Fogged paper rescue?

[scyg]

I have close to 500 sheets of Kodak Polycontrast III RC that's got a use-by date of 2001. It's badly fogged, except at the very edges. Is there anything that would eliminate the fog, or at least reduce it to an acceptable level (I've used other out-of date papers for negatives with some success, but never ones this bad) even at the expense of speed or contrast? I'd really hate to have to toss the entire batch of it.

 

[glbeas]

Benzotriazole added to the developer is the usual fix though I have also seen recommendations to try lith printing developers

 

[bernard_L]

Bleach. Ferricyanide 4g/litre KBr 2g/litre working solution. Possible to make stock e.g. 20g/litre + 10g/litre, dilute 1+4.
Develop fully an unexposed sheet. Or, rather, a number of test strips. Bleach them for 1', 1'30", etc... Fix. Find out first duration that makes the base white.
Maybe print a bit darker, and bleach a bit longer, to give more snap to highlights.
More cumbersome than normal processing, but 500 sheets! An occasion to do "limited series": once the exposure and bleach times are calibrated for one negative, easier to make extra copies.
The Dmax might also be degraded: dilute Se toner.

 

[koraks]

I'd really hate to have to toss the entire batch of it.

Consider what's worse: tossing it out or wasting a lot of your likely precious darkroom time trying to make old junk work. To each their own of course, but I've learned my lesson for sure.

 

[scyg]

Bleach. Ferricyanide 4g/litre KBr 2g/litre working solution. Possible to make stock e.g. 20g/litre + 10g/litre, dilute 1+4.
Develop fully an unexposed sheet. Or, rather, a number of test strips. Bleach them for 1', 1'30", etc... Fix. Find out first duration that makes the base white.
Maybe print a bit darker, and bleach a bit longer, to give more snap to highlights.

Neat! I might try that if the benzotriazole doesn't do enough. Could get some interesting things going.
The Dmax might also be degraded: dilute Se toner.[/QUOTE]
Dmax looks good on my few test sheets.

Consider what's worse: tossing it out or wasting a lot of your likely precious darkroom time trying to make old junk work. To each their own of course, but I've learned my lesson for sure.

I see what you're driving at, but I don't mind experimenting. No time in the darkroom is entirely wasted, for me.

 

[bernard_L]

Develop fully an unexposed sheet. Or, rather, a number of test strips. Bleach them for 1', 1'30", etc... Fix. Find out first duration that makes the base white.

This fully systematic approach is likely to waste some time. Modified recommendation. Drop one test strip, agitate (and keep that agitation consistent thereafter) and note the time when it looks paper-white. Then do additional tests at tnom, +30s, -30s, until you nail down the precise time for fog clearing.

 

[MattKing]

They could be used for lumen prints and prints from extremely contrasty negatives that you would need to use pre-flashing with.
If you do alternative processes, fixed out RC paper can serve as substrate.
If the fog isn't too bad, and you are willing to give up some valuable information, they could be used for contact proof sheets.

 

[Doremus Scudder]

I've had good luck with ferricyanide bleaching with slightly fogged paper. My mix is a rounded 1/4 tsp each of ferricyanide and potassium bromide per 2 liters. The print is developed, stopped, fixed and rinsed well (you don't want fixer being carried over into the bleach!) and then bleached in increments of 15 seconds (starting with 30 seconds) till the paper base is clear. Prints then need to be rinsed well and refixed and rinsed again.

I'll find the exact time as I'm refining the print. For example, the first print gets bleached for 30 seconds, rinsed, fixed, rinsed, squeegeed and hung on my white board. While I'm deciding what to do next in terms of exposure, contrast and manipulations, I'll note if the next print needs more bleaching to counteract the fog. With the next print, I'll bleach more if needed. It usually takes me three-four prints to get to a finished product, by which time I've figured out the necessary bleaching time as well.

Keep in mind that some paper in a batch will be fogged more than others. I always check the borders on my first test strip to see if the fogging is present or not and check subsequent prints very carefully in the rinse to see if the fogging is more or less than the sheet before it.

Do fix an unexposed strip of the paper without first developing to give yourself a paper-base white to compare with. Be aware that prints with no real whites in them may not need to be cleared as much as those that do.

Best,

Doremus

 

[Rudeofus]

David Lyga has posted an extensive instruction manual for dealing with fogged film and paper here. Well worth reading ...

 

[newcan1]

You can bleach unexposed paper in darkness with a rehalogenating bleach, wash and dry (in darkness) before using. I have had great results with this with some papers, but with others the paper becomes very slow. Also multigrade paper becomes single grade. I have had great results with fixed grade Kodabrome, and with Forte multigrade, which defaults to a grade 2.5 or so. My Forte is too fogged to use even with benzotriazole (develops unexposed to a dark grey), but with pre-bleaching produces outstanding results.