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A developing tank question

aRolleiBrujo

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Apr 23, 2013
Messages
798
Location
Modesto Ca
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Would this rod, reel, and tank be air tight, when I develop my film negative, or, will it need to be loaded with the caffenol in complete darkness? I am a very rookie rookie, please excuse my ignorance! Thank you!


20140727_205933 by a.rodriguezpix, on Flickr
 
Here is a great experiment for you:

1) Put the reel in the tank;
2) With the lid off of the tank, pour enough tap water into the tank to fully submerge the reel, plus another 1/4 inch or so;
3) Take the tank and dump that water into a measuring beaker. Note the volume of the water in the beaker - that is a good measure for future use of that tank with that reel; next
4) Pour the water back into the tank;
5) Put the lid on to the tank, but leave the smaller cap off;
6) Without removing the lid, try to pour the water back into the measuring beaker. It should flow out without too much trouble through the opening at the top. Check that the volume is at least close to the volume you poured in; next
7) Pour the water back into the tank through the opening you poured it out. It will help if you tip the tank slightly and pour carefully; and
8) Put the cap on the top, to cover the opening. Try to see if the cap stays on when you invert and agitate the tank, and whether it leaks appreciably.

The opening in the tank is actually a light baffle - it should permit filling and emptying the tank with chemicals without letting in light. Practice a bit with it and tap water first, so you get a feel of how fast you can pour.

Don't forget to dry out the tank and lid and cap and reel before you use it. Air drying is usually fine.

That tank looks like it might have some rust in it. When you do your experiment, check for rust or sediment in the water. You don't want that on your film.

And by the way, APUG works best when uploaded images are a bit smaller than this one - 850 pixels on a side I think.


 

Matt, Thank you very much for the through information! I actually has had the urge to test in under the tap, I wonder if it is the nervous excitement of self developing film,and the whole film experience overall! I had to ask, what may seem obvious,to the knowledge, because I am clueless about a large amount of things, and even more so doing this! I can't wait for the fixer, and my film loading bag thing, to arrive this coming Monday! Thank you once more, and happy photography! -Americo
 
That tank lid does not seem to have a light baffle ! I think I can see the wood of the desk through the hole. What does the under side of the lid look like? If you can see through to the spiral with the lid on then it is not light tight and will fog the film whan adding or emptying developer.
 
Dear aRolleiBrujo,

As noted above, your tank will not be light tight. Don't use it. Functioning tanks can be had for the cost of two or three rolls of film.

Good luck,

Neal Wydra
 
I will third the absence of a light baffle on the tank lid.
 
It's funny - I didn't think that I was seeing the table top through the hole, but rather a discoloured part of the light baffle in the lid.

Now that I have read what others have posted, and looked again, I think they may be right.

You should not be able to see anything but baffle material when you look through the hole in the lid.
 
I will take another photo soon, just for show and tell, however, I think I'll just be safe, and buy the correct one ASAP! Thank you all, I appreciate the feedback!
 
looks to me as if you have expired/discolored developer on the inside of that tank cap, not the table top. Can yu see through the hole? If so, toss in recycling bin. If not, wash thoroughly, make sure it fits the tank.

If it fits the tank, you should be light-tight. If it's at all loose (it should be snug but not impossible to remove) then toss and buy new -- they aren't expensive.
 
Looks good to me. You'll just have to have it in the bag when loading the film onto the reels. Once it's loaded and you put the lid on, you can safely bring it out and do the processing in daylight.
 
It just shows how misleading a picture can be There is a baffle after all. Odd colour but perhaps a good clean will fix that. You are good to go.

Sent from my HTC Desire S using Tapatalk 2
 
AWESOME! Thank you very much everyone! It is hard coming into this without a basic understanding of what I'm doing, or what does what! I would have hated to spend more money, on what may have been unnecessary, however, it was my own doing, since I may have avoided the issue, with the simple purchase of the right item, or, one with documentation! Thanks again fellow APUG members, and I can't wait for caffenol processing, and in due time, all in home development! Happy photography! -Americo
 
aRollieBrujo, I strongly recommend going over to youtube and watching some instructional videos on film processing. There are hundreds and hundreds of them. That's how I got started, along with asking questions here.
 
Well, strictly speaking you are going to be in the dark.
The following is a word from our sponsor. Caution! Do not open the door.
All the dark will leak out.
 
Wow, that lid really had me fooled.
 
thanks again everyone! im all set to develop! i wonder though, do i put the film into the bag in dark, and then load it on to the reel in the bag as well? excuse my naivete, please!
 
aRolleiBrujo said:
thanks again everyone! im all set to develop! i wonder though, do i put the film into the bag in dark, and then load it on to the reel in the bag as well? excuse my naivete, please!
Click to expand...

You have it right. You put the film, the reel, a tool for opening the cassette (for 35mm) the tank and the lid into the bag, zip it up, open the cassette, load the reel, put the reel into the tank, put the lid on the tank and then open the bag.

You can put the cap on the lid outside the bag.

Get yourself a practice roll of film and practice!

The earlier advice to look at Youtube is excellent.
 

does this adhere to 120 spool as well? thanks Matt!
 
As people have suggested above, practice. I think it may be best if you have some old, unexposed film you can sacrifice, both in 35mm and 120. Something that you will never use, because once it is exposed to the light, it is "ruined."

I would first practice loading both types of film on your reels in the light, so you can see what you are doing and how it works. Look carefully at how the 120 film is rolled and taped to the paper, and how the 35mm is attached to the spool (and how to open the cartridge). Get a good idea of how to load onto the reels, in the correct direction, and how to tell this by feel.

If you spend a lot of time looking at and playing with it, you will have a better idea as to what is going on when you do it "for real" in the dark bag.

Practice a lot, eventually without looking at what you are doing unless you are having difficulty.
Then, practice in the changing back - a lot.

I'd done a good job with stainless reels and 120/35mm, however, with the intention of eventually doing 110 film (16mm), I practiced while watching TV (110 doesn't seem quite so easy to me). Loading and unloading, at first paying attention to make sure I got it right, and then to the point it was a fairly easy process.
 
Alas my fixer has put a damper on my development dallying until Friday!
 
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