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Post by zou on Dec 19, 2022 22:02:20 GMT
I've been going around in circles looking at developers for HP5+. I want something that is:
*Cheap to purchase
*Easy to use
*Works at box speed or pushed to 800/1600
*Not Rodinal - really, I love the look with certain films but not HP5+
*Doesn't overdo the grain
Microphen should work but not mad about the examples I've seen. LC29 seems decent, and ID11 can probably do everything ok without excelling in any one area. Any thoughts?
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Post by petrochemist on Dec 19, 2022 22:25:42 GMT
I've been going around in circles looking at developers for HP5+. I want something that is: *Cheap to purchase *Easy to use *Works at box speed or pushed to 800/1600 *Not Rodinal - really, I love the look with certain films but not HP5+ *Doesn't overdo the grain Microphen should work but not mad about the examples I've seen. LC29 seems decent, and ID11 can probably do everything ok without excelling in any one area. Any thoughts? I believe any of the variants of Caffenol should at least meet your first 2 requirements. I couldn't say if you'd prefer the look to rodinal (though technically it's not rodinal so meets the requirement) I'm not sure on the other two but perhaps it's worth a try, Ingredients for at least 10 liters should be available for around £5! |
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Post by John Farrell on Dec 19, 2022 22:28:44 GMT
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Post by geoffr on Dec 19, 2022 23:05:03 GMT
Microphen should work but not mad about the examples I've seen. LC29 seems decent, and ID11 can probably do everything ok without excelling in any one area. Any thoughts? Rather than rely on examples, try some. I rather like Microphen with HP5. |
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Post by peterba on Dec 19, 2022 23:45:59 GMT
I believe any of the variants of Caffenol should at least meet your first 2 requirements. I couldn't say if you'd prefer the look to rodinal (though technically it's not rodinal so meets the requirement) I'm not sure on the other two but perhaps it's worth a try, Ingredients for at least 10 liters should be available for around £5!
Seconded. I was really chuffed with the results. I used it on T-Max and Acros, IIRC. Not sure whether I did any HP5.
My costs for developing a single roll with basic caffenol, in mid-2020, were 55 pence (not including stop/fix). The cost of ingredients will have gone up, of course, but I haven't got current prices to hand. I'll recalculate tomorrow, with some up-to-date prices.
I've been intending to resume caffenol developing for a little while, and this thread has just provided a little renewed impetus.  |
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Post by peterba on Dec 20, 2022 8:20:27 GMT
My costs for developing a single roll with basic caffenol, in mid-2020, were 55 pence (not including stop/fix). The cost of ingredients will have gone up, of course, but I haven't got current prices to hand. I'll recalculate tomorrow, with some up-to-date prices.
A recalculation with current prices gives ~75 pence for a single roll. |
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Post by steveandthedogs on Dec 20, 2022 8:41:27 GMT
Caffenol CCL gives less grain than rodinal. My experience anyway
S
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Post by gray1720 on Dec 20, 2022 9:13:40 GMT
Been meaning to try Caffenol for years... ever quite got that far, though.
Anyone tried 510 Pyro on anything?
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Post by zou on Dec 20, 2022 10:36:13 GMT
Been meaning to try Caffenol for years... ever quite got that far, though. Anyone tried 510 Pyro on anything? I haven't but I want to - results look amazing. I heard/read that temperature control is rather critical with pyro so saving that idea for the summer when keeping everything at a constant temperature should be easier. |
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Post by gray1720 on Dec 20, 2022 11:42:36 GMT
Hmm, that's a good time to be told that, I was thinking about souping a couple of rolls before Christmas. You should be able to keep your dev and fix fairly constant with the tanks stood in a sinkful of water at 20, but the rinse might be a different matter. I can't see that the rinsing temeperature would affect what's already been developed and fixed, but maybe the emulsion?...
Cinestill make a sous vide that will keep your temperature constant (at a lower level than kitchen ones!), but it's £105.
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Post by peterba on Dec 20, 2022 14:02:14 GMT
Cinestill make a sous vide that will keep your temperature constant (at a lower level than kitchen ones!), but it's £105. I hadn't seen this device, Adrian. It looks very handy - but quite pricey at £105. Nonetheless, I could be tempted to get one. Especially once the Brexit 'dividend' really starts to make us all feel more prosperous. 
Edit to add: When I said it was "pricey", I didn't mean that it wasn't good value for money. It looks well made, and gets good reviews. What I meant was that I'm not sure whether I'd be prepared to pay that sum of money for the convenience it offers.
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Post by gray1720 on Dec 20, 2022 14:31:34 GMT
No argument there, Pete! I *will* have more money to spend, for which I am hugely grateful, and no thanks to that mythical dividend, but a new bathroom comes first in the queue after one treat for myself!
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Post by zx9 on Dec 20, 2022 17:32:52 GMT
I had a brief dalliance with Xtol which I really liked for fast films but then it became unavailable. I did try to get some Foma Excel last time I was shopping for developer but failed to find any of that either (18mths ago) so fell back to using DDX.
At one time there was lots of talk of RFF re Xtol with added Rodinal supposedly good for pushing TriX to silly speeds, despite having both to hand at the time I did not try it.
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Post by John Farrell on Dec 20, 2022 19:04:55 GMT
I make up the developer at 20 degrees, but don't control the temperature of any of the other chemicals, and so far I've had no problems.
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Post by peterba on Dec 20, 2022 20:50:46 GMT
I make up the developer at 20 degrees, but don't control the temperature of any of the other chemicals, and so far I've had no problems. Likewise, John. However, this past week or so, we've been experiencing temperatures ranging between -5°c and -7°c  , and not rising even to zero in the middle of the day. If I'd been developing film during that period, the story might have been different. |
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, and not rising even to zero in the middle of the day. If I'd been developing film during that period, the story might have been different.