Things were going fine until their distributor quit, so I am guessing the new distributor is the issue. Roberts is just a regional camera retailer. I'm not sure how it got the national distributorship. I don't think Ilford just all of a sudden began mismanaging itself.
And why were they not prepared for a distributor move like that? 85% of my company's business is through distribution. We have *multiple* contingency plans in case a distributor goes bankrupt or something like that. It has happened, several times (globally) and these plans kick in to insure customers are not left holding the bag.
Ilford failed to provide for their North American customers.
Roberts got it because they’re reasonably centrally located.
Using multiple distributors for every country they sell into pretty significantly increases the amount of inventory Ilford has to pay for up front to keep those channels in stock. Also when Wynit shuttered, Ilford stepped in and directly filled until Roberts took over. All things considered, the transition could have gone a lot worse.
D-76 goes bad over time. HC-110 does not.
I'm willing to give Ilford a pass on this hiccup. At least they are not discontinuing film.
D-76 goes bad over time. HC-110 does not.
The truth in your statement depends on the time scale, because I measure the time over which D-76 goes bad in years (I don't even worry about it unless it's more than 2 years old).
Unless the bottle has been opened, then I measure that time in weeks (after 3-5 weeks, I'll discard an open bottle's remaining contents).
I understand and appreciate the convenience of a concentrate that keeps forever and can be metered out to working strength at any time over decades...
B & H has been out of DD-X for quite a long time as well as many different Ilford films. I suppose it could have gone a lot worse but not stocking the biggest name in online photo shopping seems like an epic fail to me.
I know. It keeps for years (despite the relatively short time warranted by Kodak).I was talking about D76 solutions, not undissolved powder.
That’s assuming BH sources from the US. Roberts isn’t going to accept orders from them unless they go through the new account process with them. Ilford can’t control if a seller is going to get through the proper channels to get their product.
I’m a little guy and had no problem going through the new account process and started getting product right away. If BH doesn’t do the same, it’s not Ilford’s fault. If BH doesn’t have a bunch of Ilford product, I’d say it’s BHs fault, not Ilford’s fault.
Nope. I blame Ilford. 100%.
One advantage of D-76 is that it doubles the potential availability - Ilford ID-11 is functionally equivalent.
Those of us who use any Ilford products are fortunate that Roberts Camera stepped up. If Harman had had to rely on the existing distribution channels to replace Wynit, things would be as bad for Ilford products as they are for Kodak and the other participants in the analogue photography market.
Anyway RattyMouse, your point is not lost on me. As an occasional operator, I had considered switching to HC-110 for the fact it lasts forever.
My point is that D-76 lasts a long time and could fit into a hobbyists occasional working lifestyle.
It fits mine.
D-76 goes bad over time. HC-110 does not.
I tried HC110 but the thick syrup was a hassle to measure out in small portions...how'd you do it? I regularly use DDX and really like it for faster film (slower film I use Rodinal) or for pushing film.
I use a Paterson 45 ml graduate. I put 30 ml of water in it, and then slowly pour a trickle of HC-110 into the centre until the volume rises to 36 ml (if I am aiming for 6 ml of concentrate).I tried HC110 but the thick syrup was a hassle to measure out in small portions...how'd you do it?
The last time I checked the price of HC110 I was surprised . Having said that HC110 is great, and replenished will last forever.
For the money, the answer to the original question, D-76 is hard to beat for a universal, good value film developer.
Amongst various concerns, the OP and others have mentioned price and rightly so. Isn't there a clue in the above quote that it might be worth pursuing DD as the alternative to DDX?. Certainly in the U.K market you can buy 5L of DD direct from Harman/Ilford Photo at a much better price than the equivalent 5L of DDX. The price difference means that DD is about half the price of DDX and it would seem that despite DD being meant for large volume commercial processes it can be used for small tank processing, even on a one-off use and dump basis without starter.DD is the replenished version of DDX for use with labs. They’re the same, just different packaging. DD needs the starter added, DDX already has it. You can read all about it on Ilford’s site under their chemistry pages.
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