Soviet Film - what type of processing?

pdelrosario · Jun 24, 2015

I recently got a Soviet-built Quarz 8mm camera and this unused film came with it. I can't read the script, but others have deciphered that it's color reversal. Would this take E6 processing?

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Photo Engineer · Jun 24, 2015

Take a small snip of film and soak it in 100F (40C) water. If the emulsion washes off, it cannot go through E6. Even if it does not, this does not assure E6 compatibility but if it does, it says NO.

If it washes off, it is either E4 or proprietary which is similar to the old Agfa reversal process.

PE

Dr Croubie · Jun 24, 2015

And if all else fails, Caffenol will get you something...

gorbas · Jun 24, 2015

No, it's not E6!
It was standard east european reversal process used by ORWO, USSR and all other colour films made behind iron curtain.
Most likely I have recipes for it in ORWO data book or you can try to find original kit on Ebay.
I used, back in the day, reversal kit made by an Hungarian company. Processing was at 20C

gorbas · Jun 25, 2015

Here you have processing sequence in Hungarian and Russian for this film, CO-22 in Reanal (interesting company name) Diachrom reversal kit.
Sorry, first and second developers should be at 25C. It was 32 years ago when I last time used that process.

MartinP · Jun 25, 2015

Is that a relative of the old version of the Agfachrome process? (Prior to them going E6).

My first film developing ever was that old Agfachrome process in 135, with a third-party, powder-based kit bought from the back pages of Amateur Photographer magazine It worked perfectly adequately and the slides were still viewable last time I checked, errmmm last year I think.

For good quality results, it might be more effective to sell this roll, as a collector's item, and buy some E6 8mm film from Wittner. They can also process it and slit it for you. If you make up a developing kit for the Agfachrome process then you will have a lot of testing to do and a lot of chemicals left over.

AgX · Jun 25, 2015

There were no soviet E-6 films.

Basically all were based on Agfacolor technology. Of course with the improvements over time in emulsion and processes.

gorbas · Jun 25, 2015

Martin, I'm not sure how different Agfa slide process was from ORWO, but for sure, they were first cousins. Agfa slide films of that time Agfachrome 50L-50S-CT18 were very good films and they still look good today as on the day of processing. Agfa just couldn't compete with Kodak on global market with different slide processe. Agfa process was simpler to handle, especially in home darkroom conditions and easier to master. I was university student in that time and our older college, part time student, run photo lab at national TV. He used Colenta processor (somebody mentioned it recently here) to process Agfa slides. He was OK with processing our Agfa films "on side" but wouldn't touch ORWO slide. Don't remember any more why? But that was reason for me to start developing ORWO slide at home. We had to submit school assignments, usually first day after holiday or on Mondays and commercial lab that process is worked only M-F and we were doing it always in the last moment.
Just kids!

gorbas · Jun 25, 2015

Here is ORWO chrome processing sequence in English.
I couldn't find processing recipes.

railwayman3 · Jun 25, 2015

MartinP said:
Is that a relative of the old version of the Agfachrome process? (Prior to them going E6).

My first film developing ever was that old Agfachrome process in 135, with a third-party, powder-based kit bought from the back pages of Amateur Photographer magazine It worked perfectly adequately and the slides were still viewable last time I checked, errmmm last year I think.
.

Just checked out some 120 Agfachrome slides which I processed with a Tetanal kit in 1978 (so definitely the old pre-E6 version of the film) and they look fine, no perceptable deterioration. I remember it was definitely a "room-temperature kit", though unfortunately I've no further records.

ndrs · Jun 25, 2015

I don't think it's worth trying, even if you have all the chemicals, but here's all you need, in Russian:
Dead Link Removed

Google Translate does a reasonably good job on this page.
It is different from ORWO. Colour developing agent ЦПВ-1 is probably impossible to find by now.

Processing as B&W is a much better bet.

pdelrosario · Jun 25, 2015

Thank you, everyone for your input. This is going to be a fun little adventure.

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chrisaisenbrey · Jun 26, 2015

ndrs said:
I don't think it's worth trying, even if you have all the chemicals, but here's all you need, in Russian:
Dead Link Removed

Google Translate does a reasonably good job on this page.
It is different from ORWO. Colour developing agent ЦПВ-1 is probably impossible to find by now.

Processing as B&W is a much better bet.

That looks quite similar to the ORWO process 9165, which gorbas posted already. Ive attached the ORWO process 9165 with the chemistry again. ( H 142 = Hydrochinon, A 901 = Natriumtripolyphosphat)

It comes from the book fotografische Chemie by Junge/Hübner 5th edition VEB Fotokinoverlag Leipzig 1989. It also contains a short translation of the most important Russian chemical names.

ЦПВ-1 is N,N-Diethyl-p-phenylenediamine sulfate

pdelrosario · Jun 30, 2015

I researched most of the chemicals, and to purchase ONLY the materials needed to make the bleach (Orwocolor 50/2), would cost nearly $90!

I tempted to just use the film and experiment with cheaper alternatives. Any predictions on how this would work with caffenol?

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Soviet Film - what type of processing?

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