Orange Sistan, good or not

[spoolman]

I just found a bunch of old chemistry and among them are 4 bottles of Agfa Sistan. 3 of the bottles have the liquid an orange colour which has stained the bottles orange but the last bottle is unaffected. Are these any good or should I dispose of them?.

Doug

 

[Gerald C Koch]

Since the point of Sistan is achieving archival permanence the orange bottles would be suspect. Chuck them, better safe than sorry.

 

[Svenedin]

Sounds like it should be chucked. If you really want you could test it on a scrap print. There is a slight colour and density change when a print is toned in Sistan so you would probably be able to see if it is working. If nothing happens or something undesirable happens then sling it.

 

[MattKing]

Your real problem would be if the orange Sistan works better than anything current you could replace it with ....

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I located a picture of a bottle of Sistan and indeed it is an orangish color. So perhaps the OP's bottles are OK. Sistan contains thiocyanate ions which give a reddish color with iron ions. This however creates a new question how did the iron get into the solution perhaps as an impurity.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Sounds like it should be chucked. If you really want you could test it on a scrap print. There is a slight colour and density change when a print is toned in Sistan so you would probably be able to see if it is working. If nothing happens or something undesirable happens then sling it.

I have never noticed a color or density change with the use of Sistan. are you sure? have you measured?

 

[AgX]

There is a slight colour and density change when a print is toned in Sistan so you would probably be able to see if it is working.

Sistan is not intended to be a toner. In contrast to other permanence enhancing baths.

 

[Svenedin]

Sistan is not intended to be a toner. In contrast to other permanence enhancing baths.

I know it's not intended to be a "toner" as such. I am using Adox Adostab which is marketed as a Sistan replacement and contains the same ingredients as Sistan but in revised proportions. The manufacturer says that there is slight increase in density but that there is no colour shift. I have noticed that there is a slight colour shift and a slight increase in density. I haven't measured density before/after and I do not have equipment to measure it either. It is not of any great consequence but since the treatment is done in the light it can be seen. When I do the Adostab treatment I will have a water tray and a Adostab tray because the prints need to be wet before they go in the Adostab. That means I can see identical wet prints next to each other, one not treated and the other in the Adostab.

http://www.adox.de/Photo/adox-chemistry/toners-helping-aids/adostab/

 

[Linn]

Not sure if this helps, but Freestyle has a web page for Sistan still on their site. It shows the liquid has a slight orange tint. It also mentions that too high of a concentration of Sistan can stain the negative. Possibly the bottle has allowed some of the contents to evaporate and the stuff has turned. The web page says a closed bottle has an indefinite shelf life.

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/9427-Agfa-Sistan-500ml-Bandamp-W-Silver-Stabilizer-Solution