First time loading a 35 mm reel!

Hi guys,

I went ahead and started loading a 35mm reel for the first time, out of sheer boredom - Plus I have a few weeks to go before the "wet side" of my dark room is set up.

Anyways, I forgot to trim the leader - and managed tearing the film, so I had to trim some off. That went okay. So, around I go - film snags. Rewind! Film snags again... You get the idea. Then I remember that it's probably a good idea to BEND the film... Suddenly, I had it. All of it.

Anyways, I had expectations it was going to be easy, and reminded me I really am just a beginner!

I got so stressed out I almost gave up, but my persistence paid off. Mind you this was a blank roll of film in the first place!

Reminds me of a girl who was using a 35mm camera, and asked me, when she opened the back, why there were no photos inside... hehe! At first I was dumbfounded, but then I have to remember that not everyone has had the advantage of using film in their lives. (yes, I am pretty young).

Alright, off I go again, for another run at that reel!

PS. This is my inspiration for all of this: http://www.atelierfenetresurcour.com/prestation.html I guess I got the "bug" yet again... The first time was firing off the shutter, and to my delight, there was a very real, solid mechanical click. I still love that SLR sound, or even the slight "ping" of a rangefinder... :wub:

EDIT: Anger has taken hold of me as I todd the unused roll aside. The preforations are ripped a bit in spots and make loading unbearable. Practice roll #2 it is.

EDIT2: I now present you with... VICTORY: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l1/Sherab0/101226-203331.jpg
Although I feel like the film should go all the way to the end of reel.. how will the film keep it's tracking once it's cut from the "spindle"? should I just tuck it in? (i mean in a realistic setting with actual used film in the reel.)

It is a struggle to learn but it gets easier.

Loaded and developed 16 rolls today, no sweat.

Indeed! In fact, the second roll went very smoothly!

As an aside, is it okay if i mess up (fingerprints, etc) the plastic base? I find it easier to have the emulsion side facing inwards.

Emulsion in is the right way.

Keep your hands clean.

Start with clean hands, try only to touch the edges of the film, especially mid-roll, as it's going on the reel. Then don't worry about it. The major worry with finger prints is on the emulsion side, especially if you hands are wet or sweaty.
Emulsion side in is the way to do it. Also, I like to start loading from the spool end, the stiffness provided by the tape helps in getting it into the center of the reel.

The test roll went much faster the second time, it can only get easier. I'm glad I got the Hewes Reels.

bdial: I will have to try loading from the spool end. I will let you know how that goes. Don't you worry about touching the emulsion side as it unravels, though?

markbarendt said:

It is a struggle to learn but it gets easier.

Loaded and developed 16 rolls today, no sweat.

Click to expand...

Yeah, there's always a show off.

Good onya. Now do it over and over and over, ad nauseum. Lather, rinse, repeat.

I usually find the 120 easier to load on to the reel.

Jeff

Christopher Walrath said:

Yeah, there's always a show off.

Good onya. Now do it over and over and over, ad nauseum. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Click to expand...

Jobo helps.

I find that 120 is a piece of cake on S/S but I have wanted to get a Jobo plastic for 35mm as everyone sems to say it's so much easier. Also gonna get one for 4x5.

Jeff Kubach said:

I usually find the 120 easier to load on to the reel.

Jeff

Click to expand...

Neither is bad, but I find 35mm easier.

What is Jobo?

http://cgi.ebay.com/JOBO-CPE-2-FILM...180?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5197012f14

Something like this.

Well, that almost looks like a medieval torture device!

Richard

I prefer SS reels to the plastic Paterson auto reels even tho I have both, it just seems to me that I have an easier time loading the SS. I cut the leader off and leave the film in the cartridge and feed it onto the reel out of it and then cut it off that way I don't get prints on the emulsion. But that's just me.

Don't you worry about touching the emulsion side as it unravels, though?

Click to expand...

No, with clean dry hands, it's not a problem.

I don't have a SS 120 reel yet. I've just done one 120 on a plastic Paterson so far but it wasn't much fun. I hope to get a SS one to try soon though with more practice I'm sure the plastic can be made to work.

For 35mm, the metal reels with the two posts that hook onto sprocket holes are the easiest by far. The metal reels with the little clip you have to slide the film under bug me to no end. A bent metal reel of any kind will drive you insane!

For 120 I only use my Jobo's. I have a bad history with 120 film on metal reels

I've also found (in general) that a lot of plastic reels are SUPPOSED to help you with little ball bearings or some such gizmo, so you crank the reel and it autoloads the film ... pure bunk! Get the film going into the reel then hand feed it in by gently pushing. But really, use stainless steel, hehe. They are easier to keep clean and last a lifetime (I've had my SS reels since 1993)

hpulley said:

I don't have a SS 120 reel yet. I've just done one 120 on a plastic Paterson so far but it wasn't much fun. I hope to get a SS one to try soon though with more practice I'm sure the plastic can be made to work.

Click to expand...

For plastic-

Snip off the corners of the leading edge, 1/8th inch or so.

Bend the film out, opposite the natural curve, about 1/4 and 1/2 inch from the leading edge. Not a lot, just enough to counter the natural curve.

Reel must be clean and dry. No crud, no leftover photo-flo, no trace of moisture.

Got ball bearings? If yes, pop them out & throw them away. Use your fingers to push the film along. If you get stuck back up some and try again (ball bearings won't let you do this).

Film aprons!

Just kidding, although I own some and have in the past used them.

For 35mm, I like steel reels without clips - just a "C" shaped wire you shove the film end into.

I can't stand plastic for 35mm - the sides flex to much for me.

For 120, I would prefer steel, but I cannot use clips, so with rotary processing I have trouble keeping the film in the reel. So I end up using AP plastic reels instead some times.

There is now over 46,000 APUG members. It means the OP may get 23,000 or more opinions!

MattKing said:

Film aprons!

Just kidding, although I own some and have in the past used them.

For 35mm, I like steel reels without clips - just a "C" shaped wire you shove the film end into.

I can't stand plastic for 35mm - the sides flex to much for me.

For 120, I would prefer steel, but I cannot use clips, so with rotary processing I have trouble keeping the film in the reel. So I end up using AP plastic reels instead some times.

There is now over 46,000 APUG members. It means the OP may get 23,000 or more opinions!

Click to expand...

Yes...! Which reminds me, next paycheck, I should subscribe. I have been here long enough as a guest, so to speak.

Richard

Thanks for the plastic reel 120 advice. I shall do away with the BBs. In the light I can push the film past them fine but in the dark they bind and I have to due the back and forth and it binds... I can try snipping the corners but in the light it seems it goes on the reel fine as is? Really the plastic seems very easy until I put it in my changing bag...

I am a beginner myself in developing film. Loading the reel is the most difficult part of the developing process so this can help put things in perspective.

My four Eurocents:

If you bought second-hand reels, clean them well (water, dish soap, an old toothbrush) because they might have some residue of final rinse which could make harder for the film to advance in the reel;

Use a changing bag, if something goes wrong (or you get nervous...) you can relax and repeat again. If you are in the dark, you must finish once you start;

In a changing bag your hands might begin sweating if you are not fast to complete the operation. Maybe some cotton gloves can help. I use cotton gloves for film loading into the reels anyway, and I use them also for manipulating film after drying. Just like any pair of gloves they are uncomfortable at first, but one can get used to that, and certainly with cotton gloves you cannot leave fingermarks on your film;

I use a film extractor, I don't break (or open anyway) the canister. That allows me to revert the loading and put all the film inside the canister if something goes wrong. Then I can open the changing bag and check that everything is in place, where the problem was etc. It is nice to be able to start from scratch, e.g. if you forgot to insert the tank lid inside the changing bag.

If there wasn't some difficulty to overcome, it would be less rewarding

Fabrizio

Don't forget to curse while loading the reel. It must help, because so many of us do it.

I use an AP compact tank with the original variable plastic reel (for two 135 reels or one reel with two 120s) and it works great. The reels had some kind of mechanism with two tiny metal balls that pulled the film in automatically, but it jammed a lot, so I took it out and just push the film in... Works great for me as long as the reels are clean and dry. I bought the tank because it was the cheapest in the store... now that I tried some different models, I think, it's not bad at all.

I still remember my first film and getting that developed involved a lot of cursing indeed, but I think, it helped, because it came out just right. It's a magic moment when you first open the tank and see that something happened though you only poured some liquids in and out. I know exactly what happens chemically, but it still seems like magic.

My advice is to always have a perfectly dark box ready, just in case you panic and can't go on... just throw the film in, close the lid and go drink some tea or something and return when you're ready. I can't concentrate anymore when I'm in complete darkness for too long, so I actually prefer a darktent over a darkroom for film developement.