Day 4??

[yola10go]

I recently got a kit from PF to do kallitypes. It says the sensitizer should ripen 2-3 days, but what happens to the solution after that?? This is all new to me, so I thought I would ask first. Thanks

erika

 

[Lukas Werth]

The solution keeps. I have not heard about the ripening yet. You should have two solutions: silver nitrate (keeps indefinitely in deionized water), and ferric oxalate (is said to go bad after some time, but that will be a matter at least of several months; I never had problems with old FO, and it can easily be rejuvenated anyway). Probably they want you to ripen the FO; I think this is unnecessary. To make sure, let the freshly mixed solution stand for a few hours before use.
You mix the two sol. just before coating!
What colour is your FO? (It should be amber)

 

[yola10go]

I didn't look at the FO. But here are the instructions from the kit:

"In a darkroom using a red safety light, add the solid silver nitrate to the ferric oxalate solution. Stir the resulting mixture with a glass or plastic rod to dissolve the solid. It is very common for a precipitate of silver oxalate to form. This precipitate does no harm. If your sensitizer does form a precipitate, just be sure you do not transfer it to the paper you will be coating.

The sensitizer must ripen for a few (2-3) days before use. Keep the solution in the darkroom and stir or mix it occasionally. The mixing is especially important if a precipitate formed during mixing."

???? I dunno????

erika

 

[Lukas Werth]

This sounds very odd to me to say the least. First: a red afelight is nonsense with kallitypes. Normal, not too bright tungsten is entirely okay; nothing will fogg, and you see what you do. This is specially important when you coat.

I never heard about mixing solid silver nitrate into FO, this sounds like complete nonsense to me. You need two brwown bottles: one with a 10% silver nitrate sol,, the other, if I remember correctly, 20% FO (check this). Mix them in equal parts equal just before coating, to make about 2 cc sensitizer for an 8x10" print, or proportionally more or less - the amount depends also on the paper you use (which is it?).

About precipitate: if the FO is amber in colour, you will not get one.

How do you intend to coat?

Read Sandy King's article about kallitypes on the unblinking eye, this will certainly provide you with a much better instruction than what you have.