adox VC Fine print papers

think twice before using fotoimpex (berlin)

i know i will never use them again, the paper product (adox fine print FB) they sent me was in such a bad condition i threw it in the bin after two days

to many problems associated with this paper , yellowing ,black spots, black fringing, yellowing and the worst customer service i have ever had the misfortune to be part of

for me it ended in legal action to enforce my consumer rights.

 

one of my worst photographic experiences was a order of adox paper from fotoimpex germany

the paper was only fit for the bin , i wouldnd have even used it for practice sheets
by far the worst paper product on the market by a long way

my experience ended in legal action against them to retrieve my money

no customer service with this product or company

 

ive used this paper once and now it is buried in a landfill after being so disgusted by the quality and the amount of issues it had

i have 20 year old ildford that is of better quality

yellowed coating, brown coating,black spots, black fringing, surface flaws, rust spots

and after emailing my concerns to adox , they emailed me to say that this was perfectly normal for there products

says it all really

 

i was recommended adox paper from some posts on this forum a few weeks ago so i went ahead and bought two boxes from them, 40x50cm and A4 aprox

i have now tested the paper to find out how it compares to other papers

the paper has good speed on the baseboard and develops quickly considering it silver content.
the surface of the paper is generally flawed and shows some creasing etc
the paper tone is generally yellow but sometime has a brown overall staining
the grey tones and whites are peppered with black and red spots on every sheet
the edges show blackening that encompass the entire edge of the print

overall rating 0 out of ten
customer service is non existant

this paper has now been filed in the bin

does anyone else have experience of this paper ???

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30665456@N06/3250740573/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30665456@N06/3249323310/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30665456@N06/3251567506/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30665456@N06/3251566910/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30665456@N06/3253157968/

 

here are some shots of two pieces processed with a totally blacked out room, using fresh chems on my durst 138s enlarger, i have shown close ups of some of the more noticable spots and colour changes

also the damaged packaging

 

and really i dont need to hear anymore about safe lights, as i fully tested my safelight using the adox paper and it passed with flying colour after 10min of exposure

but that still didnt stop me working on prints in complete darkness, even using my coulour Paper timer digital display cover.

i was darker than a black hole in my darkroom

even with colour i use a durst led 50, so i dont trip and kill myself, drowned and bludgened to death by my own darkroom equipment

lol im such a geek

 

yes i emailed fotoimex on monday, they fianlly emailed me 3 days later (today) and
here is the one email i recieved from them

Dear Mr. Focal,(my mane is not mr focal )

we are sorry about that what happend.
we spoke about the first picture you send us
but with the scan it's not clearly to see
the result. (so why the hell didnt you email me)

our demand ins to check your Workflow.
Please try a development incl. stop and
fix with a white, unexposed sheet AND pls
do the same without any darkroomlight.(i had allready emailed to tell them i had done this with the same result)

Pls check if there are any lights, maybee from
a window or the door and tell us the result
of that.(dont treat me like a child)

In hope of a solution (maybe by next xmas)
Best regards

Andreas Kottlorz

i had to threaten legal action and paypal dispute to get this response

i mean im a professional printer , have been for years, i know off paper when i see it and this is the worst i have aver seen after hundreds of boxes of paper

by the way anything in brackets is me talking sarcastically LOL

 

i couldn't remember if i had a user name / password so it seemed i had no choice but to register to post here, why are you bringing up such detail

im a professional printer and have traded for many years in the British mags b and white mag, practical and amateur rags.(tait photographic)

i no longer do this as i am set up doing the same here in amsterdam, holland

i certainly am equal to make judgments on paper quality as any of the staff at fotoipmex(maybe even more qualified)

i also renovate and sell over a thousand cameras /lenses a year.

you will not find anybody more involved at all levels here in amsterdam

 

thats my experience, take it or leave it

i for one regret the day i spent 250 euro with them, should have gone to see joel at nivo Shcwitzer in amsterdam.

great customer service and motivated photographers unlike fotoimpex

 

you can believe what you like

i bought new paper from adox
it is the worst paper i have ever used

and adox wont even entertain that damaged packaging (hole 6cm long in box) could possibly be the cause, even though it clearly states on the box that the packaging should be undamaged or a replacement will be given

oh no its all my fault ,a 20 year darkroom professional who leaves his darkroom door open

im ashamed to be a photographer, that attitiude is enough to push me out of this profession for good.

photography seems to be dead

 

i did keep all the packaging and i did contact them straight away

and in the end it took a legal threat to even get a reply to my email

there customer service is astonishingly bad, and this is coming from someone who lives in holland, the land where service doesnt exist

 

i had to threaten legal action just to get a answer to my email

thats fair dont you think?