nasmformyzombie Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Anybody still using chemistry (besides H2O) for stop bath? I'm getting back into doing my own film after a long hiatus---I'm really rusty! In truth, back in the day I had a partner (female!) who did most of the film developing, while I did the printing. Anyway, I shoot exclusively old emulsion Ilford films, HP5+ and FP4+ and Pan F. I plan on using three developers: Rodinol (when I want grain), Xtol (when I don't want grain) and HC110 (just because). The water here in Baltimore is very hard and very lousy, so any advice on stop/fix/final wash is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nasmformyzombie Posted December 1, 2004 Author Share Posted December 1, 2004 One more thing, I just bought a Jobo system so I'll be somewhat automated (albeit working in my bathroom). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
don_mckeith Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 not I- still using H2O film -mostly shooting FP4-in rodinal or dektol(box cameras-need the contrast) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronald_moravec1 Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 no. I see no reason for it. If you are worried about exact time, pull from developer 15 sec sooner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_cochran Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Yes, there are people who still use stop bath (I do). There are also people who don't. This subject has generated quite a bit of traffic lately, some of it quite heated, to the point of requiring moderator attention. You might want to check out <a href="/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=009ZDV">this thread</a> for starters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew_limiti Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 I use stop bath in my Jobo ATL 2. No problems to report. I know some people use water but my feeling is that industry people did a bunch of testing to come to the conclusion that stop bath is necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_minenna1 Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 I use stop bath chemistry as well... I've never not used it. Simple enough but that's how I was "taught" so I stick with that as a basic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowland_mowrey Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Gary; I have several threads devoted to this subject that I suggest you read through. Just search for them. I recommend a stop bath for uniformity in both negatives and prints for all B&W processing. For color, I only recommend it for RA print processing. It is particularly useful with rotary processors where the distribution of chemicals is not always optimal during the pouring in operation. This comes from over 40 years of experience as a professional, part of which was at EK. Ron Mowrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
don_mckeith Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 luckily,for me ,I never read the rules,so I have dispensation for everything say three Hail Mary's and read ch.11 of Das Kapital and you too shall have dispensation for everything(except spelling/typos) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lee_shively Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Yes. I use Kodak Indicator Stop Bath. Always have. Will continue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff_drew4 Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 I use stop bath too going on 40 years of wet work. I tried NOT using it and got caught several times with inconsistencies. After about the fifth screw-up in a hundred rolls, I figured the few cents saved was not worth it. At least a water rinse was better than a few shortcuts I tried, like dump the developer and pour in the fixer. ICK! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sabrina_h. Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 I have always used stop bath with great results (entire Ilford line). If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joey Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 I use stop bath for the final print on fiber paper. Everything else--film and RC proof prints--are with water. Nothing like pinholes on negatives to make you stop using stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowland_mowrey Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Gentlemen; The biggest current myth in B&W photography is that an acid stop bath causes pin holes. Ron Mowrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_kaplan1 Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 That "myth" has been around a very long time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary_deal Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 How about we rephrase that as "It's remotely possible that an acid stop bath (or acidic fixer) reacting with a strongly alkaline developer in the emulsion can result in apparent pinholes, though it's pretty unlikely with modern emulsions. Individual results may vary depending on processing methods and chemistry." While I never worked for a photo-related company, I *have* gotten pinholes and lifted emulsion up to the size of a pinhead, but it was long ago on old litho film in some hot litho developer. No problems on anything made since about 1970. Yes, I use acetic stop, and mix it myself from glacial acetic (carefully). I'd be really surprised to see holes show up now. Who's gotten them recently, and with what film/paper/developer/stop combinations? The water here is very hard, I use cheap steam-distilled by the gallon, wash in tap water with a final wash in a couple changes of distilled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim kerr Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 Been using it for 35 years,guess I got to liking the smell of vinegar...Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartMoxham Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 I use stop bath for both film and prints. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_waller Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 Yes - Kodak Indicating Stop. Except when I use Jacobson Pyrocatechin, then I use water because that dev has carbonate as the alkali. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titrisol Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 when using Rodinal DDX or Caffenol I just use water stop bath for paper yes, either citric acid or kodak stop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_mcbob Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 Ilford odourless stopbath is so cheap, why not use it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexis_neel Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 Yes. Alexis www.alexisneel.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dean_williams Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 I've always used a stop bath (Kodak indicator). Never seen a pinhole that could be blamed on it. Got some once with a certain film and thought it was from the stop, but ran more of the same film with a water stop and still got them. I've seen no other instance of pinholes in over thirty years of using a stop bath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lex_jenkins Posted December 2, 2004 Share Posted December 2, 2004 Rather than rehash some very recent threads on precisely this topic, along with any associated clashes, please forgive me if I close this thread to further contributions and ask Gary and others to research the archives for threads discussing the use of stop bath vs. plain water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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