You'd have to inspect them closely to figure out what they are. A loupe or microscope would help.Anybody have an idea what those black specks are all about?
Did you previously use the bottle for fixer? I vaguely remember something similar eons ago and determined it was residual gunk in the bottle that was previous used for fixer despite being washed out.
Did you previously use the bottle for fixer? I vaguely remember something similar eons ago and determined it was residual gunk in the bottle that was previous used for fixer despite being washed out.
Good point. Don't re-use bottles that have been used for ANY other chemistry except developers. I recall you previously stating that you were storing the chemistry in plastic bottles, is that right? I dislike plastic storage for developers, as chemistry tends to bind to the plastic and it can be difficult to clean the insides of the containers. However, if you wet a few cotton balls, toss them in the bottle and add some dish detergent, then cap it and shake the bottle aggressively in all directions then you can fairly effectively "scrub out" the interior before adding new chemistry. Sometimes just wet cotton balls alone will do that job.
That said, I recommend brown glass bottle for storing developers.
I also have to wonder if your "well aged" Metol is creating some kind of precipitate. At least it gave you usable negatives (presumably).
Yes brown plastic bottles. The bottles that I am using for storing this first batch of D23, stop and fixer were new. They were rinsed out with water and dried before use. This would be the second film run since this last Monday. The first run went fine. I will be looking into glass.
The condition of the metol came to mind I will be developing another roll later on. I held off printing last night because I wanted to shoot another roll so that I had more for printing.
The negatives look OK through a magnifier but we will see when it comes to printing. Crossing fingers.
So, you are using D-23 as stock (not diluted) developer and returning it to the bottle for re-use? If so, it's not surprising that there may be some precipitate in the saved developer. Use coffee filters and filter it out.
If you are saving it and re-using it, you need to replenish it after the first roll and for every subsequent roll. There is a technique for this.
D23 1:1 250ml water to 250ml developer. One shot use. I was thinking of replenishing but I am not developing at high volume.
I used up one of the 500ml bottles, one more to go. After mixing the liter of D23 on Monday I split the stock solution into 2 - 500ml bottles.
Going back out to shoot another roll of kentmere 100. This time at box speed. I will keep updated.
Also would like to note that I am using distilled water to mix all of my chemicals.
Emulsion flakes
Emulsion flakes
If it's in the leader, which is usually cut ouf, it can really be.
A quick search on the net reveals that emulsion flaking is possible even in a regular developer
Done developing the Pan F film.
Looks like the same amount of specks from the last session. This tells me that something is wrong on my end.
1st film run with FP4 plus - No specks
2nd film run with Kentmere 100 - Lots of specks, end of bottle #1
3rd film run with Kentmere 100 - Very little bit of specks
4th film run with Pan F plus - Very little bit of specks, end of bottle #2
I even checked the bottle caps and the threads of the bottles to see if there were any chips or anything and there aren't any.
For now I am going to hold off with film developing until I can get a new batch of chemistry.
As long as 1) you get a well developed negative and 2) none of the black stuff ends up on the film, I wouldn't fret too much about this issue. There could be contaminants in your sulfite as well, so it may not be the aged Metol at fault. You won't really know until you've sourced fresh chemicals. (Get thee to ArtCraft!)
D23 at 1:1. I am really liking this developer. When I get the metaborate I will try the D23 two-bath.I'm with @retina_restoration, emulsion flakes are almost impossible unless something else has gone catastrophically wrong along the way. For any small amount of film processed at a time do not store and reuse diluted developer, throw it and mix some more next time. Replenishing and re-using is for people who have daily trips to the darkroom and ideally use deep tanks. Find a developer that you like that can be mixed fresh for each new batch and you'll find it's more economical based on reliability if not base cost. Film is too expensive to cheap out on developer, you'd be better cheaping out on the film stock by going Kentmere instead of Ilford if cost is a factor.
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