Where to purchase chemicals for mixing own developer

[W_Taylor76]

I am wanting to start mixing my own developer so I am wondering were are the best places to purchase the chemicals. Where do you home mixers purchase your chemicals?

 

[markbau]

http://stores.photoformulary.com/

 

[koraks]

Where do you home mixers purchase your chemicals?

• Online retailers of chemicals
• Food stores/supermarkets
• eBay
• If all else fails (which is rare) online photo stores that also carry chemistry, But I prefer other places since the photo-specific ones tend to be overpriced and selectively-stocked.

Basically whatever it takes to get my filthy mitts on whatever I need.

 

[grainyvision]

http://stores.photoformulary.com/

Another vote for formulary. They definitely are the best in terms of stock. Certain things I don't buy from them just cause of price, like food grade propelyne glycol is really cheap on Amazon etc. And some stuff like potassium iodide they require a DEA form for despite many suppliers selling it on ebay and amazon without any restrictions. Potassium iodide you can even find in supplement stores, but in pill form that is harder to work with (too many fillers etc)

 

[guangong]

Another vote for formulary. They definitely are the best in terms of stock. Certain things I don't buy from them just cause of price, like food grade propelyne glycol is really cheap on Amazon etc. And some stuff like potassium iodide they require a DEA form for despite many suppliers selling it on ebay and amazon without any restrictions. Potassium iodide you can even find in supplement stores, but in pill form that is harder to work with (too many fillers etc)

Ditto!
Except for a few such as sulphuric acid, which I purchase from biodiesel supply house. What is really annoying is that many chemical supply houses won’t sell me chemicals that I was able to buy when I was 12 years old. This situation probably the result of slip&fall lawyers.

 

[Dali]

https://www.artcraftchemicals.com/

 

[Roger Thoms]

https://www.bostick-sullivan.com/

 

[removed account4]

OP
if you mix your own caffenol, and want to go the whole bean route either roasting them yourself or using roasted ( you make a pot instead of just using cheap0 instant ). feel free to drop me a line, I distribute roasted and green Sumatra robusta beans. can't get that at the big 3

 

[Alan9940]

OP
if you mix your own caffenol, and want to go the whole bean route either roasting them yourself or using roasted ( you make a pot instead of just using cheap0 instant ). feel free to drop me a line, I distribute roasted and green Sumatra robusta beans. can't get that at the big 3

I have a couple pounds of these beans in the freezer...IMO, they provide better results for Caffenol than the instant stuff sold at your local Walmart.

 

[markbau]

OP
if you mix your own caffenol, and want to go the whole bean route either roasting them yourself or using roasted ( you make a pot instead of just using cheap0 instant ). feel free to drop me a line, I distribute roasted and green Sumatra robusta beans. can't get that at the big 3

The only thing I drink in the darkroom is beer!

 

[removedacct1]

ArtCraft Chemicals

 

[MattKing]

This situation probably the result of slip&fall lawyers.

Or possibly stupid or immature people.
When I was in high school, the chemistry programs got revamped after some junior high kids, in a classroom, played with some chemicals they shouldn't have, and caused an explosion.
One of them lost their hands.
The teacher lost his teaching certificate.

 

[jim appleyard]

2nd for Artcraft. Good pries, great customer service. I like to mix up sandy King's Pyrocat HD and it requites 50 g of pyrocatechin/catechol and Mike and Artcraft will do this small amount.

Formulary is a good outfit, too.

 

[guangong]

Or possibly stupid or immature people.
When I was in high school, the chemistry programs got revamped after some junior high kids, in a classroom, played with some chemicals they shouldn't have, and caused an explosion.
One of them lost their hands.
The teacher lost his teaching certificate.

We had real chemistry class that taught us how to handle hazardous materials, as well as how to pour powders and liquids from jars. Our lab was no different than a good university’s. Many of our teachers...physics, chemistry, Latin, English lit...began high school teaching around the time of WWI, when a high school diploma probably had the value of a bachelor degree today. In fact, other than some exceptional contemporary colleges, probably more demanding. Instead of programs for the gifted, our teachers expected results from everybody. My high school chemistry class got me into a class in mineralogy.

 

[Donald Qualls]

Don't forget swimming pool suppliers. Two important darkroom chemicals are sold to reduce chlorine in pools: sodium thiosulfate and sodium sulfite. The bad news is, the salespeople don't know which they have, and don't seem to know what an SDS is. The good news is, you can easily tell by eye, if they'll let you pop the top on a bucket; the thiosulfate crystals are like tiny quartz crystals, longer than wide with a hexagonal cross section, and they feel slick to the touch, while sulfite looks like very clear, coarse sugar. Potassium bisulfate is sold to lower pH in pools, and sodium carbonate to raise it.

Potassium metabisulfite is available at brewing stores, though it's of limited use in darkroom chemistry and likely to be priced up (food grade, and for specialized use). Borax and sodium carbonate (aka washing soda) are in the laundry aisle at the grocery, as is (sometimes) a product called "Iron Out" (sodium dithionite) which is a foggant useful for reversal processing without a light exposure step.

And, of course, every grocery and drug store I've been inside in ages sells acetaminophen (paracetamol). This plus sodium sulfite and sodium hydroxide (lye, for opening clogged drains) make a very nice Rodinal work-alike. Lye, sadly, appears to have gotten harder to find, I've looked for a can recently and haven't seen any in the grocery stores. I bet the Big Box home improvement stores still have it, though. Home improvement stores also sell copper sulfate to remove roots from drains, along with sulfuric acid (also as a drain opener -- you can also buy 30% sulfuric at auto parts stores, tell them you're reconditioning a battery and need to fill it with fresh acid); those two, together, make a B&W reversal bleach (which I haven't tried, but some folks here swear by it).

 

[mohmad khatab]

Don't forget swimming pool suppliers. Two important darkroom chemicals are sold to reduce chlorine in pools: sodium thiosulfate and sodium sulfite. The bad news is, the salespeople don't know which they have, and don't seem to know what an SDS is. The good news is, you can easily tell by eye, if they'll let you pop the top on a bucket; the thiosulfate crystals are like tiny quartz crystals, longer than wide with a hexagonal cross section, and they feel slick to the touch, while sulfite looks like very clear, coarse sugar. Potassium bisulfate is sold to lower pH in pools, and sodium carbonate to raise it.

Potassium metabisulfite is available at brewing stores, though it's of limited use in darkroom chemistry and likely to be priced up (food grade, and for specialized use). Borax and sodium carbonate (aka washing soda) are in the laundry aisle at the grocery, as is (sometimes) a product called "Iron Out" (sodium dithionite) which is a foggant useful for reversal processing without a light exposure step.

And, of course, every grocery and drug store I've been inside in ages sells acetaminophen (paracetamol). This plus sodium sulfite and sodium hydroxide (lye, for opening clogged drains) make a very nice Rodinal work-alike. Lye, sadly, appears to have gotten harder to find, I've looked for a can recently and haven't seen any in the grocery stores. I bet the Big Box home improvement stores still have it, though. Home improvement stores also sell copper sulfate to remove roots from drains, along with sulfuric acid (also as a drain opener -- you can also buy 30% sulfuric at auto parts stores, tell them you're reconditioning a battery and need to fill it with fresh acid); those two, together, make a B&W reversal bleach (which I haven't tried, but some folks here swear by it).

I admire your reply.
- You explained very important details to this questioner.
you are a good man ,,

 

[Randy Stewart]

"I have a couple pounds of these beans in the freezer...IMO, they provide better results for Caffenol than the instant stuff sold at your local Walmart."

That would be a pretty slick trick, since regular coffee has npthing in iot which acts as a developing agent.

The reason all of the posts and material re Caffenol specify use of instant coffee (only) is that the ingredient which acts as a developing agent is part of the chemical residue from producing the instant coffee, not the coffee itself.

 

[Randy Stewart]

"I have a couple pounds of these beans in the freezer...IMO, they provide better results for Caffenol than the instant stuff sold at your local Walmart."

That would be a pretty slick trick, since regular coffee has npthing in iot which acts as a developing agent.

The reason all of the posts and material re Caffenol specify use of instant coffee (only) is that the ingredient which acts as a developing agent is part of the chemical residue from producing the instant coffee, not the coffee itself.

 

[Randy Stewart]

"I have a couple pounds of these beans in the freezer...IMO, they provide better results for Caffenol than the instant stuff sold at your local Walmart."

That would be a pretty slick trick, since regular coffee has npthing in iot which acts as a developing agent.

The reason all of the posts and material re Caffenol specify use of instant coffee (only) is that the ingredient which acts as a developing agent is part of the chemical residue from producing the instant coffee, not the coffee itself.

 

[MattKing]

The reason all of the posts and material re Caffenol specify use of instant coffee (only) is that the ingredient which acts as a developing agent is part of the chemical residue from producing the instant coffee, not the coffee itself.

John has been successfully using those beans for years.
He has also been supplying them to others, who have had the same success.

 

[Donald Qualls]

Caffeic acid is found in all forms of coffee. Instant is most often used for Caffenol because it's much easier to get 4x drinking strength by just spooning in more crystals than by trying to brew, then cool, with 4x the amount of grounds (and the crystals are more consistent in strength than brewed or espresso, too).

 

[craigclu]

"I have a couple pounds of these beans in the freezer...IMO, they provide better results for Caffenol than the instant stuff sold at your local Walmart."

That would be a pretty slick trick, since regular coffee has npthing in iot which acts as a developing agent.

The reason all of the posts and material re Caffenol specify use of instant coffee (only) is that the ingredient which acts as a developing agent is part of the chemical residue from producing the instant coffee, not the coffee itself.

You can say that, again!

 

[afriman]

You can say that, again!

Please see Donald Qualls' post above for an accurate explanation. Apparently, caffeic acid is found in many other plants and foods in far greater concentrations: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeic_acid. It would be interesting to see results from using herb tea or prune juice as developer!

 

[Donald Qualls]

Say, I bet we could make developer from yerba mate and spearmint (based on that Wikipedia article which calls them a couple of the stronger sources of caffeic acid). Drink some, pour some in the graduate (and add some washing soda or borax), drink some more, pour some more in the graduate. There was a thread around here somewhere about edible developers...

 

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

Caffeic acid is found in all forms of coffee. Instant is most often used for Caffenol because it's much easier to get 4x drinking strength by just spooning in more crystals than by trying to brew, then cool, with 4x the amount of grounds (and the crystals are more consistent in strength than brewed or espresso, too).

It's an interesting question whether caffeic acid is really the main developing agent in coffee. @Alan Johnson did some experiments with caffeic acid and found that it wasn't as active as instant coffee hinting at the possibility of some other developing agent's presence in coffee:
https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/caffeic-acid-fill-of-beans.115988/