i'm going to give D-23 a try - any suggestions?

[removed account4]

i have been kicking around the idea of trying out a new film developer - and settled on d-23. i have been to the unblinkingeye and read joe lipka's article, and
think as soon as tuesday rolls around, i might be buying some chemistry.

any suggestions or things to look out for when using it with both roll and sheet film? does anyone use it without the borax bath? i've never done a 2 bath developer and wasn't sure if i should start out "undivided" and then try it "divided". i have read that it is a low-contrast developer and it is hard to overdevelop film using d-23 ... is this true?

what is your experience using it?

much thanks in advance!
-john

 

[Joe Lipka]

Thanks for checking out the article. I have used D-23, divided since 1991. Be careful, the times I posted in the article were for sheet film to be used for contact printing pt/pd negatives, so the results will give you a dense negative. You can print it on silver paper and I have done so, but with a 1/2 or 1 variable contrast filter.

I have not used it with small format film.

 

[MikeK]

I use D23 diluted 1:1 as my standard developer for TMAX-100. I get good results and good highlight control. I use it for both 120 roll and sheet film.

I usually rotary process in my Jobo 20 C for 12minutes or small tank for 14 minutes.

I have also used it with Agfapan APX-100 with equally good results.

There are a number of adantages of using D-23, it is cheap, can be made up when needed or you can make slight variations, like adding 2 grams of borax to make D76H, or use it as a divided developer.

A good discussion on D23 can be found at http://www.heylloyd.com/technicl/D23.html

Have fun

- Mike

 

[Silverpixels5]

I've used divided D 23 as well with very good results. I was using the recipe and procedure that Barry Thornton wrote about in 'Edge of Darkness' if i remember correctly. It will give you nice tones and highlights, and the working solutions last quite some time. I would still be using it now, but I find that I like the results I get from PCat HD in roll film. I have not used D23 for sheet films. Good Luck!

 

[steve simmons]

This is an easy to mix and easy to use developer but not a very good one IMHO. The hight sulfite content smooths the edges off the grain leading to fine grain but not very sharp images.

steve simmons

 

[MikeK]

Steve:

D23 and D76 have the same sulfite content (100 grams/liter), and I have developed TMX-100 in both D23 and D76 diluted 1:1 and cannot see any difference in sharpness. Diluting 1:1 effectively halfs the sulfite content.

- Mike

 

[steve simmons]

D23 and D76 have the same sulfite content (100 grams/liter), and I have developed TMX-100 in both D23 and D76 diluted 1:1 and cannot see any difference in sharpness. Diluting 1:1 effectively halfs the sulfite content. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Sometime try Tri-X, HP5+ or FP4+ in one of the pyro formulae. You might see a big difference in sharpness

steve simmons

 

[MikeK]

I am a firm pyromaniac. My main films are FP4 HP5 and now Classic Pan 200. But they are not avilable as Readyloads

My main developer was XTOL, but changed when Kodak dumped the 1 liter pack. I never experienced the dreaded XTOL failure, but 5 liters is way too much developer to have sitting around. So experimented with TMX and a bunch of developers including Pyro, D76, Rodinal, DDX, D23 and settled on D23 1:1.

- Mike

 

[removed account4]

thanks for your input
i have another question ..

mikek:
did you use D-23 with or without the second bath?
will the same results come from adding the borax into the main developer ..

thanks!
-john

 

[MikeK]

John:

I have only used D-23 diluted 1:1. The purpose of the second bath is to allow shadow density to build without impacting the highlights. The theory is the highlight density builds up in the developer and exhausts itself. Placing the film in a bath of borax or metaborate allows development to continue in the shadow area.

Adding the borax to D-23 really converts it to a variant of D76 called D76H and you would loose the compensating effect.

I have tried divided development in the past, I used divided D76 and while it worked OK I saw at least a full stop in film speed. I used this when photographing the inside of church buildings which had a very wide contrast range.

Hope this helps

- Mike

 

[removed account4]

it helps alot
THANKS!

- john

 

[Silverpixels5]

If sharpness is a concern you may try Mr. Thornton's D-23 formula. It calls for 85g of Sulfite...i can't remember the other changes. If you're interested I can look it up. or you can visit his site.

 

[Ole]

I've used D-23 with borax afterbath only. Works great in those high-contrast situations I seem to find myself in all the time. I have no idea of sharpness, as I've only used it on 5x7" negatives.

Nowadays, I would use stand development in FX-2, or Windisch' compensating developer for this. Avoids all thoughts of speed loss (I like shadow detail).

 

[Black Dog]

Barry Thornton's formula uses 6.5g of metol and 80g of sulphite in bath A plus 12g of Sodium metaborate in bath B. This is as good as any other 2B around IMHO and cheap/easy to mix.