Developing & Loading the 120 Film...

Woolliscroft said:

It is a good idea to pull the backing paper of the film gently as the marking tape can produce quite impressive static sparks.

David.

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If you roll the film separate from the paper backing you can hold the film end eith the tape in one hand and tear the tape at the end. This way it's not pulled off the film or the paper.

I've no idea if tearing the tape itself might cause a spark because I'm working in a changing bag on the dining room table. But, I tear slowly and have not seen any problems in my film.

On the subject of loading two rolls of film on a single spool, I've not done this with the Jobo 1501 reels, but i have with the 2500-series spools. They even come with a plastic stop so the second strip doesn't roll over the first one. A couple of weeks ago, I did this with a large drum and processed six rolls at the same time. That helped me catch up on developing.

Rich

I've always had the best luck with rolling paper and film into 2 rolls, the film will naturally roll smaller, it almost does it automatically. When I get to the end (beginning of the roll) then I slowly peel the tape, no static marks yet. (maybe a few 15 or so years ago when I was more impatient...)

erie

When you peel off the tape do it gently as there is a electrostatic flash which can fog fast film.

Noel

Hm, so what's the verdict on the tape? I really like to fold it over to stabilize the film a bit when loading. Has it ever done anything weird to your film?

Antje

When I used to use stainless steel reels I always left the tape on and loaded from the taped end. The SS reels load from the inside out and the tape helped the wire clip get a better hold on the film. Never had a contamination problem from the tape. Now I use Jobo plastic and remove the tape - they load from the outside in. Also never had a problem from the 'spark' damaging actual frames on the film.

Bob

I, too, find that leaving the tape on the film when using SS reels helps ensure that the film is gripped tightly during the loading process. Before that, I had occasions with some film bases that the film would slip out of the wire loop. I rationalized it as more friction, not necessarily more thickness - - but it works.