Ratty says "never" to replenishment and that's fine for him. Me? I say, "Viva La Xtol-R" ! JohnW
This is my method of using Xtol-R almost to the letter. The only difference is that my working solution is store in a larger 1 gallon amber jug. For people that bitch about mixing chemicals and such this is the best thing next to one-shot developers like DDX. Me? I have never minded playing chemist, but some folks do. Several years ago I bought two bottles of DDX and used those with great results. The only negative I saw with DDX was cost. After using DDX I had read here that some folks thought DDX and Xtol were very close in end results. Well, that left me wanting to try Xtol and I'm very glad I did. I was as happy with my HP5+ negatives souped in Xtol as I was with DDX. Then I read here "again" something about Replenishment of Xtol and how it actually might/was better than Xtol one shot. That's where I'm at now and plan on remaining. I really could not be happier with a film developer. Ratty says "never" to replenishment and that's fine for him. Me? I say, "Viva La Xtol-R" ! JohnW
Ratty,Just to be clear, I never tell anyone not to replenish. I only state what I do myself. I'd rather slit my throat than replenish. Not in a hundred million years will I ever replenish. But that's just me. I won't tell anyone they are wrong for doing so.
Ratty,
Whoops! That statement I wrote can be interpreted two way. My meaning of it is that "YOU" say no to replenish. I did not mean that you are telling others not to. JohnW
I used to only mix up a partial bag too. Now I just mix the whole thing up and put it in a wine bag in a box. It’s air tight and lasts a very long time. When it starts to get low, mix up another couple gallons and put it in the bag.
After PE corrected me (it's like getting yelled at by somebody else's dad), I now mix up a gallon and store in 4 1-qt data bottles, squeezed till the fluid gets right to top before capping.
I did the multiple bottle thing for a pretty long time and never really liked it, then I discovered the astropaq wine bag in a box. You can get them brand new in a couple different capacities. I get the biggest one (it’s 15 or 16 liters, can’t remember off the top of my head). They also have a refill/bag transfer accessory.
It has been nothing but great and I highly recommend it. It’s a little cash to start, but once you start using it, it’s a dream.
That was my reasoning for using the 1 gallon jug for the working solution. I felt that the larger volume was less likely to fluctuate over time. My batch is going on 3yrs old and works as good as new and is so simple it's not funny. The only problem I have is when it comes time to dump the developer. I was so used to running one-shot that I catch myself wanting to dump the just used Xtol down the drain instead of back in the jug where it belongs. If I haven't developed any film for a month or so I will pull off 90ml from the working solution jug and put 90ml stock/replenisher back in just to be on the safe side. I think if Ratty tried it the way we do and got the end results that we do or at least I do, he might just think differently. Of course there are some folks that that still think the world is flat and you're not going to ever change their minds. JohnWI’ve been considering going up to a 2 liter bottle for working solution. I’ve found the 1 liter works, but is pretty sensitive to replenishment errors like accidentally putting 70ml in with a 135-24, or putting 70ml in, then at the last minute putting 2 rolls in the tank and forgetting to put an additional 70ml in before topping off.
That sort of thing doesn’t happen that frequently, but I’m a human and it does happen. A 2 or 2.5 liter bottle will buffer and smooth that out quite a bit.
That being said, when it does happen, the 1L bottle does recover really quickly as you’re replacing nearly a 1/10 of the bottle with every roll of 135-36. Just correct the replenishment error and within 2-3 rolls it’s back to normal.
Very few people other than myself have a hatred for replenishment so strong that no known language can accurately describe it.
That was my reasoning for using the 1 gallon jug for the working solution. I felt that the larger volume was less likely to fluctuate over time. My batch is going on 3yrs old and works as good as new and is so simple it's not funny. The only problem I have is when it comes time to dump the developer. I was so used to running one-shot that I catch myself wanting to dump the just used Xtol down the drain instead of back in the jug where it belongs. If I haven't developed any film for a month or so I will pull off 90ml from the working solution jug and put 90ml stock/replenisher back in just to be on the safe side. I think if Ratty tried it the way we do and got the end results that we do or at least I do, he might just think differently. Of course there are some folks that that still think the world is flat and you're not going to ever change their minds. JohnW
this is all good reason to mix your own processing chemicals from bulk.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.
Why do you hate it so much? I'm not being snide, I'm genuinely curious and trying to learn.
this is all good reason to mix your own processing chemicals from bulk.
Ralph, how would one get started on this?
I don't think home brewing is cheaper than using packaged product, at least with Kodak D-76.
Right, not with D-76 at $6.95 for a gallon mix at B&H. The advantage would need to lie elsewhere.
The whole discussion about developer price is mostly pointless as long as it is so much cheaper than most photographic films you can buy fresh. Self mixing D-76 is not an end by itself, but a good starting point for folks who want to delve deeper into the home brew realm, ...
I used to only mix up a partial bag too. Now I just mix the whole thing up and put it in a wine bag in a box. It’s air tight and lasts a very long time. When it starts to get low, mix up another couple gallons and put it in the bag.
That being said, I don’t do much D76 as of late. Largely switched over to replenished XTOL. I make up the 5 liters, and put it in a wine bag, and keep a 1 liter Amber glass bottle as my working solution. For every roll of 135-36 I put 70ml from the wine bag in the bottle then top the bottle off with what I just developed with. For 135-24 it’s 56ml per roll. When the wine bag solution gets low, mix up another 5L and put it in the bag. Piece of cake.
I can certainly understand why some people don’t want to replenish, and they should do what works for them, however in my experience, XTOL is one of the easiest systems to replenish and Kodak’s datasheet for it is excellent.
D-76 goes bad over time. HC-110 does not.
yeah, I like HC-110. I just finished a bottle of HC-110 that I've been using since Nov 2016, it even turned orange. I like that you can mix how much you need and don't need to store a working/stock solution like you do with powder developers.
Hi Adrian. Say, are you using the Astropaq clear bags that go into the box or the stand alone opaque ones with holes at the top for fingers? Is that accessory the u shaped plastic stand? I'm really liking these and just may pull the trigger. I don't want to mess with a bunch of different bottles. Thanks!PE isn’t bad unless you’re a turd to him, but even then he just gets a little sharp. I like to think of it as getting a correct tuneup by one of the team mechanics.
I did the multiple bottle thing for a pretty long time and never really liked it, then I discovered the astropaq wine bag in a box. You can get them brand new in a couple different capacities. I get the biggest one (it’s 15 or 16 liters, can’t remember off the top of my head). They also have a refill/bag transfer accessory.
It has been nothing but great and I highly recommend it. It’s a little cash to start, but once you start using it, it’s a dream.
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