Efke on Diafine???

Gary,

That makes perfect sense, but unfortunately I don't have easy access to Diafine (Adorama or Freestyle are my only options), so I can't test it out.

Hans,

That's what I thought too, so I've been agitating the heck out of bath A, so it soaks and develops (even if its only a tiny little bit), but I've left bath B at 5 secs per minute. Agitating bath B more would give my highlights more development, not the shadows, since these wouldn't exhaust the developer as quickly, and my problem is shadow separation.

I think that selenium will solve my problem, since a preliminary neg scan (flat bed scanner, invert and work levels on PS) shows enough detail for a high-contrast print to be just right.

If that makes any sense....

Once again (and as always) thank you all for your replies.

Some Diafine users manipulate contrast with alternative "B" solutions.

To lower contrast, use 10 to 20 grams of Borax(from the supermarket) in a liter of water as the "B" bath.

To increase contrast use sodium hydroxide (Red Devil Lye from the supermarket) and water. SLOWLY add the Lye (about 15 to 20 grams/liter) to cold water - use gloves and eye protection. This "B" bath will loose its high level of activity fairly quickly so it should be mixed just prior to use for highest contrast results.