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Sourcing Metal cassettes except spooling with tape

pelletier

Subscriber
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Joined
Nov 30, 2025
Messages
6
Location
france
Format
35mm
Hello everyone, I am sourcing metal cassettes 35mm for 2 holed film (reflx lab sells a tool for that), otherwise tell me another technique to put film on spool, everything but not tape.
The cassettes can or not be custom with my own design. I dont want tape i want it more professional like factory made. Reflx lab and company on alibaba only do tape based spooling for metal cassettes.

Best regards
 
Wouldn't you be able to buy their plastic cassettes with spools included and use the technique shown in the video on this page, but insert their plastic spool into your own metal cassette? Unless I am not understanding what you mean.

Reloadable 35mm Plastic Cassettes with Screw-Caps - 5 Pack

Please watch the video demo before ordering Plastic reloadable cassette Opened at one side only Screw cap, easy to open and close, very secure Self locking spool, no specialized trimmer and tape needed Each cassette comes with a plastic container What you will receive: reloadable cassette x5...
reflxlab.com

 
It's been a while since I popped open a factory loaded B&W film cassette, but once upon a time, the factory loaded film was taped onto the spool - the tape goes on one side of the film, around the spool, and onto the other side of the film. It's a heavy duty masking tape like the stuff that is used to tape 120 film onto the backing paper.

Just use good tape and don't worry about what is "professional."
 
Didn't or doesn't Kodak use tape for sticking film to spools? So if a professional manufacturer feels that tape is safe then might it not be so?

I feel sure I have looked inside a Kodak cassette only a few years ago and found the end of the film taped to the spool

pentaxuser
 
I've used decent quality masking tape for the last 5 decades.
There are some tips about using it well, but it does the job really effectively.
The real issue being the lack of good quality new, re-usable cassettes - whether in plastic or metal.
 
All the manufacturers that I've bought film from used tape. Using something else is a recipe for disaster.
 
I use cassettes left from Kodak factory loads. After exposing, I leave the film tongue out. When it comes time to develop the roll I trim the togue, hook it to the reel and then, in the dark, spool it on to the reel. After spooling I cut the film so that 3/4"/2cm is still sticking out of the cassette. When bulk loading, I tape the new film to the sticking out remnant of film and then wind it on. I use plain-old Scotch tape. Yeah, this method raises the specter of dirt in the felt light trap but I have never had a problem - cleanliness next Godliness and all that (seems to also hold for Devilishness).

TTBOMK Kodak still uses tape to hold the film to the spool. It is a blue, rather sticky, paper tape.
 
Yet ANOTHER use for expired rolls of 35mm film!!!!
 
Pelletier,
Maybe I can ask a question since your request really puzzles me. Why are you against tape? That's all I ever use, whether it be masking tape, scotch tape or even freezer paper tape. In fact, I prefer good tape to any other method of securing my film to the inner spool.
 
Matt's got a good solution, papermasking tape. I hate the plastic tape Kodak switched to, away from the old light green colored paper tape. (IIRC the old Kodak paper tape created a slight static sparkle when torn in my father's very dry basement)

Ilford has a neat system, film is punched, clips into slot on spool. It's asymmetrical (off center) so the film is not flipped accidentally.

The old Leica cassettes have a slot for a tab on the end of the film, once inserted it's in for good.
 
I've been using GOOD masking tape for nearly 50 years and have had no problems. I tried using a cheap tape once and did run into problems there. Go for 3M or Bear. Those are the good ones I've used.
 
Kodak has AFAIK always used tape. Fuji used to use a 2-hole punch system with clips in the spindle latching into the punched holes for their CN films; I assume they still do this for their modern E6 films.
xkaes said:
Using something else is a recipe for disaster.
Click to expand...
No it's not. Alternative systems can be very dependable. Conversely, tape can fail if it's applied incorrectly or an unsuitable type of tape is used. Fact of the matter is that either a mechanical latch or tape can work perfectly well and both systems have been used successfully for commercially made film by major manufacturers.
 
I've put lots of film into lots of slotted spindles over many years in many formats from 16mm to 120. Those are the only times I've had problems -- with the film splitting or simply slipping out. And what a PITA to find the slot in the dark. I learned my lesson -- or as Ben Franklin said, "Experience keeps a hard school, but a fool will learn in no other."

I've never had trouble with tape.
 

I do this as well. The bonus is that it saves 2 inches of film for every cassette you load.
 
With the tape to film tongue method, I've sometimes had trouble with the film not wanting to rewind into the cassette because it's too thick to go through the light trap. Can be avoided when loading it, but causes a problem when film is rewound in-camera after shooting.
 
jim appleyard said:
I've been using GOOD masking tape for nearly 50 years and have had no problems. I tried using a cheap tape once and did run into problems there. Go for 3M or Bear.
Click to expand...
Hmm.
I consider "good" masking tape to be the blue or green type, that I would use for actual masking while painting. For film I use the cheaper manila colored stuff, for labeling or affixing film to rolls. I never buy this stuff myself but always seem to have a roll or two that someone has left in my house or shop.
 

This is a good point. It would seem that the seam would need to be seamless.
 

If you butt splice the film (end to end) rather than any overlap, would that help?
 
foc said:
If you butt splice the film (end to end) rather than any overlap, would that help?
Click to expand...
Yes, that works for me. Connect film end-to-end with no overlap, and ensure to have tape on both sides to that the assembly can't make a sharp corner while it hits the felt trap. That way it spools back up correctly.
 
Ditto to using recycled cassettes, I can get them free and they work really well. Put the film end to end and tape it that way, don’t overlap it, and there’s no issue. I’ve used both masking and office clear tape, both work well. ive looked at buying reloadable cassettes before, but the plastic ones are all horrible from what I hear, and metal ones are almost impossible to get. I did find the metal reloads on Alibaba, but even before the tariffs, it would have been an extremely large investment. MOQ was like 10k at $0.80/pc, not including shipping. Not worth it, at least for me
 
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