T-Max Film and Developer

brofkand · Sep 23, 2008

I went to the camera store today, and they were all out of D-76. I asked about the T-Max developer, and they said it is only to be used with T-Max or Tri-Max films.

So, assuming this is indeed true, should T-Max or Tri-Max films only be used with T-Max developer, or is any developer kosher?

Erik L · Sep 23, 2008

You can use most developers with tmax films no problems I'm aware of. Now Tri-Max films are so special they probably require a super secret developer
If by chance you meant tri-x you can use most developers as well. If there is such a thing as Tri-max, I apologize for the smart a$$ comment
regards
erik

Colin Corneau · Sep 23, 2008

B&W developers all do basically the same thing, just in different ways and with slightly different results. That's why it's so much endless fun finding one that you like personally.

Lee L · Sep 24, 2008

From the Kodak technical publication on TMax developer:

You can use T-MAX Developer to process roll sizes of KODAK PROFESSIONAL T-MAX Films and most other black-and-white continuous-tone films. Do not use this developer to process sheet film. You can use T-MAX RS Developer and Replenisher to process all roll and sheet sizes of KODAK PROFESSIONAL T-MAX Films, as well as most other black-and-white continuous-tone films.

See: http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/j86/j86.pdf

The clerks at your local store need to be rebooted with a better OS and software.

Lee

gainer · Sep 24, 2008

Or just booted.

Lee L · Sep 24, 2008

gainer said:
Or just booted.

Yeah, but they'd just be replaced with newer models that make the same mistakes at a higher rate.

Lee

chriscrawfordphoto · Sep 24, 2008

Tmax developer works fine. I mostly use it for Tmax 3200, which it excells with. Tmax Developer was designed for pushing high speed films and is a good choice for Tri-X or Tmax 400 pushed. I have processed both Tmax 400 and Tri-X in it at normal speeds in Tmax Developer with excellent tonality but more grain than D-76.

Christopher Walrath · Sep 24, 2008

I have great success with my TMax (TMX and TMY) films in HC110 developer. For 35mm and 120 roll I use Dilution 'B' (1:31). I am getting ready to do some tests with Arista 100 4x5 sheets. HC110 Dil B is not recommended so I am going to try some WAy watered down batches and see what happens. Almost any developer can be used with almost any film. Check out the Massive Developing Chart for film and dev combos.

Ian Tindale · Sep 24, 2008

What's a "Tri-Max" film?

I've used Tmax dev with all sorts of film. I've developed Tmax film with all sorts of developer.

Graham.b · Sep 24, 2008

I all so use T max dev. I do have some Ilford but for some reason never get around to using it. So it is back to Tmax. For all films.

Jeff Kubach · Sep 24, 2008

I too usually use D-76, but you can use T-max for other B&W film. You can find charts on development for T-Max.

Jeff

IloveTLRs · Sep 24, 2008

That wasn't Ritz Camera, was it? Sounds like their level of stupidity.

pcyco · Sep 24, 2008

hallo

most time i used d-76.
my new "good thing" is fx-39

really good negs. a little bit hard butalso a nice tonality. it´s a relative new developer for me. but i only needed 2 films for testing and to find out which way it works at the best for me.

analog greetings

thomas

Colin Corneau · Sep 24, 2008

I always thought HC-100 was a relatively grainier developer..? If so, not a good choice for a fine-grain film like TMax.

I also like the TMax developer for its relatively short developing times... 7.5 minutes for TMax100.

fschifano · Sep 24, 2008

The short development time afforded by TMax developer is one of the reasons I don't like it. Instead of 68F (20C), I run my process at 75F (24C) and that speeds things up a bit. A 7 1/2 minute development time at 68F turns into 5 1/2 minutes at 75F, and that's too fast. Small timing errors turn into a significant part of the total development time.

That said, there's nothing wrong with the stuff if it works for you. It is a heck of a lot more expensive than D-76, and I don't think it does anything better. Even with super speed films like Delta 3200 or TMZ, I don't see much of an advantage unless you're pushing the film past 3200.

brofkand · Sep 25, 2008

I did mean Tri-X. Sorry for the confusion

Thanks everyone for the info. The camera store is a locally-owned store in Charlotte, NC, called Camera World. I am probably going to give up on them since they never seem to have what I need in stock; one week they are out of Kodak fixer, one week they're out of Dektol, and the other day they were out of D-76. That prompted my question of T-Max developer. I didn't buy any since I have a fresh bottle of Arista developer I haven't opened yet.

So, what developer do you guys recommend that works well with most films? I use Arista 400 (Agfa) in 35mm, Arista EDU Ultra in 200 and 400 speeds, Ilford Delta 3200, and Ilford HP5. I am liking the Arista developer, but I want to try some more developers so I can find one I really like. I feel like now is the time since I've developed 7 or so rolls with no developing errors.

Thanks!

fschifano · Sep 25, 2008

For the most part, I use D-76 and XTOL. Can't beat 'em with a stick. One thing is sure, if you go chasing around looking for a magic bullet, you'll never find it. There are none to be found. If the Arista developer you're using is Arista-76, you can bet that it's gonna be a D-76 clone. It's economical, predictable, and works well with just about everything.

brofkand · Sep 26, 2008

It's not the Arista-76, it's Arista Premium. Comes in a bottle, concentrate form.

T-Max Film and Developer

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