Diafine recipe

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

Probably cost as bromide is relatively cheap, though ineffective in this case.

I wonder if Bromide was used possibly with some other component that's not listed in MSDS to get a bit of shadow boost. @earlz's reported some success with a Bromide+TEA brew in getting shadow boost for some films.

 

[Alan Johnson]

Ilford used Bromide with Phenidone:
http://www.lostlabours.co.uk/photography/formulae/developers/devID68.htm

 

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

Haist: "The reducing action is little affected by the presence of bromide, so organic compounds called antifoggants are often added as fog restrainers to Phenidone developers. Benzotriazole has been reported to be more effective than potassium bromide as a fog restrainer."

Could there be a different purpose (other than fog restraining) for using Bromide in Diafine?

 

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

It’s not necessarily a hard and fast rule. There might be variables involved. There are many examples of PQ developers containing bromide as a restrainer (Ilford ID-68, HC-110, etc, print developers) without organic anti-foggants. Even in my own experiments with Dimezone-S I found bromide to work.

Ok, then the replacement of Bromide by BTZ in the substitute was unwarranted but probably doesn't make much practical difference.

 

[relistan]

It definitely works as a restrainer with phenidone-based developers. I can't say for sure it works with just phenidone by itself. But in the presence of either hydroquinone or ascorbic acid, it has a noticeable restraining effect. It appears that Haist was saying it was less effective than BTZ rather than that it was ineffective entirely. If you put 0.5g of bromide in any phenidone developer that I have messed with you will see the difference, even without a densitometer.

 

[clogz]

Hello Relisten. For film developed in Ultima: see the top row of pictures in my portfolio.

 

[mjbovee]

Bumping this thread to note that I just processed some Fomapan 100 (exposed at EI 160) in the Diafine-type developer listed in TDC with a couple variations - I subbed the 6g of sodium bisulfite with sodium metabisulfite (in the first bath) and used 20g sodium metaborate rather than borax (for the second bath). Ended up with some v dense negs at 5 min in each bath; I think 3 min would have been adequate.

 

[Alan Johnson]

https://tetenal.com/media/6a/16/75/1605175318/100152 Entwicklungstabelle Ultrafin.pdf
See p10 for temperature correction to times for Emofin.
Possibly other 2-baths may be similar.

 

[ags2mikon]

I have a formula that I was given back in 1982 by a retired photo rep. He was a photographer that liked to scratch mix a lot of his chemistry. This is supposed to be the original formula. It was later changed a number of times since. I have used it on and off for over 30 years with good success. It works different than the Diafine you buy today. I purchased a Diafine mix off of ebay 5-6 years ago that was from the 1970's and I weighed the net contents of each can and it was the same weight as the formula here. And the negatives looked the same. Plus x was 400. Tri x was 1600 and HP5 plus was 800. 3+3 min. I may post it later.

 

[juan]

Please do post it.

 

[ags2mikon]

PART A

WATER 750 ML

SODIUM SULFITE 40.0 G

HYDROQUINONE 7.5 G

SODIUM HEXAMETAPHOSPHATE 1.25 G

CITRIC ACID 1.25 G

POTASIUM BROMIDE 1.25 G

1-PHENYL-3-PYRAZOLIDONE .3 G

WATER TO MAKE 1000 ML

PH=7.2



PART B

WATER 750 ML

SODIUM SULFITE 52 G

SODIUM CARBONATE MONO HYDRATE 20 G

SODIUM BICARBONATE 5 G

SODIUM PHOSPHATE, TRI BASIC 3.0 G

WATER TO MAKE 1000 ML

PH=8.8

 

[pbromaghin]

Resuscitating this thread to see if anybody has tried this formula.

 

[relistan]

Resuscitating this thread to see if anybody has tried this formula.

I have not used it, but it looks quite reasonable, and close to the 80's MSDS. I created a similar developer whose formula is quite close to that for Bath A: https://imager.ie/a-phenidone-hydroquinone-two-bath-developer/ . The above bath B is quite a bit lower pH and may result in somewhat finer results. Although my 2B-1 is quite fine grained.