B&W film 6 months past use by date OK?

Xícara · Feb 8, 2019

Hi forum,

I'm in the market for a 30.5m tin of 35mm film. I found a tin of Ilford Delta 100 at a good price held by a reputable dealer that is six months out of date. I believe it would have been stored correctly. Do you think this film will perform well and worth the risk? it's at 1/2 price.

All the best!

Iain

Kevin Caulfield · Feb 8, 2019

john_s · Feb 8, 2019

Very likely Yes. The slower the film the better it keeps (before exposure). It does depend on storage temperatures. I once bought a roll of Neopan400 well within its use by date and it was terrible: foggy and slow. It was purchased at a kiosk at an archaeological site near Uxmal, southern Mexico, and it was an unbelievably hot place. I was lucky that I could buy any black and white film, I suppose.

Neal · Feb 8, 2019

Yes. Don't worry about it. There will be no issues due to the film. Further, if there are issues, the odds are overwhelming that they are due to operator error with a small chance of equipment failure (old cameras are old cameras).

Just have fun!

BMbikerider · Feb 8, 2019

Unless it was stored in very warm conditions then yes, I would go along with what has already been said.

slackercrurster · Feb 8, 2019

In the 1970's I bought some old military surplus expired glass plates at Freestyle. They were expired +/- 20 years, from the early 1950's. They worked great!

When Freestyle was at their old location they were a dumpy warehouse type of store. You could wander down the aisles of old gritty gray metal shelving and dig though their junk. Freestyle was all about expired and repackaged media back then.

Xícara · Feb 8, 2019

Thanks everyone. Just bought the film. All the best!

Andrew O'Neill · Feb 8, 2019

No worries. I have infra red film that expired in '67. Yours is only 6 months past. I also have HP5 that I've kept frozen since '05. Any increase in B+F is easily printed through.

MattKing · Feb 8, 2019

If you have a choice between in-date Delta 100 and past date Delta 100, and both come from the same reliable source, and the price differential is reasonable, buy the newer film first - most likely it will remain usable for you longer.
But like most/all of the posters here, I have had very usable results from past date film.
If you buy the past date film, load and use a couple of rolls first before you use it on anything critical or un-repeatable.
Good luck, and good light!

Sirius Glass · Feb 8, 2019

koraks · Feb 8, 2019

Delta 100 ages quite well. 6 months past its date is not a significant problem; the film will most likely be just fine and can be used at box speed.

pentaxuser · Feb 8, 2019

Have a look in the Gallery at pics from pentaxpete. OK they are mostly scans of negatives but I have no reason to believe that they would not make great darkroom prints. Nearly everything he uses is out of date film - some of it by several years

pentaxuser

lensworker · Feb 9, 2019

With C-41 and E-6 you can get color shift without of date film. B&W film is much not nearly as affected by being past its develop by date:
https://petapixel.com/2017/05/26/shooting-35-year-old-roll-kodak-film/
and -
https://petapixel.com/2016/06/27/1200-rolls-unprocessed-film-found-shot-one-1950s-photographer/

B&W film that is 15-20 years past its develop by date may show lower contrast than normal for that particular emulsion after being developed. Six months past the develop by date is nothing to worry about.
B&W emulsions have a lot more staying power and are a lot more resistant to image degradation than we have been led to believe; it's one of the great things about B&W photography.

Ian Grant · Feb 9, 2019

koraks said:
Delta 100 ages quite well. 6 months past its date is not a significant problem; the film will most likely be just fine and can be used at box speed.

6 years past the date is fine if it's been stored in a cool place, temperature not over 20ºC.

ISO9002 compliance meant film companies like Ilford had to reduce the expiry date significantly, this is more about stock control than recommended storage times. At one time expiry dates were 5 or even 6 years now they are usually around 2 years.

I'm about to use some 7x5 FP4 with an expiry date of 2002, it came with a camera 2 weeks ago so I might as well use it to test the camera. I have a lot of out dated Delta 100/400 (2011) and it behave perfectly no issues at all.

Ian

CMoore · Feb 9, 2019

I realize the word "Expired" might need to be defined, but while i was reading this classified ......... https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/wtb-expired-35mm-for-throwaway-price.164987/

.....it got me wondering about "expired" Film.
So i looked around and found the thread i am posting in Here.

Until now, i had never "worried" about the date on my film boxes. I buy my film -35mm and 120 (6x7)- from the typical on-line sources.
After the film gets to my house, it goes in a plastic bag with one of those desiccant packs, and then into my dedicated darkroom refrigerator.
After THAT, i do not really pay any attention to the date. Be it 6 Months or 6 Years, i do not think about it.
Well, i DO use it by the date on the boxes, but it does not bother me that, sometimes, the date will be several years over its "expiration".
I am just a Hack/Hobbyist street photographer. The quality of my prints are "important" to me, but not crucial. I am not a professional photographer, not going to win a Pulitzer, not concerned with what a Gallery/Museum might say about my stuff.
BUT.....i have not noticed any problems from using HP5 and FP4 that was 3-4-5 years past its due date.
Assuming it is refrigerated and "dry" is there any real reason for the average photographer to be concerned about what date is stamped on their box of film.?
Thank You

Kodachromeguy · Feb 9, 2019

Another vote for going ahead with the expired Delta 100 as long as you believe that it was stored in a reasonable climate-controlled building (i.e., not allowed to get hot). I am still using my last rolls of Panatomic-X in 120 size, expired in 1988. They have been stored in the freezer. Soon they will all be gone

Baptist Town, Greenwood, Mississippi. Hasselblad 501CM, tripod-mounted, Panatomic-X film processed in Xtol.

mklw1954 · Feb 27, 2019

Should be fine. As part of an enlarger deal, I got a bulk roll of Kodak Tmax 100 that was 7 years expired and never refrigerated or frozen and it shot perfectly at box speed and D76 stock development.

RalphLambrecht · Feb 27, 2019

Xícara said:
Hi forum,

I'm in the market for a 30.5m tin of 35mm film. I found a tin of Ilford Delta 100 at a good price held by a reputable dealer that is six months out of date. I believe it would have been stored correctly. Do you think this film will perform well and worth the risk? it's at 1/2 price.

All the best!

Iain

Yes, it is likely to be OK.with age, film will lose some speed and contrast; the exact amount is hard to predict and depends on storage conditions.however, both can be compensated for in film and/or paper processing.if the price is right it's worth theirs or just order fresh.

Cholentpot · Feb 27, 2019

100 speed I'd go for even 10 years past. 400 speed does not age nearly as well though.

Agulliver · Feb 28, 2019

While it does vary depending on film speed and even manufacturer.....there's no B&W film which would show significant problems 6 months after the expiry date. I would, however, either freeze it or use it within a year or two of purchase. If you plan to use it within the next year I honestly doubt you'll detect any difference compared to fresh Delta 100 unless it's been stored in very hot and humid conditions and your supplier has stated that is not the case.

I've used Tri-X around 18 years expired and stored in my garage (gets hot in summer, cold in winter) for a decade and it only began showing any signs of fog right when I finished the 100 foot roll. I've used HP5+ twenty years out of date with visible fog but shot at 200 it was perfectly fine. I've even shot Selochrome glass plates which were made in the 50s and got decent-ish results.

B&W film ages much better than colour film.

koraks · Feb 28, 2019

Agulliver said:
there's no B&W film which would show significant problems 6 months after the expiry date.

Maybe films like Delta3200 excluded. Those really fast films don't age all too well.

Alan Edward Klein · Feb 28, 2019

I've kept some Velvia 50 slide and Tmax 100 BW negative film in a refrigerator at 36 degrees Fahrenheit. What longevity effects are there regarding expiry date for these films?

Agulliver · Mar 1, 2019

koraks said:
Maybe films like Delta3200 excluded. Those really fast films don't age all too well.

Nah...I've used D3200 about four years expired kept in a drawer in the bedroom. No problems whatsoever. Kodak P3200 doesn't age well but you'd still be fine 6 months beyond expiry date.

For B&W film, 6 months really is nothing.

koraks · Mar 1, 2019

I don't have good experiences with expired delta3200. Significant loss of speed and high fog. I suppose I haven't had much luck.

David Lyga · Mar 1, 2019

Cholentpot said:
100 speed I'd go for even 10 years past. 400 speed does not age nearly as well though.

And TMZ, the 3200 speed Kodak film, lasts about 'five minutes'. Stored in a salt mine. - David Lyga

B&W film 6 months past use by date OK?

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