Newbie in terms of Tmax Developer

Ok I'm not a newbie to developing, I am comfortable with HC110, Rodinal, D-76/ID 11 and Xtol. I can use any of them in my sleep.

I was gifted recently a near full container of Tmax Developer, the one that makes 5-gallon solutions. Unlike the above mentioned developers, I can't seem to find any articles pertaining to this developer other than the PDF on the Kodak site.

How do I use this? Do I mix from concentrate one shot? Create a stock solution?

I'm guessing I have about 3l of concentrate left in the container give or take.

Mix 1 to 4 for the working solution. I don't like to store the mixed developer for more than a week or two. You can re-use the developer by adding about 10% time to the second set of films. I don't think I'd reuse it more than once. Also there is T-Max RS developer for sheet film.

You can mix only as much as you need and leave the rest of the concentrate for another time.

I use it 1+6 and throw it away after use. No problems mit old developer and no problems to get the right temperature.

One last question, does Tmax Developer in concentrate form have the same shelf life of HC110?

Leave it like it is, and mix it prior to use. In other words, it is already a stock solution. 1:4 is standard, but 1:9 is usable as well.

That was a very generous gift, as it is expensive stuff.

There is nothing like T-Max film in T-Max developer. They are a match made in heaven...er, I mean Rochester. Try to do your processing at 75 F if you can, as opposed to 68 F.

T-max developer is a pre-made stock solution, not a concentrate, so it will not have the same shelf life as HC-110 concentrate. (Not even close!) However, it should last quite some time if stored well. Keeping it in a sealed glass bottled with minimal oxygen will help quite a bit. I have had no noticeable loss of activity in HC-110 stock (not concentrate) stored 8 months in a half full glass bottle. If dealing with stock solutions, as opposed to mixing directly from concentrates, some amber glass bottles of various sizes are a good investment. I like the 125 mL or four ounce ones.

I have a small amount of TMAX developer left, good stuff but a little pricey.

Jeff

Uncle Bill said:

One last question, does Tmax Developer in concentrate form have the same shelf life of HC110?

Click to expand...

I don't know the shell life of HC 110. I used TMax developer and Tetenal Ultrafin Plus (which is nearly the same) concentrate over a year from one bottle. I kept the botle coll (~15°C) and discarded the very last remaining of the concentrate.