Do you dress in yellow for a week?
Ken is not alone. Same with me, and ever time I go through a short period of mourning.
If I scaled down to a 4" machine, and coated 1000 ft of Kodacrhome, it would make about 400 rolls of either 20 or 36 exposure. That one run would take about 1 month of prep and testing and would have to pay for all of the people involved and the chemicals involved. So, 3000 ft would supply about 1200 rolls and do the job many times over for those who signed up. The 3000 ft would take 3x as long overall as it probably would need 3 coating sessions. If all went well, the actual coating time would be about 1 hour for each 1000 ft.
So, let some bright guy figure pay for a month for about 25 people, facilities and chemistry to come up with a film cost.
Now, for the process you need to make 3 couplers and CD6. This needs 4 bench chemists and would take about 1 month each plus chemicals and hazmat conditions and waste disposal. Figure that in.
Lets assume that the process machine exists, so what you need then is a group of lab techs to mix the chemistry and then run the machine while keeping it in control. Figure this into the process costs.
Try it sometime. Exercises like this were not uncommon as casual discussion at EK. In fact, we had to calculate the amount of emulsion per square foot all the time. It was one of our earliest exercises.
It aint cheap even on a small scale. You just make less.
PE
...as I can determine there are NO plans for reviving Kodachrome regardless of what you might think otherwise.
While I don't want to stifle people who want to discuss this sort of thing it had been dominating the color film,paper and chemistry forum and the process is currently not possible and not even likely.
Ken, the only place I know of someone or something not being completely dead, just almost dead was in the "Princess Bride" as Billy Crystal described the "dead prince".
Kodachrome is beyond that, and nothing will bring it back in our lifetimes.
Kodak is struggling for survival and is not about to play around with beating this dead horse. I've merely tried to show why, as best I could.
PE
What am I, a plumber or a photo engineer? Its dead Stone.
I must admit, I was sad the day Kodachrome died. There really was nothing like it.....especially the red. I'd like to answer that I would use it but that would probably be a lie.
Since I think we are all trying to do our part to keep traditional photography alive I would have to save my wishes for more obtainable things like:
1) Less complicated (yet as significant a media in my mind): Tec-Pan
2) Would be ez to produce but small market: Tmax 3200 or Delta 3200 in 8x10 sheets
Still there is so much to be grateful for!
Ilford says that HP5+ can be pushed to 3200, I didn't believe them, so I tried it in DD-X (of course) I was shocked! Dare I say this but I almost think HP5+ pushed to 3200 is better looking and finer grained than D3200 at 3200....
So... Try it... As D3200 will probably never appear in 8x10...
And kodak killed P3200 sadly, I like D3200 in 120 but find I like P3200 in 35mm... Who knows why...
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