Suggested developer for Delta 100 in a Minox?

I'm likely to want to develop the first roll from my Minox B this weekend -- it's "Spy Film 100 ISO" from Blue Moon Camera, which they say is "similar to Delta 100." I've never processed Ilford's Delta emulsions before, never mind in an 8x11 image frame size. I have generic Xtol (from Freestyle), D-23 replenished, and Parodinal available, as well as an unmixed 1-liter package of Cinestill Df96 monobath (which would get double process time to allow for the slow fixing of tabular grain).

Of these developers I have on hand, which is likely to give the best results with very small Delta 100 film shot at box speed?

Donald Qualls said:

Of these developers I have on hand, which is likely to give the best results with very small Delta 100 film shot at box speed?

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I suspect that there isn't a Delta/Minox developer that trumps all others but never fear you will get lots of answers

My worry is that after 1000 posts, Donald, you may not be in any better position to decide then than you are now with 1 reply that actually is of no real practical help

pentaxuser

Xtol works very well with Delta 100, and gives full speed. I think that combination gives lovely tones, so it would be my first choice.

pentaxuser said:

I suspect that there isn't a Delta/Minox developer that trumps all others but never fear you will get lots of answers

My worry is that after 1000 posts, Donald, you may not be in any better position to decide then than you are now with 1 reply that actually is of no real practical help

pentaxuser

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Well, sure, but out of that 1000 replies, more than 800 will suggest either developers I don't have or film I didn't expose, a hundred more will chide me for using a Minox instead of 4x5, and at least thirty of the remainder will warn me either not to use acid stop bath, or remind me I must use acid stop bath (interestingly, the instruction for the Minox tank and "Fine Grain Developer" both recommend plain water for stop, though I suspect that's because their developer has a carbonate alkali and 1950s vintage film had soft emulsion that was prone to blister and perforate due to carbon dioxide evolution within the gelatin). Of the remaining 50-70 replies from that first thousand, they'll be about evenly divided between Parodinal and Xtol, but all will agree that D-23 is useless for tiny negatives.

Craig said:

Xtol works very well with Delta 100, and gives full speed. I think that combination gives lovely tones, so it would be my first choice.

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Xtol seems to work great with everything, but I haven't used it much with tabular grain films, so I wasn't sure whether it was a specific no-no.

NOT Rodinal in this case. Source: trust me.

Donald Qualls said:

Of the remaining 50-70 replies from that first thousand, they'll be about evenly divided between Parodinal and Xtol, but all will agree that D-23 is useless for tiny negatives.

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Have you considered mixing all three together

Donald Qualls said:

Of the remaining 50-70 replies from that first thousand, they'll be about evenly divided between Parodinal and Xtol, but all will agree that D-23 is useless for tiny negatives.

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Your amusing reply's spirit is appreciated by the pentaxuser user audience which may only number one person of course . However, assuming (possibly quite wrongly) that the last part of the quote above is serious and not made in the same spirit , then had I decided to attempt a recommendation, I might well have recommended D23 for its fíne grain result which unless your prints are going to be very small seems ideal for a camera such as a Minox

pentaxuser

I’m not sure why D-23 should be considered useless. It’s a general purpose fine grain developer and would do perfectly well, but since you also have the XTOL clone on hand, XTOL all the way.

I’m not sure what the store means when they say it’s “similar” to Delta 100. That could mean a variety of things, but it doesn’t really matter. XTOL will do as well as can be done with any general purpose film.

Donald Qualls said:

but all will agree that D-23 is useless for tiny negatives.

Xtol seems to work great with everything, but I haven't used it much with tabular grain films, so I wasn't sure whether it was a specific no-no.

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Don,
If you have Xtol use it. I have developed Delta 100 in 35mm, 120 and 4x5 in replenished Xtol and have no complaints at all.

Try Microdol: Mix up some D23 and add 1 oz/ quart (30gm/liter) pickling salt.

I confess I haven't used it with Ilford Delta-100, but the results with TMax-100 are incredibly grainless. A 16x enlargement needs a loupe to see the grain. Use 1:3 to preserve film speed; with tabular grain TMax-100 there is no grain increase at 1:3. Ilford's times for Perceptol should work.

This is one of my soap-box topics, so please ignore if it offends.

I've generally use my regular PMK pyro to develop D100. But for such small frames, I'd probably use 1:1 Perceptol instead. 1:3 might increase grain size a little more than I'd like (that greater 1:3 dilution works better for TMax 100). I now make my own Perceptol - and yeah, you need real sodium chloride, not ordinary table salt, which contains additives.

Xtol is fantastic with tabular grain films; it was developed late enough that Kodak wouldn’t have approved the R&D costs unless it showed high quality with T-grain. I would start with stock strength.

I have about four liters of Eco-Pro stock in a wine box as replenisher; I'll use that. Using the stock one-shot for the Minox tank is less than one replenishment for a 135-36 or 120 roll...

And @pentaxuser I was joking about the D-23, too, mainly because some have criticized it for producing "mushy" grain, which seems bad in a tiny negative...

For finest grain and smooth tones I would prefer ADOX Atomal.
It also gives you full 100ASA speed. For finest grain (important for MINOX) use it undiluted.

A variety of developers work well with Delta 100. Fine-grain as well as sharpness-types. I like it for 35 mm in Moersch EFD for the things I do with it. But I finally gave up on trying to make it work well with Rodinal, count another vote against it.