Developing really old b&w film....

[afirmin]

I am trying to help a friend out.

She has a 20 year old ORWO NP22 b&w film (this is rebadged Agfa film I believe) that needs developing - I will be using ID11.

I am assuming the photographs were taken 20 years ago on the film - kind of gets lost in the Polish to English translation.

I found some developing times for the film on digital truth. But my question is....

do I need to increase or decrease these developing times because the film is so old?

Cheers,

Ant

 

[Jim Noel]

You need to add sodium benzotriazole to the developer and compensate for it.

 

[DanielStone]

run a snip test if possible.... might help with density..

but adding the BZTZ will help....

-Dan

 

[werra]

I'd go with ID11 1+1. I use NP20 of same age, usually with Rodinal 1+40, gives quite a fog, and ex-soviet UP2 universal developer, a bit less fog but insanely short developing times, ~ 2 minutes in 1+1.5 solution. Did D76 1+1 test with OK results, there is fog but nothing catastrophic.

 

[Marco B]

do I need to increase or decrease these developing times because the film is so old?

Cheers,

Ant

Increase...

Sometime ago, my mother found her old camera from 35 years ago still having an exposed but undeveloped Agfa rollfilm. I had it processed, but didn't ask for push development (at the time I didn't know much about film)

Besides film fog, it came out very thin... Needed grade 5 to be able to print anything. So yes, I would increase your developing times a bit.

Marco

 

[georgegrosu]

I processed a few months ago a few rolls of film NP 15 ORWO (former German Democratic Republic) exposed15 years ago. I processed in Kodak D -96 developer. Time - 9 minute at 21.5 °C. The films came out incredibly well.
Recommendations for negatives Orwo developing are:
Developing times for Orwo negative B & W material in Orwo developer are: Temperature of developer is 20 °C.
- Developer solution R 09 (1 + 40) NP 15 = 9 minutes; NP 20 = 9 – 11 minutes; NP 27 = 12 – 13 minutes.
- Extra fine grain developer A 49 NP 15 = 9 minutes; NP 20 = 9 – 11 minutes; NP 27 = 12 – 14 minutes.
- Orwo 19 developer NP 15 = 10 minutes; NP 20 = 10 – 12 minutes; NP 27 = 15 minutes.
Orwo 19
A 901 ……………… 2 g;
Metol ……………….2 g;
Sodium sulfite ….. 100 g;
Hidrochinon ……..…5 g;
Borax decahidrate …..2 g.

George