Recommended usage & development recipes for Jobo 3010 drum & a Besler motor base

Shot eight sheets of 4x5 HP5+ yesterday and loaded them into a Jobo 3010 drum, which I have never used. Have a Besler motor based to turn the drum. I am looking for recommendations, suggest, and cautions about using this drum and motor base set up. And, I looking for good film and developer recommendations for this drum and motor base combination.

Thanks,

Jay

Try Xtol 1:1 with Kodak's recommendation for continuous agitation for time at your temp of choice.

Add all solutions with the drum rotating on the motor base. You can get streaking or other uneven development marks if you pour chemicals in without the drum rolling. Rig up a funnel - one with a right angle to get the solutions into the rotating drum works well. for this.

Do a pre-soak of a liter of water. Use a liter of developer solution.

Kirk Keyes said:

Try Xtol 1:1 with Kodak's recommendation for continuous agitation for time at your temp of choice.

Add all solutions with the drum rotating on the motor base. You can get streaking or other uneven development marks if you pour chemicals in without the drum rolling. Rig up a funnel - one with a right angle to get the solutions into the rotating drum works well. for this.

Do a pre-soak of a liter of water. Use a liter of developer solution.

Click to expand...

Thanks Kirk. I learned about uneven development from pouring without rolling the drum firsthand today...

Do you use your motor base in continuous or reversing mode? If continuous, do you change the direction of the drum periodically?

I currently use a CPA-2, but I did start out with a Beseler base with the 2800 series Jobo drums.

I changed the direction of the drums, and I also used the reversing function of the motor base to make sure everything was getting covered. With the larger 3000 series drum, make sure it makes at least one complete revolution before reversing.

Too bad your photo was ruined. It's a nice shot! That's definitely what happens when the drum is not spinning as the chemicals go it.

Also, don't add any wetting agents (like PhotoFlow) to your developer or presoak water.

I have been using the 3006 drum on a Unicolor motor base for a year or two now. I disabled the change direction switch so that it rolls one way all the time.


I have processed well over 100 sheets each of FP4+ and 320TXP with this equipment. A few observations from my experience....

1) I have always poured the chemistry in while the drum was off the motor base. I just sit the drum on the counter top, tilt it slightly and pour in the chems.

2) The drum always turns in the same direction. I do not bother to flip it over of reverse the motor direction.

3) No pre- soak.

Despite this, I have never had a problem with uneven development or streaking or anything like it.

What I have learned:

1) you have to tilt the drum to pour in chems. If you try to pour chems straight in, you'll have a mess...or, it will take for-ever (maybe this is where the uneven development claims come from?)

2) I could never get consistent results with HC-110 in the continuously rotating drum. I know people do. I can't - probably just me. HC-110 is still my mainstay for small format in an inversion tank but, I greatly prefer D-76 1:1 or D-23 when using continuous agitation.

3) The Kodak data sheet for the various sheet films give excellent, detailed information for rotary processing. I have found their numbers for 320TXP in D-76 1:1 to be perfect. I expect that their numbers and instructions for TMX and TMY to be similarly useful.

FWIW: I use a 2551 drum and the older 4x5 spiral reels (the ones without the clip-thingies) on a reversing Unicolor base. I pour the chems in with the tank vertical and put it on the base as soon as possible. I don't pre-soak. Developers are TMAX-RS, D-76 1:1 and Microdol-X 1:3. Films are TMX, TMY and Plus-X. I have never had any streaking, foaming or uneven development problems.

The drum has a slight tendency to walk off the base with time - I place a gallon jug at the cap end of the drum to keep it on the base. I also place a 5x7 tray under the cap end - over the past 25 years (gag!) the Jobo lid/cap/drum has developed a drip.