Economical developer for 4x5 sheet film?

ziyanglai · Jul 18, 2014

Hi all.

What is the most economical developer for developing 4x5 sheet film? Simply put, developers that are highly concentrated and you mix it with a lot of water so you only use a little dev. each time you develop.

I know HC-110 and Rodinal and are 2 of them.. But anything else?

A 2 part reusable developer like Diafine works as well..

I've tried HC-110 with FP4+ in the past but didn't like it.. Planning to try out some HP5 for landscape...

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MattKing · Jul 18, 2014

X-Tol used replenished.

ziyanglai · Jul 18, 2014

One more thing, I use open tank, and it takes up 1/2 gallon.

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BetterSense · Jul 18, 2014

If you use that much volume then you will have to go with replenishment to get economy. When I used tanks, I used replenished d23.

jp498 · Jul 18, 2014

pyrocat hd or PMK.

If cost is super important, you might investigate some other options that use less liquid.

Johnkpap · Jul 18, 2014

I find the most economical developer for developing 4x5 sheet film is using my Jobo 2500 series tanks in my CPE 2 proccessor.

Johnkpap

bdial · Jul 18, 2014

If you use Xtol with a replenishment method, you would consume 70 ml of stock for every 80 square inches of film. You replenish with unused stock solution. If you're processing regularly, you can replenish your working stock indefinitely.

Prof_Pixel · Jul 18, 2014

I was always a fan of DK-50 for sheet film.

Terry Christian · Jul 18, 2014

I can only restate what others have: XTOL, and pyro developers like Pyrocat-HD.

Axle · Jul 18, 2014

Xtol or a Pyro based developer (PMK or Pyrocat HD)

Sirius Glass · Jul 18, 2014

bdial said:
If you use Xtol with a replenishment method, you would consume 70 ml of stock for every 80 square inches of film. You replenish with unused stock solution. If you're processing regularly, you can replenish your working stock indefinitely.

+ 1

Mainecoonmaniac · Jul 18, 2014

+1

MattKing said:
X-Tol used replenished.

I replenish 70mls per 80 sq ins or 4 sheets. Seasoned developer looks better to me also.

summicron1 · Jul 18, 2014

i actually get good results developing HP5 in d-76 diluted 1:3, takes about 20 minutes, it's a one-off, but that brings the cost down to the same as doing two rolls of 120 because my tank only uses a quart to do 6 sheets.

ziyanglai · Jul 19, 2014

summicron1 said:
i actually get good results developing HP5 in d-76 diluted 1:3, takes about 20 minutes, it's a one-off, but that brings the cost down to the same as doing two rolls of 120 because my tank only uses a quart to do 6 sheets.

a quart? What kind of tank do you use?

pbromaghin · Jul 19, 2014

A gallon of TMax diluted will develop a whole bunch of rolls. 64?

removed account4 · Jul 19, 2014

the most versitile, easy to use , cost effective, economical developeri have ever used is sumatranol 130
ir is whole bean sumatra caffenol c with 15cc of stock ansco 130 / 1000cc caffenol
lasts 4-6 months, doesnt loose activity ( i processed 200 sheets of film( rolls and paper )
and it cost me about a penny a roll/ sheet ...
been using it since 2010 december and instant caffenol 130 since about 2006 may
i dont usually bother with anything else ...
oh .. it works in trays, stand develop, rotary processors too ...

good luck !

john

Muihlinn · Jul 19, 2014

Pctea should be one of the most economical and concentraded

Economical developer for 4x5 sheet film?

ziyanglai

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