Fujimoto CP31 RA-4 - waterless?

[FaArena]

I know this was talked about in PE's thread The definitive word (I hope) on color stabilzers!, but I feel like it's a situation worth expanding on, as it was said rather in passing on the original thread.

So I recently purchased a Fujimoto CP31 to do RA-4 printing, just the base unit, no wash/dry or stabilize/dry units. The room in which I plan to install it in has a limited water entry, just a small sink, making it quite fiddly and potentially messy to set up a print washing station.

I was wondering if it was possible to use the three baths of the CP31 to make a sort of washless RA-4 process: developer, then blix (from the Tetenal colortec 5L kit, the best one I can get where I live), then stabilizer (probably Fuji Hunt, but I'm open to other options). Is it feasible? If so, would it result in prints with archival stability?

Maybe the machine could spit out the print onto an open tray with water and PhotoFlo to prevent spots after the stabilizer bath, does that make sense?

 

[mshchem]

I would do a brief wash after the blix. Most waterless processes use countercurrent replenished stabilizer baths. Maybe you could use the 3rd bath for a wash and stabilize in a tray. I have a little Durst processor that has developer, stop, blix. Then I do a wash of about 90 seconds then dry. A final stabilizer bath would be a good safeguard against spots and provide a biocide.

 

[FaArena]

So if I understand correctly a waterless process is not possible with a bog standard CP31 right? If I use the third bath as a wash at 35°C, so dev temp, at 45 sec, would it be enough? If I'm finagling my way into having a washing station, I might as well go all the way and have a setup for washing for several minutes, but that's what I wanted to avoid given the limitations of my space.

Talking about stop baths, are they all that essential in roller transport systems? I've heard the rollers squeegee out the previous bath so there is very little carryover.

Also, and I know I'm all over the place, what's the consensus on the Tetenal 5L kit? the one where each bath comes in two parts. I would love to use Kodak RT chemistry but it's rather inaccessible where I live, so it's either Tetenal or Adox mono or two-bath kits. I'm aware of some distributors that carry Fuji Hunt but at quite high volumes. I recently found this shop on eBay over in Germany that might be of some use:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/165094749191

I don't know much about how the Fuji kits work but the only developers I've been able to find are single baths. Is that normal?

 

[koraks]

prints with archival stability?

I doubt RA4 prints can ever truly carry this label, but it even so, I think it makes more sense to define for yourself what your expectation is objectively instead of adhering to an ill-defined label that means something different in various contexts.
In any case, a washless process will never be optimal. There will be remnants of blix and probably even a little developer hiding inside the emulsion, and given enough time they will lead to discoloration. How much or how little, nobody really knows. So I'd certainly recommend a wash before stabilizer. If you want to leave anything out, I'd sooner do away with the stabilizer than with a good wash.

Talking about stop baths, are they all that essential in roller transport systems?

No. It may extend the lifetime of the blix and in a washless system it will further reduce developer carryover into the final print, but these are quite marginal effects.

I don't know much about how the Fuji kits work but the only developers I've been able to find are single baths. Is that normal?

Yes, and the single solution Fuji developer lasts very long if packaged correctly. The blix as well. We're talking about 18 months and longer after opening the original packaging and decanting into full bottles with no air.