Pentax Auto 110

revdocjim · Oct 12, 2011

I know I'm terribly late to the party but just today I came across a lovely Auto110 still in the box, complete with flash, motordrive, and all three primes. Everything seems to work and I paid a whopping 2,000 yen (US$25) for the whole lot. Of course I would love to find some film for it and put it to work but have only managed to find a few auctions offering a few rolls here and there, mostly expired.

Are there any good sources for 110 film now? Any further word on possibilities of production restart?

Any info would be much appreciated!

jmck · Oct 12, 2011

Give E- bay a try, I got some a year or so ago but I do not remember who the seller was.

Jeff Kubach · Oct 12, 2011

One problem is how are you going to get the film develop.

Jeff

AgX · Oct 12, 2011

see here for a planned production restart:

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

ic-racer · Oct 12, 2011

Jeff Kubach said:
One problem is how are you going to get the film develop.

Jeff

You will have to break the film cartridges. Once the film is out it is processed on a spool, just like any other roll film.

AgX · Oct 12, 2011

Jobo even once made 16mm reels, so in case one doesn't want to modify larger format reels, one could look for those dedicated ones.

revdocjim · Oct 12, 2011

I could do B&W on my own but I'm pretty sure any normal lab here in Japan would process it as well. After all, I doubt they threw away all the equipment for it as soon as production stopped.

bsdunek · Oct 12, 2011

Here in the U.S.A., I get my film from The Frugal Photographer http://www.frugalphotographer.com/ or Blue Moon http://bluemooncamera.com/index.php

My favorite lab is Bison Photo http://www.bisonphoto.com/Home_Page.html They will also provide your photos scanned on CD. There are other labs that do 110, but don't do the CD

I know that's a long way from Toyko, but maybe it will help.

revdocjim · Oct 12, 2011

Thanks Bruce! That was exactly the kind of info I was hoping for and I promptly placed an order with TFP!

Jim

Jeff Kubach · Oct 16, 2011

Where do you get spools for 110 film?

Jeff

revdocjim · Oct 16, 2011

I've never seen one... probably rummaging around old used camera stores.

Roger Cole · Oct 16, 2011

ic-racer said:
You will have to break the film cartridges. Once the film is out it is processed on a spool, just like any other roll film.

True, but I remember reading an article about it back when it came out, and apparently the reels are a big PITA to load with the slithery length of film. The author had a cylindrical can (forget what type) that fit nicely down in a three or four reel (forget which) Nikkor stainless tank and he just taped the length of film in a spiral, emulsion side out and a dab of tape on each end, to the can then put it in the tank. The can displaced a lot of solution so a large amount wasn't required even though the tank was pretty large.

Might be worth a try if you can get some film but not the reels or have trouble loading them.

2F/2F · Oct 16, 2011

Hi,

The way to go with them is to buy whatever old, expired, cheap film you can. Then empty the cassettes and reload them with slit 120, or 16mm movie film. You can get 110 reels and do your own developing in a standard Nikkor tank.

nickrapak · Oct 16, 2011

Jeff Kubach said:
Where do you get spools for 110 film?

Jeff

I process my respooled 110 in a Yankee Clipper II tank. It's a junky plastic tank, but the price of the tank (~$15) is a heck of a lot less than trying to find a SS tank for 110.

lxdude · Oct 16, 2011

ic-racer said:
You will have to break the film cartridges. Once the film is out it is processed on a spool, just like any other roll film.

They can be opened without breaking, and can be reloaded and reused.

cmacd123 · Oct 17, 2011

lxdude said:
They can be opened without breaking, and can be reloaded and reused.

Actually the offical way to get 110 film out does not require opening the Cartridge. One uses a tool called a "Violator" (aptly named) to push on the backing paper through the Frame number window. This brings the film out through the exposure opening. When I used to do it, I used a Knitting needle.

AgX · Oct 18, 2011

lxdude said:
They [type 110 cassettes] can be opened without breaking, and can be reloaded and reused.

The ones I got (different makes) seem to be ultrasonic welded together.

revdocjim · Oct 18, 2011

I ordered 4 rolls of Agfa 200x24 and a 10 pack of Agfa 100x12 that supposedly gives slightly red colors. They've arrived at my address in the states and my wife will be picking them up in a couple weeks so by next month I'll be putting my 110 into action!

I would actually be interested in learning how to slit film and reload it but I don't have a dark room and can't imagine pulling that off in my dark bag.
If I were to borrow time in a dark room, can someone roughly describe the process and the tools needed.

I would be most interested in loading B&W film so I could develop it at home. Even if I don't have a reel, Roger's idea of a can sounds easy enough since I have a tall SS tank that holds two 120 reels.

removedacct3 · May 13, 2012

revdocjim said:
I would actually be interested in learning how to slit film and reload it but I don't have a dark room and can't imagine pulling that off in my dark bag.
If I were to borrow time in a dark room, can someone roughly describe the process and the tools needed.

Have you made any progress with reloading 110 film?

brianmquinn · May 13, 2012

One of the last places to get 110 film.
Dead Link Removed
I also know that Blue Moon camera has a few freezer stored rolls of 110 too.
They dow good work with developing and printing as well.

Pentax Auto 110

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