KR64 in ID-11, a quick test

[IloveTLRs]

So the other day I came across almost 10 rolls of Kodachrome 64 I still have. They've been in a freezer since they expired about 2 years ago.

I'm afraid of messing up Caffenol and blowing up my house, and I heard D-76 might work, so I tried a quick clip test (10 shots) with my OM-2 and some (not fresh) ID-11. I shot it at ISO 50, and developed it for almost 10 minutes.

I used water as a stop-bath (I'm going back to acid soon) and noticed the water came out brown-ish. I'm guessing this was the antihilation layer coming off? (I'm not that familiar with KR.) The white lines across the sides seem to be remnants of that layer.

The film came out quite under-exposed, so perhaps shooting at a higher ISO and/or changing developing times would be in order? Next time I will definitely pre-wash, I think that'll eliminate any nasty stains.

(I know there's a Flick group for KR in B&W chems on Flickr)

 

[frobozz]

Kodachrome has a remjet backing, right? That's probably what was glopping off in the stop water.

If it was underexposed, I think you want to set your meter at a lower ISO, not higher, if you use the same developing time.

All in all, that seems like a fairly usable imaging process, I'm impressed.

Duncan

 

[kraker]

I've only developed one roll of Kodachrome 200 in B&W chemistry; I'd have to look up the development details, but I do remember I also used water as stop bath, and refreshed this several times, as there was indeed a lot of colour in it. After fixing, washing and some more washing (and then some), I was left with something that doesn't look too bad on the light table, but without light falling through it, it is hard to discern this film from undeveloped film.

So, despite all the washing and even moving the wet film between the fingers to remove some more black stuff, I think there's still "something not right". Still, it was only one roll, with no special shots, so I didn't investigate any further. Didn't try to print or scan (I apologise for using that term) yet.

If you want, I can look up some more details in my notes. But then again, K200 is not KR64.

 

[hrst]

Alkaline bath softens the remjet backing. You don't want it to mess your developer so use a separate prebath with some carbonate or bicarbonate (soda or baking soda) for a minute or less, without much agitation, and then, under water, scrub the remjet backing off. I have done this by running the films through my fingers 2-3 times, every time in new clean water. It's a bit messy and this way you risk having some remjet deposits on the emulsion side, but works usually quite well. If any remjet remains, it will soften completely in developer and you can scrub it off after fixer, in the final wash lights on.

 

[Nicholas Lindan]

Add a few drops of liquid dish detergent to a warm borax bath and let the film soak for a few minutes - the backing will come off with light agitation and no mess.

 

[JohnMeadows]

Did you find that the density of the film (in terms of the negative tinge; rather red/brown in my case) increased quite a bit when drying? I used Rodinal in a one-hour stand development.

 

[IloveTLRs]

Thank you for the advice This was a seat-of-the-pants, spur-of-the-moment experiment, so it was pretty un-scientific. I've attached a photo of one strip on a small light table. The lines down both sides are from the "remjet" then. They're not very thin (like Acros) but I was impressed by the density (I was expecting nothing.)

I was dumb and developed the KR64 along with a roll of Kentmere 400, which developed water spots (more than usual.) I was unaware that anything would come off

I'll try shooting at a lower ISO, maybe 25? The film expired in June 2008, but being ISO 64 to begin with and kept in a freezer all these years, I thought 50 would be okay. The problem is finding a camera with a meter that will go that low

Edit: will a pre-wash with just water, or water + dish soap remove the remjet? Finding chemicals/knowing what they're called in Japanese is a little difficult (I only just the other day learned the word for "baking soda")

 

[hrst]

Are you sure it is completely fixed? It's hard to judge from a scan but it might look a bit milky... I may be wrong.

 

[IloveTLRs]

I think my fixer is close to exhaustion. I'll be making a fresh jug this week.

I've been using Chugai My Fix for a while now, but I might go back to Fuji Superfix as it lasts longer.

 

[hrst]

As a multi-layer color film it may take longer to fix than normal BW films.

 

[Rolleijoe]

what a shame to see some last few boxes of Kodachrome used in such a way. You knew 2 years ago they were going to cease processing, so why didn't you just use it for the great color it gave? Or you could have sold it on e-bay (I know I was looking for more than what I had in my freezer). I've got a brick of K64 120 and there's no way I'm letting anybody touch it now.

 

[wildbill]

I've got a brick of K64 120 and there's no way I'm letting anybody touch it now.

What exactly do you plan on doing with it?

 

[Gerald C Koch]

Having developed quite a few rolls of cine film in ECN-2 I find it best not to use the prebath. Remember this has to be done in total darkness. Not as very easy task. I skip the prebath and remove the ramjet coating after the stopbath when you can see what you are doing. The developer can be filtered to remove any carbon particles. Have never experienced any problems. Use a photo grade sponge to remove the coating being careful not to get any particles on the emulsion side of the film.