over-loading your trays, which does make them wobble diagonally when lifted. You don’t need more than a centimetre or so of liquid in the tray. For reference again, I use just 1 litre in a 12x16 tray.

So far my exposures have been very quick. Initially it was 3-5 seconds. I had to use an ND filter in the drawer to get it closer to 9-12 seconds.

I am using Kentmere RC variable contrast paper (don’t think I mentioned this earlier). I use Kentmere 400 a lot, and have the Ilford chemicals. Thought it might not hurt to keep it all in the family. After I purchased it I read that it can require quite short exposure times. So far the ND filter has worked well enough - but being so new to the whole process, it sure felt rushed. After a few prints I mellowed out and was able to do some basic dodging on an 11 second print.

I have another ND filter to try that will buy me an additional stop. I’ll make sure I’m not getting any ill effects from the filter(s) and whether the additional time causes any popping.

BHuij · Mar 24, 2025

Motopreserve said:
Hey folks,

New to darkroom/enlarging and have found a ton of info here on the site, so thank you to all the people who take the time to share your experiences. I recently acquired an Omega B-22 (a bunch of extras) as my first-ever enlarger. I have thoroughly cleaned and aligned the enlarger, 3D printed a few negative carriers (6x6, 6x45), so I'm pretty well set up now. I have done my first few prints, and while they need a ton of work, and there is so much left to learn - the thrill of seeing the image emerge from the developer is amazing!

I still have a couple questions that I was not able to find answers to - so I appreciate your patience and any guidance/links you can provide.

1. I read about the issue of negative popping. The B-22 did not come with the heat-absorbing glass accessory and I do not have glass neg carriers. I found that KHB carries a new version of the heat absorbing glass - but the cost of shipping from Canada to US is nearly as much as the product itself. I found a NOS version that I believe was for a D-2 for only $3, and figured I might be able to modify it for use on the B-22. This one is smaller than the B-22 lamp housing, so I made a holder that will situate it securely up inside the lamp housing (above the condensers). Unlike the KHB version, this one has split glass - which seems was standard for Omega branded heat absorbing glass inserts. I assume this was to compensate for heat expansion? My question is: Will choking down the light path to a smaller diameter (62mm down from 86mm without insert) impact the bulb's performance by the time light gets down through the condensers/lens etc? Also, is there a reason that the KHB solution has eliminated the split in the glass? Are there issues with the original split style? (Pics attached)

2. The enlarger came with a Time-o-lite P59. It has the glowing faceplate. Since it is the only non-safelight colored thing in the darkroom, I am wondering whether it is advisable to keep this far from the paper during exposure?

3. Despite aligning the enlarger according to the service manual, I still have slight light leaks around the negative carrier area. The light is not shining directly downward, but I am wonderin whether I should put some light seal material around where the condenser housing meets the nega carrier?

4. Since I'm new to all this - I assume I am taking longer to complete an enlarging session than more experienced users. Knowing that oxygen is an enemy for the chemicals (ilford multigrade developer, rapid fixer etc), I'm wondering if my chemicals will go off before the prescribed number of sheets because they are being exposed to the air for so long? I know this is vague - just curious whether there is a rule of thumb for time chems are exposed to air vs the number of sheets developed?

5. Last question is just a curiosity. The enlarger came with a rubber roller - the kind I've seen used for screen printing. What would this be used for in the darkroom?

Thanks so much for any help.

Scott

I used a B22 for about a year when I first got into darkroom printing. Love that little enlarger.

1. Mine never had heat absorbing glass, and I never had negative buckling issues when printing from 35mm or 6x6 negatives. I wouldn't stress too much about heat absorbing glass unless you're doing really long exposures (like 16x20 from 35mm film) or a super long all-day marathon print session in a darkroom that is too warm for the condenser glass to effectively cool down when the bulb is off. My advice would be to try printing with it first and see if you have trouble getting uniform focus before messing with it.

2. Yes, it would be advisable to keep a green glowing faceplate reasonably far from the paper. Whether it would actually hurt anything if some of the greenish glow was close to the paper, I couldn't tell you.

3. My current enlarger has light leaks outwards from the negative stage (I'm also using a 3D printed negative carrier). I've heard it's a concern before, but even before I painted my darkroom walls matte black, I never noticed any fogging. So I'd put this into the same "don't worry about it if you don't notice a problem" bucket as the heat absorbing glass, personally.

4. You can probably expect at least a solid day out of at-strength Ilford MG developer in a tray (I used 1:14 before I switched to a different developer). Stop bath and fixer don't really oxidize enough to cause problems, even in the tray. Just use to exhaustion and store in a bottle when you're not printing.

5. I have heard of people using rubber rollers to help dry off prints (instead of or in addition to a squeegee). I find I need neither. RC prints dry just fine hanging on a line without being squeegeed. Fiber prints dry just fine on my window screens without being squeegeed.

Best of luck and share your results!

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

Ian C said:
Here is the heat-absorbing filter for the B22 with condenser head. Apparently still available from KHB.

Heat Absorbing Glass for Omega B22, B7, and B8 Enlargers

Thanks.

Yep, that’s the one I originally found (mentioned above). Unfortunately it’s about 1/2 what I paid for the entire enlarger kit by the time I get it shipped from Canada. So for now, I’ll just keep an eye on the negatives and hope for the best.

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

BHuij said:
I used a B22 for about a year when I first got into darkroom printing. Love that little enlarger.

1. Mine never had heat absorbing glass, and I never had negative buckling issues when printing from 35mm or 6x6 negatives. I wouldn't stress too much about heat absorbing glass unless you're doing really long exposures (like 16x20 from 35mm film) or a super long all-day marathon print session in a darkroom that is too warm for the condenser glass to effectively cool down when the bulb is off. My advice would be to try printing with it first and see if you have trouble getting uniform focus before messing with it.

2. Yes, it would be advisable to keep a green glowing faceplate reasonably far from the paper. Whether it would actually hurt anything if some of the greenish glow was close to the paper, I couldn't tell you.

3. My current enlarger has light leaks outwards from the negative stage (I'm also using a 3D printed negative carrier). I've heard it's a concern before, but even before I painted my darkroom walls matte black, I never noticed any fogging. So I'd put this into the same "don't worry about it if you don't notice a problem" bucket as the heat absorbing glass, personally.

4. You can probably expect at least a solid day out of at-strength Ilford MG developer in a tray (I used 1:14 before I switched to a different developer). Stop bath and fixer don't really oxidize enough to cause problems, even in the tray. Just use to exhaustion and store in a bottle when you're not printing.

5. I have heard of people using rubber rollers to help dry off prints (instead of or in addition to a squeegee). I find I need neither. RC prints dry just fine hanging on a line without being squeegeed. Fiber prints dry just fine on my window screens without being squeegeed.

Best of luck and share your results!

Appreciate the detailed response! I like your plan of waiting until an issue arises before I get too worried about it. So far I haven’t noticed any bad focus issues at the corners. I’ll continue to keep an eye on it though.

I mixed the developer at 1:9 this first time around. I’ll play it safe for sure. I’ve been putting it back in the bottle after each session - which hasn’t been any longer than a few prints at a time, plus a test strip.

I’ve got a long way to go before I feel Confident enough to do any large printing

Sirius Glass · Mar 24, 2025

Once a negative pops, it will not repop, so refocus and continue printing.

Motopreserve · Mar 24, 2025

Sirius Glass said:
Once a negative pops, it will not repop, so refocus and continue printing.

Ah. Good to know. I hadn’t read that before. Thank you!

Also, it was encouraging to hear @BHuij experience with his B-22. The old thread that prompted my concern with popping made it seem like the negative would pop for certain.

Don_ih · Mar 24, 2025

That's because the next stage is melting....

A couple darkroom questions...

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