Agfa MCC: Last Production Question

[ChuckP]

From my box notes I assume that the last production run of Agfa MCC had boxes labeled made in E.U. and earlier runs were marked made in France. Does anyone know if this is correct. Also I believe the last runs were around 2005. Is that correct? Thanks for any help.

 

[Pat Erson]

2005 seems about right.

Semi-OT but around that time someone told me Agfa encountered big problems with the quality of MCC paper batches. So they recommended a Sistan post-treatment for better durability of the prints.

 

[Oren Grad]

FWIW, the last shipments of Agfa MCC came in boxes branded "Agfaphoto" rather than "Agfa". Alas, I don't remember whether those were marked "EU" or "France".

 

[Andrea Calabresi]

Hello.

I bought the last paper available directly from Agfa, 16 big rolls and several boxes of 20x24, in May 2006. The production ended presumably in early 2006, late 2005. I believe that unless kept frozen at very low temp any MCC left around is fogged.
It was my primary paper choice for my lab from mid 90's till the end and i used tons (literally) of it.

The paper was excellent and widely used in fine arts, with no special issues. The Sistan (now called AG stab) is a clever product to protect any silver based photo material, either paper or film, regardless of manufacture.

The actual Adox MCC-110 is quite close to the original Agfa MCC.

 

[AgX]

Oren, AgfaPhoto as production entity was in existance for some months. Your batch may be made/sold in that period. Furthermore it may also have been sold in the days of AgfaPhoto living on as brand, still bearing the original materials.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

I just donated my last box to the landfill two weeks ago.nobody wanted it on APUG and I didn't want it to go through a third summer in Florida.nevertheless,2005 rings a bell.

 

[Oren Grad]

Oren, AgfaPhoto as production entity was in existance for some months. Your batch may be made/sold in that period. Furthermore it may also have been sold in the days of AgfaPhoto living on as brand, still bearing the original materials.

Yes, understood. There was plenty of discussion of that particular soap opera at the time.

I don't know what is motivating the OP's question, but in case it matters I'll add my own observation that although it was a wonderful paper, Agfa MCC did not keep particularly well. And when it went bad, it did so very quickly, like falling off a cliff. So any stock you find today, regardless of the year it was manufactured, is unlikely to be worth bothering with.

 

[ChuckP]

My now small stock of frozen since purchase Agfa MCC seems to work fine. My quick and dirty fog test is to run a piece through developer, stop and fixer and a second piece through fixer only. Then compare them. I've started to purchase some old boxes. Hit and miss but it seemed to me that made in France boxes showed more fog. So I wanted to verify that they were the older production. Fog is usually pretty light with this test but you really need a print to see how highlights are changed by below threshold fog. I actually like the fogged paper for printing very high contrast negatives. Probably would need to flash the paper anyhow. The Adox is OK although mine seems to lack contrast. Think I saw a thread about some problems with batches of it. I still like the look of the Agfa MCC better. Maybe it's the base. My developer is the current version of Neutol WA.

 

[Mark Crabtree]

I still have a box and a bit in the fridge. I'll have to check them. I should have stuck them in the freezer, but never got around to it.

I've got some 11" rolls of Forte (and a little Kodak) that did get to the freezer and held up fine last I checked. The Forte seemed to go off fast even at cool room temps. What I've seen with all my VC papers, long before fog, is a loss of higher contrast ability. I've been printing mostly on some ancient Polycontrast fiber paper that I picked up very cheaply. It craps out about #3, but is fine until then. I do use a little anti-fog or restrainer.

Edit: I just checked and my MCC is made in the EU and date 9/04.

 

[K-G]

The Adox is OK although mine seems to lack contrast. Think I saw a thread about some problems with batches of it. I still like the look of the Agfa MCC better. Maybe it's the base. My developer is the current version of Neutol WA.

There were some batches that didn't reach the highest contrast but from 2013 and onwards that seems to have been corrected. Mirko explained in a German forum that it had to do with the hardening. The papers I had delivered last fall have the original good quality again.

Karl-Gustaf

 

[ChuckP]

Well the older Adox is still being sold by Freestyle. The 25 sh 8x10 pack I bought in March 2014 was marked emulsion 00300-3 1 PD5-12. I assume that means made in 5/12. It's flat looking. Maybe good for high contrast negatives. Because of this I'm going to avoid Adox 110 for awhile and hope all the old stuff works its way out of the supply. And keep looking for some good old late Agfa MCC in the interim.

 

[K-G]

Well the older Adox is still being sold by Freestyle. The 25 sh 8x10 pack I bought in March 2014 was marked emulsion 00300-3 1 PD5-12. I assume that means made in 5/12. It's flat looking. Maybe good for high contrast negatives. Because of this I'm going to avoid Adox 110 for awhile and hope all the old stuff works its way out of the supply. And keep looking for some good old late Agfa MCC in the interim.

Whatever Agfa MCC you can find today will probably make you disappointed due to the fogging. If you want a paper that is similar to the old Agfa MCC ( and perhaps even a litle bit warmer ) and can't get hold of fresh Adox MCC, try to get some Berger CB. Slightly warmer than both Agfa and Adox MCC but not as warm white as Ilford MGWT.

Karl-Gustaf

 

[Mark Crabtree]

I tried my 2004 dated Agfa MCC last night and it seems absolutely fine, and still capable of high contrast. It was still going strong with 100 Magenta dialed into my color head. This was an open box stored in the fridge (probably at room temp the first year or more). I doubt I'll use it use it up soon, so stuck the unopened box in the freezer.

Cold storage really seems to help. My old roll stock of Forte was holding up very well also last I checked.

After printing on Polycontrast for so long, I'd kind of forgotten how lovely the Agfa is.