Can't Find My Marbles

ColColt · Nov 29, 2015

Back in the day when I had a bottle of developer such as Rodinal or HC-110 go down in volume I'd transfer what was in the original bottle to brown glass bottles. If they got below an inch or more I'd add some marbles to bring the solution back up to the top. Whether that was necessary or not I don't know but, it gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling anyway.

I have that same occurrence now with HC-110 with the developer in it's original container down about 3 inches and went looking for my marbles but couldn't locate them. Anyone done this before or do you think it's an exercise in futility?

Sirius Glass · Nov 29, 2015

I did that until I had a one gallon bottle half full of marbles. That sucker was so heavy that I went to accordion bottles, even though some of them will leak and will have to be destroyed, and stopped using marbles.

ColColt · Nov 29, 2015

I still have quite a few of the accordion bottles in quart and half gallon sizes but kept my developer in glass bottles once it got low in the original bottle. I didn't have any problem using the glass and may have been lucky but the plastic accordion ones never leaked-not easy to clean properly, unfortunately.

John Bragg · Nov 29, 2015

Hi David, I used them only with Ilford Ilfosol s. Great developer, but lousy shelf life. Never a problem with Rodinal or HC-110. I do however decant HC-110 into smaller bottles as a precaution, but I have heard that is not nescessary. It does make measuring easier though as a smaller bottle is easier to use with a syringe.

OptiKen · Nov 29, 2015

APUG'rs, PLEASE.
You are giving the OP advice on bottles and storage but I'm not sure that is what they are really asking for.
Re-read their post.
I've been there.
I've lost my marbles. too.

DWThomas · Nov 29, 2015

Enh, most of us have lost our marbles -- perhaps multiple times! My last quest for marbles got me clear spherical baubles from a craft store which looked nice but I'm not sure were actually glass. They seemed to suffer some deterioration from being immersed in photo chemicals. (I'm thinking it was a print developer concentrate, but it's long enough ago, I don't quite remember.) So be sure and look for glass ones. Although IIRC, even glass can be attacked by some alkaline materials.

Like someone upthread, I split my HC110 concentrate into some smaller bottles -- REI and other camping supply sources have screw top "Nalgene" bottles in 2, 4 and 8 ounce sizes. HC110 concentrate seems to hold up well with air exposure, but especially since it now comes in a one liter bottle, I like the idea of not causing wholesale contamination if drawing the stuff out with a syringe that maybe has some water left in the tip. My normal "working" bottle is two ounces.

ColColt · Nov 29, 2015

If for not other reason, as John indicated, it's easier getting a syringe in the smaller bottles as once the level goes down in that 1 liter bottle my syringe isn't long enough and I have to tilt it quite a bit to get to it. So far(knock on wood) I haven't ended up with more of it on the floor than in the syringe.

Sirius Glass · Nov 29, 2015

I used glass marbles. I saw no deterioration from chemicals. And no I still have all the marbles in a plastic box. My sanity may be in question though. :crazy:

ColColt · Nov 29, 2015

I used the glass "Cateye" marbles. I know they're here...where is questionable.

StephenT · Nov 29, 2015

If you can't find your marbles, some have said that a bit of propane from a readily available small bottle will work just fine. You would of course have to have the proper size tubing so you could keep the bottle upright as you displaced the air in the chemical bottle.

Then again, some would say if you use propane, you would have really lost your marbles!!

Choose wisely and good luck.

(My marbles have been missing for a long time, but I can easily find my little white bottle of propane).

Old-N-Feeble · Nov 29, 2015

[video=youtube;dZLAlceZ2qo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZLAlceZ2qo[/video]

Gerald C Koch · Nov 29, 2015

HC-110 keeps for a Very long time without any special considerations. Don't worry and take more pictures.

ColColt · Nov 29, 2015

Loool-that was great, Old-N-Feeble

HC-110 keeps for a Very long time without any special considerations. Don't worry and take more pictures.

I'll take that advice since I can't find them anyway.

MattKing · Nov 29, 2015

It is moisture that matters with HC-110.

Smaller bottles may make handling easier, but they won't make much difference for longevity.

ColColt · Nov 29, 2015

Shorter bottles would help, as you mentioned, as my needle on my syringe is only about two inches long.

Xmas · Nov 29, 2015

Cause I switch film long term I had a small bottle of Rodinal less than 1/4 full opened in 78 and not finished off till 2005.
I'd used Kodachrome 25 for everything cept duping film.
That is >25 years

Noel

gone · Nov 30, 2015

Don't feel bad. Most people I meet these days have lost their marbles :[

Not sure about your other developer, but air doesn't seem to affect Rodinol. That stuff lasts forever (although I bought some R09 from Freestyle, and it didn't last very long no matter what I did).

Michael L. · Nov 30, 2015

I have been using small glass marbles to raise the surface level of the concentrate in Rodinal bottles for many years with no ill effects. The Rodinal has not harmed the marbles (or vice versa).

On the other hand, I have found that print developer can indeed damage marbles. From a great-grandaunt I had inherited a number of large (1") vintage glass marbles (she had used them to arrange flowers in transparent vases), and in my ignorance I plunked them into a bottle of Eukobrom to reduce the air space above the liquid. The marbles were beautiful and shiny when they went in, but after six months in the bottle they came out dull and pitted like Jupiter's moon Ganymede. It isn't a question of residue; the surface of the marbles is really corroded.

Doremus Scudder · Nov 30, 2015

Lose the marbles!

Gerald C Koch said:
HC-110 keeps for a Very long time without any special considerations. Don't worry and take more pictures.

+1 to the above. Plus, if you use marbles, you end up with a lot of HC-110 syrup between them that becomes practically unavailable and ends up being wasted.

Lose the marbles!

Doremus

Xmas · Nov 30, 2015

momus said:
Don't feel bad. Most people I meet these days have lost their marbles :[

Not sure about your other developer, but air doesn't seem to affect Rodinol. That stuff lasts forever (although I bought some R09 from Freestyle, and it didn't last very long no matter what I did).

You only need to screw the cap back on, doing more is risky. I've managed to leave to top off overnight without detectable difference.

Old-N-Feeble · Nov 30, 2015

Michael L. said:
I have been using small glass marbles to raise the surface level of the concentrate in Rodinal bottles for many years with no ill effects. The Rodinal has not harmed the marbles (or vice versa).

On the other hand, I have found that print developer can indeed damage marbles. From a great-grandaunt I had inherited a number of large (1") vintage glass marbles (she had used them to arrange flowers in transparent vases), and in my ignorance I plunked them into a bottle of Eukobrom to reduce the air space above the liquid. The marbles were beautiful and shiny when they went in, but after six months in the bottle they came out dull and pitted like Jupiter's moon Ganymede. It isn't a question of residue; the surface of the marbles is really corroded.

That's too bad. I wonder if they were made of something other than glass... maybe natural stone?

Gerald C Koch · Nov 30, 2015

My uncle had lost an eye due to a childhood mishap. When he was a kid and lost all his marbles in a game he would take out the glass eye and use it. At this point he always started winning again.

ColColt · Nov 30, 2015

Sort of off the topic but I can't recall the last time I saw kids playing marbles. We did it almost daily when I was a kid. We use to fuss and complain if anyone used a steel ball as it almost always would "stick" and they'd get another shot at getting all your marbles!

Michael L. · Nov 30, 2015

Old-N-Feeble said:
That's too bad. I wonder if they were made of something other than glass... maybe natural stone?

Yes, too bad.
But the marbles are made of genuine glass - hand-made, in fact. The pontil marks are still visible.
The print developer behaved as usual throughout, I should add.

Gerald C Koch · Nov 30, 2015

ColColt said:
Sort of off the topic but I can't recall the last time I saw kids playing marbles. We did it almost daily when I was a kid. We use to fuss and complain if anyone used a steel ball as it almost always would "stick" and they'd get another shot at getting all your marbles!

Marbles are analog and have no attraction for modern day kids.

Can't Find My Marbles

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