If you are using fresh fixer and fixing longer and still having the stubborn pink/magenta base stain, a soak in a weak alkaline solution such as sodium bicarbonate, borax, sodium metaborate or even sodium carbonate will usually remove the stain. This step should come before the wash.
This processing method usually gives me negatives that are free of any unusual tint, including a grey base with TMAX and Delta film. Ive found that refixing for another 3 min and washing again clears most of the purple hue into a very light violet. I've also used fresh Ilford Rapid fix with the same issue.
Anything over six minutes is too long, five minutes is best.
Too long for what? In general, you can't overfix. You might get some bleaching with old emulsions if you leave the film in the fixer overnight.
There is no 'best'. There is the time given by a film leader test. If you over-run it a little, that's absolutely fine.
Adox CMS20 II is forty five seconds before the fix starts bleaching the image, but that is written in the instructions.
It doesn't say anything about overfixing. Just that it fixes rapidly, which makes sense given the explanation they give.Fixing and inal rinse: The fixing time is only 30 to 60 seconds in any rapid fixer due to the small silver grains.
Rules
I've noticed lately a similar experience with HP5. The base seems to retain a more bluish/purple tone than usual and doesn't seem like it can be washed out.
The OP indicated he was using a wash aid, which apparently doesn't help with the issue (three minutes if I remember - possibly extending the time would help some).Washaids like Kodak Hypo Clearing Agent - essentially sulfite plus something to adjust the pH - seem to also make a difference.
There is an entire Sticky thread about pink/magenta/purple film: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threa...which-is-a-different-issue.69462/#post-975950 ...
There's no 'rule' about fixing. Anyone can do as they please. Overfixing is not a real risk within any reasonable amount of time, let's say anything up to an hour or so.
Ilford Wash method: 5-10-20
Clearing test for Kentmere Pan 400 is around 1:15-1:30 in Sprint Fixer, I always do 4-5 min minimum fix time regardless. I haven’t done one in the last 2-3 months with K400 I may have to try it again.This is the fill, invert X times and dump method, right? I won't comment on the efficiency and archival quality of this method, but I'm certainly sure that it won't remove any dyes remaining after fixing to the same extent as prolonged soaking would. I do a fill, invert, soak for 2', dump, repeat wash and I can collect the dumped water, which obviously enables me to judge the amount of dyes removed. The results can be striking with some films.
So, assuming that 5' is adequate fixing time in fresh fixer (and it most probably is), prolonging it to 8' isn't bad, but a longer soaking period would probably work just as well, if not better.
One last thing that I'd like to mention is a method to determine the minimum fixing time, the one with the drop of fixer... Start by putting a drop of fixer on a piece of film and let it sit there for 30" or so, it's not critical, you need to give it a good headstart. Then you drop this piece of film in your fixer and count the time it takes for the spot that had formed to disappear. This time should be at least doubled, but I usually triple it, just to make me feel better. And I never fix for less than 5'.
Hope this helps.
This is the fill, invert X times and dump method, right? I won't comment on the efficiency and archival quality of this method, but I'm certainly sure that it won't remove any dyes remaining after fixing to the same extent as prolonged soaking would. I do a fill, invert, soak for 2', dump, repeat wash and I can collect the dumped water, which obviously enables me to judge the amount of dyes removed. The results can be striking with some films.
So, assuming that 5' is adequate fixing time in fresh fixer (and it most probably is), prolonging it to 8' isn't bad, but a longer soaking period would probably work just as well, if not better.
One last thing that I'd like to mention is a method to determine the minimum fixing time, the one with the drop of fixer... Start by putting a drop of fixer on a piece of film and let it sit there for 30" or so, it's not critical, you need to give it a good headstart. Then you drop this piece of film in your fixer and count the time it takes for the spot that had formed to disappear. This time should be at least doubled, but I usually triple it, just to make me feel better. And I never fix for less than 5'.
Hope this helps.
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