T-Max 400 in T-Max or HC-110 developers

[sperera]

OK so I've been developing with Kodak XTol for the past year (seasoned) and just run out of it so I'm feeling the bug to change developer to see how things compare....
I have also made up my mind that T-Max 400 as a very special film.....absolutely superb.....
So.....
Film = T-Max 400
Developer = T-Max developer or HC-110 developer (I have bought both)
(note: I've used T-Max developer before but never with Kodak T-Max 400 and have never used Kodak HC-110. I'm reading I should use Dilution B)

Would love to hear comments of the combinations above and which of the two developers people most lean towards and why.

For me the T-Max developer is expensive.....so I'm hoping you will all say its a 'special' developer for T-Max and use it for your best work or why bother with it when HC-110 is cheaper and gives great results.....

I'm sure this is all 'old' etc but people change, things change and ideas change so I want to hear your comments about how you feel about these products now.....

 

[Konical]

Good Morning, Sperera,

You should be able to get excellent results with either HC-110 or T-Max. I lean toward T-Max mostly because I've been using it for the past couple of decades with both T-100 and T-400, so I'm able to get easily predictable results. If T-Max suddenly disappeared, however, and I could use only HC-110, I wouldn't regard it as any kind of disaster. My preferred T-Max dilution is 1:7 with a "normal" time of 10 minutes for T-100 and 9 minutes for T-400. Both concentrates have excellent keeping qualities.

Konical

 

[clayne]

Do not change developer. XTOL is superior to HC-110.

Examine why you desire to switch chemicals first. Especially after you already know XTOL.

 

[sperera]

just change for change's sake....you know how it is....everyone has their faves and you want to know what they're talking about.....

 

[clayne]

Switch subjects or scenes. I wouldn't change developer once you've worked it out - especially not to developers that are actually not as well-rounded in producing excellent results as XTOL. Tmax dev I have very little experience with, HC110 is a bang-it-out-quickly dev known for blowing highlights and producing upswept curves. Might have great looking negs - that aren't the most flexible in the enlarger.

 

[Christopher Walrath]

FWIW. I soup TMX and TMY (135 and 120) in HC110. I presoak for one minute with soft continuous agitation. I then add my Dil B HC110, I develop for six minutes. Agitation continous first 30 seconds and five seconds for every 30 thereafter.

That being said, I have never understood changing developers but for two reasons: availability and research. Curiosity is another reason to mess around but not necessarily to out and out change.

 

[BetterSense]

In my limited experience with developing TMY1 in HC110 50:1, I felt that the film was grainier than it should have been compared to the D76/D23 developers I had used with it before. No problems with the pictures other than that.

 

[RobertV]

IF I am using TMX or TMY:

FWIW. I soup TMX and TMY (135 and 120) in HC110. I presoak for one minute with soft continuous agitation. I then add my Dil B HC110, I develop for six minutes. Agitation continous first 30 seconds and five seconds for every 30 thereafter.

Same dilution 1+31 (B) but without pre-soak. Further about the same parameters.
HC-110 is a very practical and easy developer in use.

 

[Bruce Watson]

To some extent, it depends on how you develop your film. The problem with HC-110, if indeed it *is* a problem, is that it's a very active developer. If your agitation technique is on the more vigorous side of the stand-to-continuous agitation range, your development times can be short with HC-110 which increases the risk of uneven development. Fortunately, HC-110 dilutes well.

I, for example, use continuous development (5x4 using Jobo 3010 tank on a CPP-2). I found HC-110, even at dilution H (aka, twice B) to require development times less than five minutes. I found this unworkable for my needs.

Which is why I switched from HC-110 to XTOL. I've found XTOL to be a much nicer developer to work with, and it gives somewhat better results for me with TMY-2. That is, a tiny bit sharper grain, a tiny bit better over all accutance. The HC-110H gave me a tiny bit more micro-contrast. But the kicker for me is that XTOL gives me 2/3 - 1 stop more real film speed than HC-110. My film speed test with TMY-2 and XTOL 1:3 resulted in a personal EI of 400-540. With HC-110H it was a solid 250 (which might have gone a touch lower if I could have handled the shorter development time).

So, I got a touch nicer result with XTOL, and close to a full stop more film speed with it. The increased film speed alone would be enough to get me to stay with XTOL. But I'm a 5x4 shooter and want all the speed I can get.

So... I went the opposite way you are now going. Doesn't mean you shouldn't go the HC-110 route. Just that I shouldn't.

 

[Jeff Kubach]

I have several rolls of T-max film and some T-max developer which I gotten for free. As soon I run out of T-max developer I'm going to HC-110 or D-76.

Jeff

 

[Mainecoonmaniac]

I've used HC-110 (B) with Tmax and if you're not careful you can block up your highlights. I don't know if others have had the same experience.

 

[Ronald Moravec]

Works superb in D76 or D76 1:1.

 

[sperera]

thansk for your help everyone

 

[Christopher Walrath]

You're welcome. Hope we clarified rather than muddled.

 

[2F/2F]

I'd stick with what you know. When it comes to general-purpose developers (which all of the ones you mentioned are), knowing them well is 100x more important than their absolute properties. Neither of those other two developers will be different enough to warrant using if you are already using X-Tol and you like it. The differences are there, but are minor in most cases. The most important practical differences will be with the preparation of the chemicals. HC-110 is a concentrate to start, from which stock is made. T-Max is stock to start. X-Tol is a powder to start, from which stock is made.

 

[mcgrattan]

I've not been especially impressed with T-Max 400 in T-Max developer. I've only put through a few rolls, though, so your mileage may definitely vary. I found it a little grainer and contrastier than I'd have expected from using other developers, and other 400 speed film and developer combinations.

 

[JJB]

My time with T-Max developer was not too good. I didn't like the results.

I have found a good combination with HC-100 at dilution E. And HC-110 is very cheap to use

After reading a lot on XTOL here, I decided to go with a replenished system. Within a couple of weeks I got black stuff growing in it. I decided not to bother for now, but might try again later.

For now I am going with XTOL 1:1 and will print some of the negs soon. They look good so far, but the proof is in the printing...

 

[jasparks]

I've developed tons of T-Max400 in T-Max developer. I find it a great combination. What I really like about T-Max developer is that it seems to be the best speed enhancing developer I've ever tried (and I've tried most of them). It actually gives more real toe speed than other developers (toe speed is very hard to move very far so I'm talking 1/3 to 1/2 stop here). It controls grain will when pushing so you don't get huge grain or mush.

I tend to prefer my films with a short toe where darker tones quickly become deep black and no roll off of the highlights to keep the highlights sparkling if maybe a bit harder to print (which may or may not be your preference). Given all this, I find using Tmax 400 at about 800, developed in T-Max diluted 1:1 from working solution (though I dilute directly from concentrate, can't remember the ratio from concentrate off the top of my head) gives me the negatives I most want. If for some reason I don't want higher speed, I might choose a different developer.

I've also found T-max developer to be the best choice for developing Delta 3200 to my taste. It has good looking grain that is not too big and it really helps add pop to the highlights, something that I believe Delta 3200 really needs and is hard to achieve in other developers.

 

[JonPorter]

TMY and HC-110 is a magic combination. I rate the film at 250 and dilute the concentrate around 1:50, giving the tank three inversions every minute. But if you're happy with Xtol I wouldn't bother changing developers.