Scratch diagnosis

[quixotic]

I do not use a squeegee ever. I use PhotoFlo or an equivalent [follow the dilution directions, not a drop here and a splash there] and let the water drain off.

Other reasons: The scratch could be caused by camera rollers, camera surfaces, the cassette, or if bulk loaded the bulk loader. Check all surfaces carefully.

Thanks SG. I just checked my bottles, and it looks like I've been using PhotoFlo all along. So maybe I should just ditch the squeegee also. I suspect that is the culprit rather than anything on the camera, since the scratch was only present on the last half of the exposures.

 

[bdial]

My opinion, but my recommendation would be to use the squeegee only for prints and keep it away from your film.
Especially this time of year, film treated with a wetting agent will dry pretty fast on its own.

 

[quixotic]

I came across some good threads on squeegees, etc. There doesn't seem to be a total consensus. However, I will be much more careful in the future.
http://photo.net/medium-format-photography-forum/00LzAv
http://www.film-and-darkroom-user.org.uk/forum/archive/index.php/t-5847.html
I like Charles Webb's and DF Cardwell's response on this thread:
(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

 

[Sirius Glass]

My opinion, but my recommendation would be to use the squeegee only for prints and keep it away from your film.
Especially this time of year, film treated with a wetting agent will dry pretty fast on its own.

Yep

 

[blockend]

A rubber blade is much harder than wet gelatine. If the film is beginning to dry, even worse, it'll drag the surface. Save your squeegee for resin coated prints.

 

[AgX]

The scratch could be caused by camera rollers, camera surfaces, the cassette,...

How would these cause a finely wavy pattern?

 

[MattKing]

That is what you get if you use a squeegee and there is a piece of grit embedded in it.
I avoid squeegees. But if I were to get someone to squeegee a wet film for me, I'd get someone like df Cardwell or Charles Webb to do it for me, but only if they used their really old and tried and true and scrupulously cleaned squeegees, and only then with Photo flo first.
Why would you need to use a squeegee anyways - Photo flo and air drying works great (in normal humidity).

 

[Sirius Glass]

How would these cause a finely wavy pattern?

Those are follow up suggestions after not using a squeegee any more.

 

[iakustov]

iakustov, how do you dry and/or wipe your film?

I use Ilfotol for the final rinse and hang on the film to dry. I don't wipe it.

 

[cooltouch]

I don't use a squeegee. Instead I use a sponge made for this use. You can find them at camera stores that still stock darkroom stuff. Just a regular soft sponge will work too. I've used them also.

I fold the sponge so that it presses on both sides of the film, then I apply a moderate amount of pressure to it and then pull the film through. One pass is enough.

 

[Robin Guymer]

After shaking the water from my developed film, I hang it on a converted bike wheel hanging from the ceiling which has a series of hooks to hold the film horizontal whilst drying. Occasionally by accident I brush a frame against a metal hook and the scratches shown on the image are exactly the result I get too. I hate myself for doing this but it is definitely a foreign object touching the wet emulsion side of the film before it has dried causing that type of scratch.