ADOX paper input wanted

Jim Chinn · Jul 4, 2005

I am looking for some impressions of the ADOX paper sold by J&C. I have searched and found a post back in Feb. that discussed it a little bit, but am interested if there are any people with addtional experience since then. Devlopers used, comparisions etc.

If anyone has some interest in experimenting with this paper I am going to buy the 100 sheet box. If one or two people want to share a box I would be happy to send you 1/2 or 1/3rd of the box for the split cost and mailing to anyone in the US.

We can compare notes and share them with the rest of the site.

Michel Hardy-Vallée · Jul 20, 2005

The thread is sadly old and stale, but I'm interested in that paper as well, and wonder if anyone had made a fog test for orange neon lights.

abeku · Jul 20, 2005

I'm also interrested in the ADOX FB papers. Since the Efke films are relabelled to Adox by Fotoimpex, I wonder if the ADOX papers also are made by Emaks (Efke)?
If so, they probably are very good...

David A. Goldfarb · Jul 20, 2005

The Expo graded paper is excellent. I've been using it for some time under the Cachet label, and it was also sold as Maco Expo RF, now J&C Exposition Graded paper (but there's also an Adox label on the box).

Jim Chinn · Jul 20, 2005

David, do you know who is making the Adox?

David A. Goldfarb · Jul 20, 2005

Efke, I'm pretty sure.

abeku · Jul 20, 2005

David A. Goldfarb said:
Efke, I'm pretty sure.

Then a box of ADOX papers is on my next purchase list...

Paul Howell · Jul 20, 2005

I have used 2 boxes of 8X10 VC in the past 3 or 4 months and I like it. I use both Dektol and Zonal pro developer with Dupont filters with a red safelight although the amber did not produce any fog. I have not tired any toners, but if it tones I will buy 11X14.

David A. Goldfarb · Jul 20, 2005

The Expo graded responds very well to toners and to amidol. This is a characteristic of older style softer emulsions. Don't know about the VC, but it's a good bet.

Paul Howell · Jul 20, 2005

Paul Howell said:
I I will buy 11X14.

Sorry, no 11X14 12X16.

Thomas Bertilsson · Jul 20, 2005

ADOX films = Ilford

The ADOX films are ISO125 and ISO400, and even J&C marks it as being similar to FP4 and HP5 (which means they are likely Ilford OEM).
It'll be interesting to see how long they can keep doing that, since all other Ilford OEM products have been deleted due to price increases.

abeku said:
I'm also interrested in the ADOX FB papers. Since the Efke films are relabelled to Adox by Fotoimpex, I wonder if the ADOX papers also are made by Emaks (Efke)?
If so, they probably are very good...

Paul Howell · Jul 20, 2005

I ordered some ADOX 400, both 120 and 35mm, when I asked for developement times JC stated that 400 in both 120 and 35 is HP5.

doughowk · Jul 20, 2005

I've been trying the Adox classic fiber (J&C Expo) for Lith printing; but haven't mastered it yet. It produces an interesting chocolate brown appearance especially as Lith developer nears exhaustion; but the "grainy" pattern is too strong for my taste. Maybe I just haven't determined proper snatch time for this paper.

Michel Hardy-Vallée · Jul 20, 2005

David A. Goldfarb said:
The Expo graded responds very well to toners and to amidol. This is a characteristic of older style softer emulsions. Don't know about the VC, but it's a good bet.

David, did you do a fog test for that paper? The darkroom that I have access to has red lights by the enlargers, but orange neons above the developing trays. Any guess as to how it could risk fogging? JandC put a warning to that matter on their website.

David A. Goldfarb · Jul 20, 2005

I haven't tested it specifically, but I haven't had a problem with it. My dark/bathroom is underlit with a Jobo Maxilux LED safelight (eventually, I should add another one), so I'm not likely to have a problem anyway.

Mike-D · Jul 20, 2005

Vario Classic Paper

A few years back I used some paper called "Vario Classic" from Fotoimpex Germany. It is a cooltone FB paper very similar in tone to Ilford's RC cooltone paper. I didn't care much for the paper as I had a hard time getting good shadow separation. I fought with it for a while but never did get happy with it. FWIW the Ilford cooltone behaved similarly.

I don't know if it is the same as the Adox paper but there is an Adox "Vario Classic". The other "classic" papers from Fotoimpex were quite nice. Most folks suspect those are made by Forte.

Mike D

abeku · Jul 21, 2005

huggyviking said:
The ADOX films are ISO125 and ISO400, and even J&C marks it as being similar to FP4 and HP5 (which means they are likely Ilford OEM).
It'll be interesting to see how long they can keep doing that, since all other Ilford OEM products have been deleted due to price increases.

You are right about those films, most likely of Ilford origin. What I had in mind was the KB25/50/100 films that have been around for a long time. Photax.se have been selling them under the Efke brand for decades and I saw recently that Fotoimpex have relabelled, or are going to relabel, them as Adox films.

Ole · Jul 21, 2005

The ADOX 25/50/100 are the same as EFKE. The ADOX paper is also made by the producer of EFKE, "Fotokemika". I have used the multigrade ones under the name of "Varycon". They can be great papers for some uses, but they take a bit getting used to. Especially when lith printing they tend to give strangely pink highlights with lots of pepper in the shadows. Some of them also have an extremely long shoulder, so that you never reach Dmax with a "normal" negative...

Nick Zentena · Jul 21, 2005

Ole said:
Especially when lith printing they tend to give strangely pink highlights with lots of pepper in the shadows. Some of them also have an extremely long shoulder, so that you never reach Dmax with a "normal" negative...

Ole what sort of Lith developer were you using? Sounds interesting once the weather cools down enough to mail order stuff.

Ole · Jul 21, 2005

Eh - I think it was the MACOlith one that gave the funniest pinks. There was a sample in the Technical gallery, I'll see if it's still there. If not, i'll see if I still have the file.

Ian Grant · Jul 21, 2005

The Adox brand name now belongs to Fotoimpex, Berlin. This is why rebranded Ilford films are being sold as Adox CHM 100 & 400

So Fotoimpex are now rebranding some of their other products as well. If you check their site you will find that Adox Fine Print Polywarmtone is actually just a name change for their Classic Arts Polywarmtone paper.
http://www.adox.co.uk/html/fine_print_classic_arts.html

They state: Adox Fine Print Polywarmtone . . . . . . Forte Polywarmton or Bergger CM/CB/CB cream or Moersch Sepia. These Papers are identical in all parameters. (They are referring to emulsion characteristics). So these all come from the Forte factory. Meanwhile EFKE also make paper.

Adox is now the house name for Fotoimpex products.

Ian

jandc · Jul 21, 2005

There seems to be some confusion so let me clarify.

ADOX CHM 125 = FP4
ADOX CHM 400 = HP5
ADOX CHS 25 = Efke 25
ADOX CHS 50 = Efke 50
ADOX CHS 100 = Efke 100
ADOX ORT 25 = Efke Ort 25 = J&C Ort 25 = Maco Ort 25
ADOX print film = Maco Genius = J&C Classic Ortho
J&C Classic 200 = Forte 200 = other well known rebranded versions of this film
J&C Classic 400 = Forte 400
J&C Classic Polywarmtone = Forte Polywarmtone plus =ADOX Polywarmtone = other well known rebranded versions
J&C Classic Museum = Forte Fortezzo Heavy = other well known rebranded versions
J&C Classic Polygrade = Forte PV-G = other well known rebranded versions
J&C Expo = Maco Expo = Efke Emaks

The Adox mark is shared between Fotoimpex and J&C. Some products in the USA may be marketed under different names than in Europe. This may or may not change over time.

abeku · Jul 21, 2005

Thanks JandC for sorting out it all out. On the film front it was all clear to me, but on paper side it was a jungle. Now, I know better which paper to buy.

ronlamarsh · Aug 8, 2005

Adox Vario G paper

I am having some trouble getting my negatives to match up with this paper. It has a beautiful (to my eyes) neutrl image tone, it tones in thiocarbamide quite well(very dark rich brown, little yellow) no change in image tone with selenium until you get stronger than 10:1. The problem I have is that it seems rather "soft" i.e. with a #2 filter and V54 cold lamp I actually get about a #1 grade result. So to compensate I am recalibrating my negatives: I shoot a Z8 and Z5 exposure on the same neg(4x5) then dev in rodinal. I've been using 50+1 dilution and ten minutes but the Z5 exp prints like 4- and the Z8 is a 7 so I tried 25+1 dilution and 9minutes(time recommended on dev bottle for FP4) : this combination gave me a perfect Z5 but blank paper for Z8. As an aside the neg developed 50+1 when printed on Ilford MGIV RC gives Z6 and Z10 respectively.
So should I change dilution back to 50+1 and extend my times or? Also I have found that almost all papers with the exception of Ilford MGIV and some Kodak exhibit a rather compressed range weighted towards the soft end of the spectrum when used with an aristo V54 coldlite. And believe it or not I have run some tests with my ancient B&J Solar (5x7) enlarger that uses tungsten diffusion and I get basically the same results! I have compared my results to those published by Steve Anchell in his VC book and they shjow the same basic trend. Comments? ideas?

Paul Howell · Aug 8, 2005

You may want to increase your contrast by 1/2 to 1 grade. I print using both cold light and condenser and found that I get a full tone range with a Dupont 4 filter. I test my paper by using a Kodak print scale and a clear negative, by running a series of test prints, each the sized of the print scale, at 1 second intervals at f8 until I get 10 distinct tones. I found that when using polycontast a number 3 filter worked well, but for Adox I need a number 4.

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