Steel Reels vs Plastic Reels

BrendanCarlson

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Hey guys, I was wondering what you all use. Steel or Plastic?
I'm kinda sick of my steel reels and have been using plastic reels recently, loads so easy!

(BTW - Might trade the steel reels for some film, pm me if interested)
 

Gerald C Koch

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The only time that I have ruined a roll of film was when using a plastic reel. I have been using SS for 40 years without a problem. Won't use anything else!
 

daleeman

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Oh mabe this is a guys vs girls, steel vs plastic thing.

I have achieved a few more reels in my day but I still have the first SS ones I got back when I was 17 years old. I did learn on an unusual device a crinkeled long plastic ribbon thing you would roll up into a coil with the film inside the role as you coiled it up. Might have been a Kodak product, my father had it, a Kodacraft tank?

Anyway, Keep the SS reels. That is my vote.
 

pstake

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I use both. More often plastic but that's because I have only one reel and canister available for SS. The ones with the clips in the middle are garbage (IMHO) ... but the ones with the tines on the sides are great. On a good day, I can load the SS ones in half the time of the plastic (this of course took practice) ... and on a bad day it takes twice as long. It helps to cut your leader squarely.
 

daleeman

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Found it, this is what I first used. Had not thought about this in a long time.
 

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MattKing

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daleeman said:
I did learn on an unusual device a crinkeled long plastic ribbon thing you would roll up into a coil with the film inside the role as you coiled it up. Might have been a Kodak product, my father had it, a Kodacraft tank?
Click to expand...

Correct! And they came in a bunch of sizes, including for 116/616 film.

Freestyle was still selling replacement aprons when I last checked. I still use them from time to time.

But typically I use both Steel Reels and Plastic Reels. The AP (work in Paterson tanks) Plastic Reels work best with 120 for me, while I can use either Plastic or Steel with 35mm film.

And one gentle point of procedure here - there are dozens (if not hundreds) of pre-existing threads here on APUG on just this subject. It's a great chance to practice with the Google search here on APUG .
 

Thomas Bertilsson

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M.A.Longmore said:
.
I Realize That.
Some things should not be abbreviated.
Although, I do approve of the usage of FSLR's,and APUG'ers

Ron
.
Click to expand...

You should check your apostrophe use first. There is no possessive in FSLRs and APUGers.

Now you may approve them.


Regarding the original post - both types of reels work fine.

Plastic ones - have to be bone dry, and if you're in a humid environment you may be out of luck.

Metal ones - you have to have one for every size film you use. And they have to be straight or they'll be hell on wheels to load. If you get Hewes reels, they will be straight and easy to use.
 

Vaughn

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Been using SS for 35 years -- love them. Just developed 18 rolls of 120 film -- no mess-ups, no problems, easy to clean and dry, just 4 parts (reel, tank, lid and cap), and the tanks pick up or give up heat quickly for getting chems to temp.

YMMD
 

TareqPhoto

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It depends, i have Paterson tank and also Jobo 1500 tank and one stainless steel tank, the best tank i use is that Jobo one then the stainless steel tank, the faster reel is that for the SS tank then the Jobo Hewes SS, for plastic, the Paterson plastic is the easier than the Jobo standard one, but the only combination i use always now is the Jobo plastic tank with Hewes SS reel designed for Jobo 1500.
 

Ken Nadvornick

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Stainless steel reels, reel tanks, reel tank lids and covers, sheet film round tank with cage, sheet film hangers, hanger deep tanks, floating lids, covers, deep tank water jacket...

Never a problem. And everything easily cleans up to still look brand new.

Ken
 

summicron1

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steel exclusively -- got soured on plastic early on because if they are the least bit damp the film sticks and won't slide in -- I tend to let film accumulate and do it in a flurry so have to use a reel, dry it with a towel, use it again...steel dries quickly and if it isn't super dry it doesn't matter, film loads all the same.

Only time I ever had trouble loading steel reels was a coupla years ago when I bought some old Agfa film from Freestyle under the Arista label and it had too much curve to it and it would not load properly. Everything else, for 35-plus years, quick and easy, no problem.
 

Chris Nielsen

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The only steel reels I have ever had any success with are Hewes reels. I destroyed many many rolls with regular steel reels. But that might be just me being uncoordinated
 

NormanV

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I have tried and tried with SS reels and could never load them (even in the light). Paterson reels are simple and reliable to load.
 

Thomas Bertilsson

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M.A.Longmore

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Benoît99 said:
According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary (North America's most used dictionary) "guys" can be used as a plural noun to refer to both sexes.

Welcome to the 21st century.
Click to expand...
.
According To The 21st. Century, Digital Cameras, Can Be Used For Photographic Purposes !

A gentlemen should never refer to a group of men, and women as " Guys "
Or use a digital camera, unless he is photographing an item to be sold on Craigslist ...

Enjoy The Weekend !

Ron
.
 

Shootar401

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I call groups of women guys all the time, nobody cares. Nobody has ever said anything. Some people are more sensitive than others I guess.
 

daleeman

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Well I've never been PC and I take measures to keep me from being infected.
That is why us Southerners invented Yu'all.

Did I say I was a Southerner, well I am, I was born in Cincinnati Yu'hear and we Southerners like our SS reels.
 

wiltw

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Wow, one of the rare occasions for me to have run into someone else who is familar with the Kodak film aprons! I still have the tank and aprons which I purchased new as a young teen, which had now been a very long time in storage -- maybe I can sell it as an antique in a few years

Back on topic, once I learned from a professional industrial photographer how to load stainless steel reels when I was about 15, I never looked back. I tried ONCE to load a plastic reel when it was still wet (in the days before hair dryers were common and used to also dry wet film reels) and I gave up in disgust.
 
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