creating my own edge notches

abruzzi · Apr 17, 2020

I'm going to be cutting down larger format film to 6.5x9/2.5x3.5 sheets. I want to mark the edges of my resulting mini sheets to ensure proper loading in the film holders and the development reel, and I was wondering what others have used? I'm not really concerned with unique patterns to differentiate different stocks, just something to determine the emulsion side.

My thoughts so far:

1) scissors, just nip the corner. This is actually how the 4x5 Arista Ortho sheets are marked--one corner just has a 45 degree cut. I do find these harder to feel, though with the ortho, I can look at it under a safelight.

2) hole punch. Just a simple old-fasioned handheld single hole punch. The drawback here is consistently getting the film at the correct depth to just take a small crescent out of the edge, and not go too deep where the hole encroaches into the image area.

3) ??? I had hope that in the world of paper work--crafts, scrapbooking, etc, there might be a tool that might do what I want, but so far I haven't come up with anything.

gorbas · Apr 17, 2020

What about using single hole punch tool?

Bob S · Apr 17, 2020

A hand plier type leather punch has an adjustable stop to control placement of the punch. You don’t need the complete hole. Just set the depth to make a partial hole at the edge.

BrianShaw · Apr 17, 2020

I’d do option 1

Donald Qualls · Apr 17, 2020

It should be easy to glue a depth stop into a common single-hole paper punch. Cut the stop from mat board, so it controls both edges at the corner; then, in the dark, you'll just slip the film into the pocket in the punch, and squeeze. Most of these punches that I've seen lately have a means of capturing the punched-out scrap, which is a good thing -- don't want those little chips of (possibly static charged) film floating around the darkroom when you're cutting down your film.

abruzzi · Apr 18, 2020

The corner clip is obviously the easiest to do, but my darkroom sense of touch seems to be much worse that most other people (I gave up on metal spools after ruining ~50 roll of film, for instance). The clipped corners aren’t anywhere as noticeable, even when I’m looking for it.

my only issue with the hole punch was finding an easy way to make sure that I didn’t insert the film too far. I’ll look a little closer at them, but it wasn’t obvious how I could modify it with my limited skill.

MattKing · Apr 18, 2020

Try a two or three hole punch, with some card added to limit how far you can push the film in, and a positioning guide.

Bill Burk · Apr 19, 2020

Corner cut sounds like what we had in graphic arts film, it works fine

DWThomas · Apr 19, 2020

I'm thinking this topic came up several years ago and someone came up with a source for a punch that was designed to create notches along an edge -- it was either for use on fabric when cutting from patterns or maybe scrapbooking -- don't remember the details. The scrapbooking hobby has all sorts of oddball cutting apparatus made. My only concern is how tough some of those punches are. I have used the standard cheap office supply single hole punches to cut a notch in the corner of Fuji HR-T X-ray film and it nearly takes two hands to squeeze the punch -- tough stuff! (Maybe it needs something made for railroad conductors!)

Edit: Here's the previous thread

A current example

Note: I never acquired one so I have no idea how well they work or how well they hold up in use.

abruzzi · Apr 19, 2020

thanks for that link. My main reason for posting was to see if there were options outside of the film world like sewing or paperwork. That sewing pattern notcher looks like to wouldn't be too hard to ensure the film doesn't go too deep.

Vaughn · Apr 19, 2020

Small guilitine-type cutter -- make inset to hold film in place at an angle with just a corner hanging over the cutting edge. Then off with its head!

Might be able to do several sheets at a time...practice with scraps to find the max number, then back off a couple sheets.

gordrob · Apr 19, 2020

I normally just clip the corners depending on how many sheets I need to identify. Other than that I use a vintage McBee Railroad Conductor Ticket Punch. It punches an oval about 3/16" deep and the nice thing about it is that it has a small box under the punch to collect the waste so you don't have to worry about where little pieces have ended up. You can pick one of these up off the big auction site for around $20.

abruzzi · Apr 19, 2020

gordrob said:
McBee Railroad Conductor Ticket Punch

aha! That opened up another angle of search--ticket punches. That found me something interesting. A ticket punch with a built in adjustable depth gauge:

I like the McBee too, but I'm guessing the 3/16 will be a little big. Though the design of the McBee makes it looks easy to jury rig something to keep it from going too deep.

jp498 · Apr 20, 2020

Look for a nibbler tool too... Easy way to notch about anything.

NB23 · Apr 21, 2020

1 cut, should be easy enough to Feel it with your tongue, if you doubt your finger.

jgoody · Apr 21, 2020

Timers, who set the color on each scene in traditional movie film laboratories used a punch which made a notch at the edge of the 35mm movie negative. This was done for each edit, and it triggered the printing machine to go to the next set of timing lights, which were on a sort of paper punchcard called a timing strip. As I remember the notch was about 1/8 X 3/4 inch indent with rounded corners so it didn't catch as the negative ran through the printer. Anyway that punch, which looked sort of like a ticket collectors punch, is exactly what you need!

Kino · Apr 21, 2020

jgoody said:
Timers, who set the color on each scene in traditional movie film laboratories used a punch which made a notch at the edge of the 35mm movie negative. This was done for each edit, and it triggered the printing machine to go to the next set of timing lights, which were on a sort of paper punchcard called a timing strip. As I remember the notch was about 1/8 X 3/4 inch indent with rounded corners so it didn't catch as the negative ran through the printer. Anyway that punch, which looked sort of like a ticket collectors punch, is exactly what you need!

Bell and Howell also made a film notcher; I have one of these floating around in my basement. Thankfully I don't have to use it professionally...

jgoody · Apr 21, 2020

Thanks for jogging my obviously fading memory -- that's exactly the device I was referring to -- it didn't look like a ticket punch! The splice between shots was lined up the edge of the notcher as the notch needed to be a specific distance from the splice. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

Kino · Apr 21, 2020

jgoody said:
Thanks for jogging my obviously fading memory -- that's exactly the device I was referring to -- it didn't look like a ticket punch! The splice between shots was lined up the edge of the notcher as the notch needed to be a specific distance from the splice. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

There WERE notchers based on a hand-punch style; like a pair of pliers. I remember seeing one somewhere in the distant past but have run across a lot more of the B&H style notchers.
Your memory is fine!

grat · May 9, 2020

A long, long time ago, we had these things called floppy disks. Not the little plastic shells, actual disks that flopped. And if you had a small notch in the side of the disk, you could write to it-- and someone discovered that if you notched the *other* side of the disk, you had a two-sided floppy. Thus was created the disk notcher which would put a precisely sized square notch a specific distance from the top edge of the disk.

I'd suggest searching ebay, but the asking prices on them are insane.

Vaughn · May 9, 2020

Clipping my nails last night -- and thought of this thread.

abruzzi · May 10, 2020

grat said:
A long, long time ago, we had these things called floppy disks. Not the little plastic shells, actual disks that flopped. And if you had a small notch in the side of the disk, you could write to it-- and someone discovered that if you notched the *other* side of the disk, you had a two-sided floppy. Thus was created the disk notcher which would put a precisely sized square notch a specific distance from the top edge of the disk.

heh, but back in the day we just notched them with a hole punch with a second to align the punch...

Donald Qualls · May 10, 2020

abruzzi said:
heh, but back in the day we just notched them with a hole punch with a second to align the punch...

Yep. I once fell into a screaming deal on a bunch of previously used 5 1/4" floppies, all with write protect labels or unnotched (written with a duplicator, I presume). I fabricated a spacer and punched more than a hundred of them with a three-hole loose leaf punch. Took me longer to modify the punch than it did to punch all the floppies. Took a bunch of floppies to back up a huge 40 MB hard disk...

creating my own edge notches

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