Tri-X in HC-110

[rahul_deshpande1]

I'm processing MF Tri-X exposed at 320 in HC-110 dilution H. When I drain the

tank, the developer has turned a shade of pink. Now I know this is the anti-

halation layer coming off. But my question is, can I continue to use the same

developer for one more roll? Does the pink color mean in any way that the

developer has been exhausted?

[paul_hoyt]

The pink color does not have any effect on the developer. The rule is you need at least 3mL of syrup (concentrated HC110) per roll of 120 film. That is going to be the limiting factor. Most of us use HC110 as a one shot developer, but if your diluted HC110 has 6 or more mL of HC110 you can develope 2 rolls of 120 film in series. Here is a website on HC110 that you may find interesting: http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/hc110/index.html

 

Paul

[stb]

Saving the minuscule amount of money that a few ml of HC-110 cost does not seem

worthwhile. HC-110 is meant to be one-shot and is best used that way IMHO.

[mikeseb]

I strongly second Stephanie's advice. Reusing developer--any developer--is a false economy

considering the time and effort that (presumably) went into making the images.

 

Use and dump for the most consistent and predictable results.

[thomas_sullivan]

"...HC-110 is meant to be one-shot...".....well, then I would question why does Kodak make a HC-110 Repenisher?

 

But, having raised that question, I actually use ALL my developers as one-shot developers. I also believe that the consistency is much better controlled this way. Plus it's one less bottle of used chemicals I have to keep track of.

[rahul_deshpande1]

Ok, in the interest of consistency, I can see why HC110 is a one shot developer. Can the pink cast on my negs be removed by a pre-soak? If yes, am I supposed to agitate during pre-soak? Should I make an adjustment to the development time?

[paul_hoyt]

I use a pre-soak and that does remove most of the "purple dye". Regarding the discussion about one-shot vrs re-use, I would not rebottle a diluted "for use" HC-110, but I do follow the 3 mL rule for a developing session. Last night I developed 30 4X5 negatives from 25 mL of concentrated HC-110 diluted to 1600 mL. They were developed in 6 negative batches from development through fix (3 mL of concentrate will develope 1 roll of 35mm, 1 roll of 120, 1 8X10 negative or 4 4X5 negatives). The negative from the 5th batch were just a good from the 1st batch.

 

Paul

[paul_hoyt]

The pre-soak is to wet the emulsion and make sure the negatives do not stick together during the first part of the developing process. The removal of the dye is just an added bonus. I found my skys and other continuous tone densities were improved with the pre-soak. When I pre-soaked 120 film in Nikkor SS reels and tanks, I would invert the tank every second for the first 30 seconds and then 4 times every 30 seconds for 2 minutes, pour out the water and add developer. It is suggested you add about 20 seconds to your developing time since the developer must replace the water in the emulsion. My technique was to start the timer, add the developer and invert the tank once a second until the sweep hand on my timer hit the first minute. Then I inverted the tank 4 times every 30 seconds until development was over. For me the key to sucessful replacement of the water with developer was the first minute of inversions.

I hope this helps.

 

Paul

[lex_jenkins]

Reportedly there are both anti-halation and sensitizing dyes used on most contemporary b&w films. I don't know whether one is responsible for a pinkish color, another for purple or, in the case of some Agfa and Efke films, a blue-green color.<p>

 

Rodinal effluent from developing Tri-X 400 comes out bright purple. Out of curiosity I once reused a 1:50 dilution of Rodinal on Tri-X and got consistent results. So the purple dye wasn't redeposited. But this practice isn't recommended, at least not for Rodinal.<p>

 

"Can the pink cast on my negs be removed by a pre-soak?"<p>

 

In my experience, yes with Agfa, Efke and other films; no with Kodak and Ilford films. But this may vary according to the water used. I generally use distilled water. Tap water or other bottled water may have different results.<p>

 

"If yes, am I supposed to agitate during pre-soak?"<p>

 

I'm not sure there are any rules for this. I haven't found that it makes much difference.<p>

 

"Should I make an adjustment to the development time?"<p>

 

Dunno. I haven't made any adjustments to times for Agfa and Efke films. Ilford, however, specifically recommends against presoaking. Their emulsion contains a wetting agent that is intended to ensure rapid, consistent absorption of the developer. A presoak may interfere with this and affect consistency and development times. However, of the folks who *do* presoak Ilford films, none has reported any problems.<p>

 

You can find info about HC-110 replenishment here on Kodak's website:<p>

 

<a href=http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/j24/j24.jhtml>HC-110 info on Kodak site</a><p>

 

Unless you're developing a lot of film you'll probably find it isn't worth the trouble and won't be any more economical than using HC-110 as a one-shot developer (in whatever dilution you prefer - I like Dilution H).<p>

[gene_e._mccluney]

It was asked, why make replenisher for HC-110, if most people use it as a one-shot? The

answer lies in large format. I have 3.5 gallon tanks for processing 4x5 and 8x10 sheets of

b/w in stainless steel film hangers. If you maintain a 3.5 gallon tank of developer, you

would not want to dump it after a few sheets, rather you replenish and keep using it for an

extended period of time to make the developing more economical overall. The same goes

for D-76, which also has a replenisher available. The replenishers are intended for those

of us who need to process large format on a regular basis in large quantity, and maintain a

tank of developer always ready to use.

 

McCluney Photo