Kodak Kodalith Developer

[henryyjjames]

Hey all, I'm wondering if anyone can tell me about the kodak kodalith developer that I have attached images of below. I have not found any information about it on the internet, so I am hoping that someone older and wiser than I will have some insights! Thx!

 

[koraks]

Isn't that supposed to be the same as D85? https://www.digitaltruth.com/data/formula.php?FormulaID=132
I brewed up something (well, quite a few somethings) similar when I messed around with lith printing.

AFAIK it's originally intended to develop graphic arts film, so pretty much binary contrast: black, and white - nothing in-between.
Hydroquinone-only developers are capable of infectious development, which is why they have been adopted by the lith printing (not to be confused with litho/lith film) crowd.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong. Never used this stuff apart from the homebrew concoction.

PS: I'll move this to B&W because I think it fits better there and it'll attract useful responses quicker that way.

 

[George Collier]

It's been so long, I can't remember mixing ratio's (including water), but I just found this on the Digital Truth site"

Digitaltruth Photo - Photographic Chemical Formulas and Technical Data

www.digitaltruth.com

Note that try life is short.

 

[MarkS]

I used it (for line copy work, its intended purpose) long ago. It was quite strong, heavy odor, IIRC it contained formaldehyde. Meant to produce max contrast, although I never developed camera films in it. From the labels you have some late production developer, although IDK when EK quit making it.

A historical note. At some point in the '90s EK changed the formulation of its graphic-arts films and labeled them "Rapid Access". Those films could use a less active developer and be processed in roller-transport machines- 3 or 4 minutes dry-to-dry. That was a big timesaver for the printing industry. We liked RA in the photo lab, too, for the same reasons.

 

[MattKing]

Those who like to do lith printing, may be happy to take that off your hands.
Lith printing actually gets its name from the fact that some experimenters discovered that some papers that were intended to be exposed in one way and developed normally in normal developer, gave really different results if exposed in another way and then developed in an unusual way in developer intended for lithographic materials.

 

[henryyjjames]

From the labels you have some late production developer.

What numbers are you looking at and how are you deciphering them?