Printol 12 directions, what's this mean?

[oriecat]

I recently got a bottle of Printol 12 paper developer. The directions read:

Printol 12 is designed for dilution 1:4 up to 1:12 parts water for general use. For normal, full scale prints and standard enlarging apers, dilute 1:12. For contact papers, dilute 1:8. At extreme dilution, 1:20 for "soft" results with higher contrast paoers and warm toned portrait papers.
Development times: 1 1/2 to 2 minutes at 70 F - for best results. Quality prints may be obtained from 65 F up to 100 F. Extending processing times up to 6 minutes or more produces enlargements and prints of maximum brillance and tonal scale.


The last sentence is what confuses me. Maximum brilliance and tonal scale sounds good, but how do you extend the processing times to 6 minutes, if the best results processing is 1 1/2 to 2 minutes? Do you dilute further? Expose less? (And why isn't the maximum brilliance and tonal scale considered the best result?) Sorry if this is a dumb question...

 

[Mateo]

Not a dumb question at all, more like some dumb unclear instructions. You could extend dev times to 6 min at any dilution but you run the risk of fog. I've never used Printol but I'll guess that 6 min is for 1:20 and they don't seem to properly mention that higher dilution leads to warmer tone with some paper. I'd like to know what maximum brilliance and tonal scale is.

 

[bmac]

I'd like to know what maximum brilliance and tonal scale is.

Smoke & Mirrors heh


The directions for the Printol kit sound like the instruction book that came with my home theater components. English / japanese / english translations...

 

[Jennifer]

Hi,
I read this 3 times, and I guess we are both dumb !. Those directions read like whos on first, whats on second.....

I think NACCO makes it. I would call them, and ask them to explain it !.

 

[rbarker]

I suspect their intention was that "best results" relates to the preferred temperature (70°), not the time. The extended development (between 2 min and 6 min) may add subtle additional definition to highlights and some additional richness to deep shadow tones. If, that is, the safelight illumination is sufficiently low to avoid fogging.