Film Drying Cabinet

Michael Firstlight · Apr 2, 2017

professional grade film drying cabinets are large, heavy, and expensive. If I don't want a DYI one, and one I can break-down/take apart and move later, would something like this be a decent alternative - maybe outfitted with an additional air filter as something between a high end Arkay and a DIY solution?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Simple-Scre...424706?hash=item43fdd55242:g:3KMAAOSw2xRYkIun

Regards,
Mike

MattKing · Apr 2, 2017

It looks usable, although the purple colour would be a deal killer in my household!

Michael Firstlight · Apr 2, 2017

MattKing said:
It looks usable, although the purple colour would be a deal killer in my household!

LOL, yah. There are many makes and models - they come in black too - and my wife might also insist the same!

Mike

darkroommike · Apr 2, 2017

Looks OK except for one thing, most film drying cabinets use an air filter to keep dust off the negatives. I see no such provision on the screen dryer.

AgX · Apr 2, 2017

Link does not work for me.

Michael Firstlight · Apr 2, 2017

darkroommike said:
Looks OK except for one thing, most film drying cabinets use an air filter to keep dust off the negatives. I see no such provision on the screen dryer.

Yah, that's what I was saying, I could add a filter over the fan made from and A/C air filter

Mike

Michael Firstlight · Apr 2, 2017

AgX said:
Link does not work for me.

Look up:
Simple Screens Drying Cabinet Assembly Folding for Silk Screen Printing

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Simple-Scre...424706?hash=item43fdd55242:g:3KMAAOSw2xRYkIun

AgX · Apr 2, 2017

Now I understand what you are referring to.
(At silk screen print shops I only saw plain drying racks.)

nsurit · Apr 3, 2017

Might be worth watching craigslist. I found my California Stainless one for $60 a few years ago.

Diapositivo · Apr 3, 2017

I suggest looking for a second-hand Jobo Mistral 2.
Simple yet effective. 2 warm air temperatures plus ambient temperature. Filter for air, easily replaceable. Very light and practical to move. Can accomodate several films. Faster and more effective than a DIY solution IMHO.

Michael Firstlight · Apr 3, 2017

Diapositivo said:
I suggest looking for a second-hand Jobo Mistral 2.
Simple yet effective. 2 warm air temperatures plus ambient temperature. Filter for air, easily replaceable. Very light and practical to move. Can accomodate several films. Faster and more effective than a DIY solution IMHO.

Like this one? http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/282416779687?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true

Too pricey for me! Its a fan an a plastic bag!

Mike

Diapositivo · Apr 3, 2017

Michael Firstlight said:
Like this one? http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/282416779687?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true

Too pricey for me! Its a fan an a plastic bag!

Mike

https://www.flickr.com/photos/raulm/7493598376

It's a fan, a filter holder, a heater, and a tent with magnetic stops and a bottom. If you don't find a second-hand one for cheap (good sign: that means analogue photography is rocking again...) you might copy the idea as a DIY project. I find the design simple and effective. A rigid cupboard would be more practical but less moveable. This can be sent by mail very easily.

Michael Firstlight · Apr 3, 2017

Diapositivo said:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/raulm/7493598376

It's a fan, a filter holder, a heater, and a tent with magnetic stops and a bottom. If you don't find a second-hand one for cheap (good sign: that means analogue photography is rocking again...) you might copy the idea as a DIY project. I find the design simple and effective. A rigid cupboard would be more practical but less moveable. This can be sent by mail very easily.

Yes, I've look at some clothes bags from Home depot with heater/fans from growing tent providers and DIY filters. By the time you add it all up, the one I referenced in my original post is a more elegant option at the same cost for something well built and portable- at least that's what I'm concluding. Now if I come across a Jobo Mistral 2 in decent condition at a reasonable price, that would suffice.

Regards,
Mike

rpavich · Apr 4, 2017

After doing this searching I found the solution that works great.

Buy a salad spinner. (for getting 90% of the water off before you start drying)

Get a 1 foot long piece of 4" diameter PVC pipe.

Get a "duct fan" of the same 4" diameter.

Buy a package of filters that go over furnace grates to keep the dust down.

Mount the fan in one end of the tube, tape a filter to the end of the fan.

Put the reel of film in the salad spinner and spin for 20 or 30 seconds.

Take the reel from the salad spinner and put in the end of the tube opposite the fan.

Plug it in and in 50 minutes to 1 hour you will have perfectly dry film.

mgb74 · Apr 4, 2017

Computer fans, with filter, are a good option if you need airflow.

nbagno · Apr 4, 2017

rpavich said:
After doing this searching I found the solution that works great.

Buy a salad spinner. (for getting 90% of the water off before you start drying)

Get a 1 foot long piece of 4" diameter PVC pipe.

Get a "duct fan" of the same 4" diameter.

Buy a package of filters that go over furnace grates to keep the dust down.

Mount the fan in one end of the tube, tape a filter to the end of the fan.

Put the reel of film in the salad spinner and spin for 20 or 30 seconds.

Take the reel from the salad spinner and put in the end of the tube opposite the fan.

Plug it in and in 50 minutes to 1 hour you will have perfectly dry film.

I have something like that, a Senrac rapid roll dryer. Hate the curl so I only use it to dry my reels if I'm doing multiple rolls. I really like the $75.00 cabinet I bought, there's a thread on that. Don't even need the heater just let it hang.

rpavich · Apr 4, 2017

nbagno said:
I have something like that, a Senrac rapid roll dryer. Hate the curl so I only use it to dry my reels if I'm doing multiple rolls. I really like the $75.00 cabinet I bought, there's a thread on that. Don't even need the heater just let it hang.

After I made this I found two Honeywell dryers for very cheap and so I use them.

Michael Firstlight · Apr 4, 2017

rpavich said:
After doing this searching I found the solution that works great.

Buy a salad spinner. (for getting 90% of the water off before you start drying)

Get a 1 foot long piece of 4" diameter PVC pipe.

Get a "duct fan" of the same 4" diameter.

Buy a package of filters that go over furnace grates to keep the dust down.

Mount the fan in one end of the tube, tape a filter to the end of the fan.

Put the reel of film in the salad spinner and spin for 20 or 30 seconds.

Take the reel from the salad spinner and put in the end of the tube opposite the fan.

Plug it in and in 50 minutes to 1 hour you will have perfectly dry film.

Nifty! Though I did get a laugh thinking about the salad spinner and thought - should I add Blue Cheese or Thousand Island?

TheFlyingCamera · Apr 5, 2017

I have a Jobo Mistral. I found mine on Craigslist, and it came with both the roll film and sheet film cabinets. I wouldn't want to do that PVC tube thing because if the temperature ever got off, you'd have film melted into permanent spirals.

rpavich · Apr 5, 2017

TheFlyingCamera said:
I have a Jobo Mistral. I found mine on Craigslist, and it came with both the roll film and sheet film cabinets. I wouldn't want to do that PVC tube thing because if the temperature ever got off, you'd have film melted into permanent spirals.

It doesn't generate heat.

Richard Man · Apr 6, 2017

I purchased a Jobo Mistral from a friend who was getting out film (he moved to a P45,then to P65, then to the 50MP CMOS back...). Anyway, one of the best purchases.

frobozz · Apr 7, 2017

I dispute your original assertion that commercial film drying cabinets are large heavy and expensive. I picked mine up off of CL in the Chicago area a few years ago. It's tall, but the footprint is like a foot square. Fits anywhere! Weighs nothing - it's just thin sheet metal. And I think I paid like $50 for it.

Duncan

rpavich · Apr 7, 2017

frobozz said:
I dispute your original assertion that commercial film drying cabinets are large heavy and expensive. I picked mine up off of CL in the Chicago area a few years ago. It's tall, but the footprint is like a foot square. Fits anywhere! Weighs nothing - it's just thin sheet metal. And I think I paid like $50 for it.

Duncan

I guess I should go for it and say: Just because A person got A film cabinet that wasn't "large, heavy, and expensive" doesn't mean that his general statement is invalid...right?

Check ebay at any given time and you will find that 90% of the film cabinets listed are heavy, large and expensive...just like he said.

That's the normal situation, however as you mentioned...there are sometimes exceptions to the norm.

frobozz · Apr 7, 2017

Well OK sure but every film drying cabinet I've ever seen (3 of them) has been the same construction - wafer-thin metal that weighs next to nothing. And yes, buying one of them new from Adorama would be expensive (over $1000!!!) but there have to be just piles of them out there used from school darkrooms that shut down over the last 10+ years.

Duncan

rpavich · Apr 7, 2017

frobozz said:
Well OK sure but every film drying cabinet I've ever seen (3 of them) has been the same construction - wafer-thin metal that weighs next to nothing. And yes, buying one of them new from Adorama would be expensive (over $1000!!!) but there have to be just piles of them out there used from school darkrooms that shut down over the last 10+ years.

Duncan

If there are...I haven't seen them. When I looked they were...well...heavy, expensive, and large. (that's why I made my own)
Even if one was "fairly cheap" it was so large and bulky and heavy that shipping was outrageous.

Film Drying Cabinet

Michael Firstlight

MattKing

Moderator

Michael Firstlight

darkroommike

AgX

Michael Firstlight

Michael Firstlight

AgX

nsurit

Diapositivo

Michael Firstlight

Diapositivo

Michael Firstlight

rpavich

Attachments

mgb74

nbagno

rpavich

Michael Firstlight

TheFlyingCamera

Membership Council

rpavich

Richard Man

frobozz

rpavich

frobozz

rpavich

Film Drying Cabinet

Moderator

Attachments

Membership Council

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency