WTB Chems in Canada

[jd callow]

Where the 'W' is where as much as want. I moved out here 6 months ago and I am just now gearing up to start souping my own film and possibly paper. I brought a years supply of c41 dev, stabilizer hypo clear a substantial amount of b&w dev (Xtol, HC110, D76) and a enough b&w paper dev to get me started.

What I need is a source to fill-in the gaps now (c41 bleach, and fix for all processes) and replenish everything over time. Where and how are Canadian's buying their goods. Fix ix my first need and I was wondering if folks are buying liquids or dry, from retail. mail order or online and where. If retail, I’m specifically interested in Vancouver.

Thanks a boatload in advance.


jdc

 

[Markus Albertz]

Contact Claire Vrana in Quebec. Here is the link to her website:

Dead Link Removed

I am on the East coast and order all my B&W chemicals from her. Only good things to say about her. I usually email her a list with the items I want, she gets back to me with the total, I call her and pay by credit card.

Best regards,

Markus

 

[Nick Zentena]

Claire I'm sure can look after you.

But for liquid C-41 if you are doing volume there must be a source suppling mini-labs in Vancouver.

Some one posted these guys last month.

Dead Link Removed

Burnby.

 

[Michel Hardy-Vallée]

John, have you checked Leo's Camera on Granville street? When I was there they had all sorts of stuff, including some Forte paper (snif snif), all sorts of pro color film, etc. They seem to be in the right category for your needs.

 

[gordrob]

You might try Treck-Hall in Vancouver - they used to supply Kodak C41 and E6 chemical, film and paper. They recently (Dec 2006) merged with a US firm heavy in digital printing so I don't know what they now stock. See the attached link or you can google Treck Hall for more recent info.

http://www.treckhall.com/page.asp?intNodeID=3576&switchlang=true

Regards
Gord

 

[Medusa83]

Try Beau Photo in Van they are good for ordering things in if they don't have it on hand. Which they might since they have colour paper on hand. They have all the black and white chemicals on hand as does Lens and Shutter which is where I work.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Claire Vrana in Quebec

...so the mystery is over. Claire IS a woman.
I buy all my chems from her...I finally got my ferric oxalate from her but haven't tested its purity yet...
I don't recall chems at Beau for mixing your own stuff...but they do have big name stuff there...but they are into gouging...Leo's? snobs.
Buy your owns powdered chemicals and mix from scratch. Cheaper and more fun.

 

[Medusa83]

I have never had a problem with prices at Beau except for 669 polaroid, I usually buy my chemicals from them as they have the best prices. I find Leo's a little more expensive and don't have the selection of chemicals and papers and over priced for used equipment. Another thing you may be interested in is the camera swap in Coquitlam it's on Sunday April 15th this year.

 

[jd callow]

I keep coming back to this tread to say thanks, but find new posts and I'd just assume they continue. The information is great, please keep it coming...

and thanks...

 

[MattKing]

Vistek.ca have a fairly prominent web presence (but I haven't any direct experience with them, and I think I recall some concerns about them being inconsistent with respect to having items in stock).

http://www.vistek.ca/details/results.aspx?Level3=C-41+CHEM&Level1=CHEMISTRY&Level2=FILM+CHEM&CategoryID=ProPhotoDarkroom&cat=C-41

Matt

 

[Daniel Grenier]

Another vote for Claire in Montreal, John. She carries eveything under the sun and has really resonable shipping fees along with very fast delivery. You won't be disapointed.

 

[Marco Buonocore]

Perhaps not as useful to those on the west coast, however:

I recently had some dealings with Nymoc chemicals in Toronto (416 465 1929), and they were fantastic. Everything is packaged and labelled properly, and they seem to stock all things photographic. They even stock high quality brown glass bottles at good prices.

I once bought a big (25kg) bag of sodium sulfite (anh) from Signal Inc. (416-461-7196) in the east end of Toronto. I'm not sure of the current pricing, but it was dirt cheap. They only sell bulk, and I'm not sure if they will ship. Still, it's a handy source. Only problem is storing the stuff!

I dealt with JD photochem years ago, before Claire took over, and to be honest I wasn't thrilled. Hopefully things have changed with the new ownership.

One of the fellows in the darkroom gave me the idea of using one of the small pocket scales sold primarily for weighing marijuana. It was readily available at The Friendly Stranger (a paraphanalia shop on Queen St.), and seems to do the trick fine. 0.1g -> 300g, for $40. Not bad, really.

Good luck!

 

[thornhill]

Where the 'W' is where as much as want. I moved out here 6 months ago and I am just now gearing up to start souping my own film and possibly paper. I brought a years supply of c41 dev, stabilizer hypo clear a substantial amount of b&w dev (Xtol, HC110, D76) and a enough b&w paper dev to get me started.

What I need is a source to fill-in the gaps now (c41 bleach, and fix for all processes) and replenish everything over time. Where and how are Canadian's buying their goods. Fix ix my first need and I was wondering if folks are buying liquids or dry, from retail. mail order or online and where. If retail, I’m specifically interested in Vancouver.

Thanks a boatload in advance.


jdc

JD

I'd definitely add another recommendation for Treck-Hall, given what you're looking for. I found them fast, professional and reasonably priced. Much better than some others that have been mentioned, at least in this regard.

Regards, Derek.

 

[Jordan]

Chemical swap?

Another vote for Claire in Montreal, John. She carries eveything under the sun and has really resonable shipping fees along with very fast delivery. You won't be disapointed.

I'll third the recommendation for Claire. E-mail her, though, for her most recent price list -- the ones on the website are usually out of date. Nymoc sells a lot of what she carries, but I've found their prices to be much higher (though the convenience factor is there if you live in Toronto and can get to Queen and Broadview before 6 pm).

On the topic, is anyone in Canada (preferably in the Toronto area) interested in a chemical swap? I've got more catechol, thiocarbamide and potassium permanganate than I need, and could really use some sodium thiosulfate, sodium sulfite, and possibly some palladium-printing chemicals.