Solution for removing Jobo Expert lid

[Rick Russell]

Prior to and since acquiring a Jobo 3010 I have been trying to come up with a solution to remove the Jobo lid after processing. Certainly the manly approach suggested by my friend Michael Gordon, pulling it off with my fingers would be the most economical, but clearly my fingers are not strong enough: maybe because I'm not a rock climber like Michael.

I performed a search for the Jobo foot pump, which is impossible to find and overpriced. Ultimately I decided to buy a foot pump and attach a rubber stopper to fit on the Jobo lid. Yesterday I went to Walmart to purchase the foot pump, but they didn't have one. Instead I purchased a "Plunge-It", a toliet/sink plunger sold in Walmart's plumbing department for $9.97. The Plunge-It is an air powered plunger and includes 2 tips. Utilizing the smaller tip on my Jobo, it works great! Plunge-It is an economical, effective solution for removing the Jobo Expert lid after processing, and I recommend it highly.

Rick Russell
richardrussell-1@ca.rr.com

 

[frobozz]

OK, anyone have a solution for removing the lid of an expert tank... on which the cog piece has been popped out, so the tank can be used for normal hand agitation and pouring in/out of chems? (The standard bright red rubber cap fits and seals perfectly once the cog is popped off.) Significantly bigger hole to fill is the problem, not the pump itself. For now, I have been carefully prying with my fingers. Hurts a little and my shirt gets wet, but it does do the trick.

Duncan

 

[Jerry Thirsty]

I put mine down on the floor and stand over it, gripping the bottom between my feet. Then I get my fingertips under the edge of the lid on one side, pull up a little bit. Then turn it about 60-90 degrees, get a fresh grip, and pull up there. Then I just keep working my way around until it's loose. Although the toilet plunger idea sounds good too.

 

[ic-racer]

I never had any problem, but I wear those Playtex rubber gloves. That tends to protect the fingernails making it much easeir. I grab the edge of the lid with my fingernails through the thick glove. I work around the perimiter slowly and it comes right off.

 

[Bob Carnie]

Put the water hose in the top , let the water fill up and with a bit of pressure on the top not letting the water escape, the top will come off with no issue.

the jobo foot pump is useless.

 

[frotog]

Use water pressure. Set the drum upright and put your darkroom hose into the opening and let the water run until you're sure all the air is displaced. Having turned off the water, now seal off the drum opening with the palm of your hand (water hose in crook between thumb and forefinger) and slowly turn the tap back on. Works a lot better than the floor pump.

 

[Ronald Moravec]

My pump works fine.

Before that, I tapped the top edge on my counter top using a downward sliding motion with the bottom against the edge. This catches the top. Work around slowly with 6 taps and it pops off.

Water is an interesting idea.

 

[RobertV]

The pump works fine.
But you can use any food pump from the camping materials due to the fact the overpressure you need is rather low.
It only has to fit into the hole.

 

[msage]

Put the water hose in the top , let the water fill up and with a bit of pressure on the top not letting the water escape, the top will come off with no issue.

the jobo foot pump is useless.

My foot pump works great, are you using it correctly?

 

[Bob Carnie]

Don't know threw the useless thing out 15 years ago and have been using water method ever since.

My foot pump works great, are you using it correctly?

 

[frobozz]

OK, I found the solution to my (perhaps unique) problem: popping the lid on an expert drum which has had the cog removed. I ordered part number 7-R12-1-EPDM-RS from widgetco.com This is a 1-hole #12 rubber stopper, dimensions 64mm at the fat end, 54mm at the skinny end, and 25mm tall. Cost was $3.95.

The little tapered pipe thingy on the end of a Jobo footpump pulls out of the original (much smaller diameter) rubber stopper and jams quite nicely into the one hole on this one. It then jams quite nicely into the large hole in the cog-less Expert drum. One tap of the footpump and POP! Off it comes. It's not only pushing up on the lid, it's spreading the sides which release it from the ridge.

Duncan

 

[Vaughn]

Before that, I tapped the top edge on my counter top using a downward sliding motion with the bottom against the edge. This catches the top. Work around slowly with 6 taps and it pops off.

That's my method...

Vaughn

 

[Adrian Twiss]

OK, I found the solution to my (perhaps unique) problem: popping the lid on an expert drum which has had the cog removed. I ordered part number 7-R12-1-EPDM-RS from widgetco.com This is a 1-hole #12 rubber stopper, dimensions 64mm at the fat end, 54mm at the skinny end, and 25mm tall. Cost was $3.95.

The little tapered pipe thingy on the end of a Jobo footpump pulls out of the original (much smaller diameter) rubber stopper and jams quite nicely into the one hole on this one. It then jams quite nicely into the large hole in the cog-less Expert drum. One tap of the footpump and POP! Off it comes. It's not only pushing up on the lid, it's spreading the sides which release it from the ridge.

Duncan

how did you get the cog off the expert drum without ruining the lid. I have an expert drum which I use on a manual roller base. I fill it by using a funnel with a flexible attachment. I can fill the drum fairly quickly in the horizontal position without any spillage. I am curious as to the advantages of removing the cog. Would I be right in thinking that you can fill tank when its vertical?

 

[frobozz]

how did you get the cog off the expert drum without ruining the lid. I have an expert drum which I use on a manual roller base. I fill it by using a funnel with a flexible attachment. I can fill the drum fairly quickly in the horizontal position without any spillage. I am curious as to the advantages of removing the cog. Would I be right in thinking that you can fill tank when its vertical?

The guy that sold me the drum already removed the cog (to prove it could be done, upon my query about all this) but it looks to me like it just snaps on with a thick ridge. He sent the cog along just so I'd have it in case I ever get a real processor. With that off, the standard red rubber cap fits on the lid perfectly.

I wanted the cog gone so I could use the tank just like any old daylight tank. I pour the chemicals in with the tank at a slight angle to minimize burping, then put the rubber cap on, then hand inversion agitate it like normal. Then pour the chems out, and pour the next one in, and so on.

I use a *WHOLE BUNCH* more chemicals this way than I would in the normal Jobo orientation on rollers, but chemicals are cheap and it's a developing process I am very familiar with and comfortable with and it works. Developer is really the only thing I am "wasting" as I reuse stop and fix to exhaustion, and the additional quantity I pour in and then back out again doesn't exhaust appreciably faster when done that way.

Why, you may ask, am I mis-using Jobo tanks in this way? Because at the moment it's the best way I have to develop the 100-exposure rolls of film from my Canon FN-100 back. I've got the Jobo mammoth tank and long reel made for that purpose. For all my normal length film needs, I just use Nikor tanks and Hewes reels and do it like everyone else.

Duncan

 

[Keith Pitman]

I had one expert drum that was very hard to separate and found that it helps to put a little parafin around the edge of the top, inside and out.

 

[Bob Carnie]

Ducan

Will the chemicals go faster into the tank with the gog removed?
Where did you get the rubber caps for the top?

The guy that sold me the drum already removed the cog (to prove it could be done, upon my query about all this) but it looks to me like it just snaps on with a thick ridge. He sent the cog along just so I'd have it in case I ever get a real processor. With that off, the standard red rubber cap fits on the lid perfectly.

I wanted the cog gone so I could use the tank just like any old daylight tank. I pour the chemicals in with the tank at a slight angle to minimize burping, then put the rubber cap on, then hand inversion agitate it like normal. Then pour the chems out, and pour the next one in, and so on.

I use a *WHOLE BUNCH* more chemicals this way than I would in the normal Jobo orientation on rollers, but chemicals are cheap and it's a developing process I am very familiar with and comfortable with and it works. Developer is really the only thing I am "wasting" as I reuse stop and fix to exhaustion, and the additional quantity I pour in and then back out again doesn't exhaust appreciably faster when done that way.

Why, you may ask, am I mis-using Jobo tanks in this way? Because at the moment it's the best way I have to develop the 100-exposure rolls of film from my Canon FN-100 back. I've got the Jobo mammoth tank and long reel made for that purpose. For all my normal length film needs, I just use Nikor tanks and Hewes reels and do it like everyone else.

Duncan

 

[frobozz]

I have only ever had the tank in its cogless state, so I don't know if it's faster... but it's pretty darn fast! It looks like it's going to fill the inner bowl and overflow, but it just keeps disappearing as fast as I can pour it... as long as it's not dead level. One time I did that I had it back up for lack of anywhere for the air to vent. Now I just make sure to tip it a few degrees while pouring.

The guy that sold me the tank threw in a rubber cap. I see them from time to time on ebay, and I bought a pile of 3 or 4 spares (just in case) in a single auction dirt cheap a month or two ago. If you're thinking you want to go this route and pop the cog out, PM me your address and I'll send you one of those extra caps I got, no charge (postage will be so small for something that light.) NOTE: Offer only good for Bob, don't everyone else go PMing me looking for caps, I only have a couple!

Also note that my 3033 tank works like this, with the cog being removable. It's entirely possible whatever tank you're using doesn't work like that... I have no idea, I'm about as far from a Jobo expert as you can get. Proceed carefully if you try to pry the cog off!

Duncan

Ducan

Will the chemicals go faster into the tank with the gog removed?
Where did you get the rubber caps for the top?

 

[dasBlute]

I've got the foot pump, never a problem, totally worth it;

yes, you could use other pumps as well, the pump has a funnel shaped foam
plug you could fashion something similar, not a lot of pressure needed as
mentioned above. Make sure you keep you hands on the lid when pumping
it'll jump a bit and over-zealous people have injured themselves when really
applying the pressure...

 

[eclarke]

I use a little piece of cedar wood 8"x 1 1/2"x 3/4", slide it on the edge of the drum and tap the edge of the lid with a loose grip on the wood, few times around and off it comes..EC

 

[Bob Carnie]

thanks Ducan , I feel special and all warm and fuzzy.

I am leaving for a week but in August I will take you up on your offer , I am going to take off a cog and see if it speeds up chemical pouring.
You may know I am making a new rotary system and still using my old tanks, but the new system will not need cogs to drive the rotation.
If taking them off speeds up initial pour and dump then its a good thing, knowing it stays lighttight is also a bonus.

I have only ever had the tank in its cogless state, so I don't know if it's faster... but it's pretty darn fast! It looks like it's going to fill the inner bowl and overflow, but it just keeps disappearing as fast as I can pour it... as long as it's not dead level. One time I did that I had it back up for lack of anywhere for the air to vent. Now I just make sure to tip it a few degrees while pouring.

The guy that sold me the tank threw in a rubber cap. I see them from time to time on ebay, and I bought a pile of 3 or 4 spares (just in case) in a single auction dirt cheap a month or two ago. If you're thinking you want to go this route and pop the cog out, PM me your address and I'll send you one of those extra caps I got, no charge (postage will be so small for something that light.) NOTE: Offer only good for Bob, don't everyone else go PMing me looking for caps, I only have a couple!

Also note that my 3033 tank works like this, with the cog being removable. It's entirely possible whatever tank you're using doesn't work like that... I have no idea, I'm about as far from a Jobo expert as you can get. Proceed carefully if you try to pry the cog off!

Duncan