developing 4x5 sheet film in 120 roll-film tank

[william_wiseman2]

I have found a way to develop one 4x5 sheet film in my daylight double

120 roll film tank that works very well.

 

Since I only occasionally shoot 4x5 it is a hassle to tray develop it

in the dark or use the huge daylight tank made for 4x5s that takes a

lot of chemistry and makes me wait until I accumulate 12 or so

exposures to justify the expense and effort using it.

 

I made a combination spacer and a one-sheet only 4x5 film holder from

a plastic frozen juice container to use in my two roll 120 size

stainless steel daylight tank.

 

Specifically, I used a Welch's frozen grape juice container, 11.5

fl.oz. size, cutting it to a smooth open cylinder with a very sharp

razor knife. The tube will end up being 4 inches tall. It is slightly

more than 2 1/2" in diameter.

 

In darkness, the film is gently curled along the long axis and

inserted into the plastic tube with the emulsion facing toward the

center. The non-emulsion side will touch the inside of the plastic

tube. Drop the film/tube combination into the 2 roll 120 tank and

place one empty 120 reel on top to hold everything in place. In my

tank nothing moves when inverted while agitating. The plastic juice

cylinder supports the weight of the 120 reel, and the piece of sheet

film sits securely inside the cylinder and can't wander out.

 

For my setup, I have to use 21 ounces of chemistry to cover the film.

You should verify how much you need, for it may be slightly different.

 

Develop, stop and fix in daylight just as you would with roll-film.

 

Sometimes (more often than not) there is the bluish anti-halation

residue on the non-emulsion side in places where the sheet film

touched hard against the plastic tube, but I have found it washes out

totally in an hour or less. As long as the emulsion side is not

touching anything (which it shouldn't) the film develops and fixes

with no problems.

 

I think this beats the heck out of paying $50.00 for a 4x5 reel for

120 size tanks that is commercially available to do the same thing I

am doing with the juice container. At only $1.99 or so, I got my grape

juice for breakfast and then a neat tool for photography!

[jay_de_fehr]

William,

 

I've found that your Welch's container can be replaced by a rubber band, and the empty reel is not necessary if you use the single 120/double 35mm tank. With the rubber band method you can get four 4x5 or 3x4 sheets in a Patterson plastic tank that holds one 120 or two 35mm reels. I agitate continuously and use 500ml of developer solution. If you move the rubber band during the wash aid or wash cycle, the AH line will wash out in the course of your normal processing.

 

Jay

[rick_jones5]

William-thanks for the interesting post. Frankly, I had never thought of processing sheet film in a roll film tank. Two questions-1.agitation-do you use the conventional intermittent inversion technique many of us use when developing roll film? 2.You mentioned commercially available 4X5 reels made for 120 size tanks. Will they fit my stainless steel 3 3/8" dia tank? Can you tell me who manufactures them and whether the big mail order folks sell them? But I just might have to try some grape juice after being a lifelong OJ man.

[silent1]

I haven't used Jay's "film taco" method, but I have used tubes inside a dual-120 stainless tank with excellent results. Using 1 1/2" ABS pipe for the tubes (the same size PVC, as sold for sink drain tailpieces, would also work in this use), I was able to get two 9x12 cm or 4x5 sheets into the tank (though care must be taken in cutting the tubes to fit the tank, as the cellular core ABS pipe floats). I used inversion agitation and a dilute developer, and have never had a complaint about the results, though it is usually necessary to do the final wash stage with the films removed from the tube and floating loose in the tank to ensure all the dye comes out of the gelatin.

[paulh]

Hi,

 

I have done a similar thing with a couple of 9x12cm sheets in my 120 tank. Rather than use the rubber band "taco" technique that Jay describes, I found my tank holds the 9x12 sheet width ways quite nicely on just the ends. It is bowed so that the emulsion side faces the centre of the tank, and conveniently the back doesn't touch the sides either. I can do two sheets at a time like this.

 

Paul

[big toys are better]

I've been processing my 5x7 sheets in a 4x5 HP Combi tank with decent success. However, I find that the rubber bands and even my heavy O-rings come off the film because of my inversion agitation method. I'm pondering some sort of synthetic sock (maybe very petite Nylons?) instead, or else having some textured dividers made up for the tank so that 3 sheets are safely separated and won't stick to the sides of the tank or the dividers.

 

I wonder why no company ever made daylight tanks for the Kodak film hangers?

[william_wiseman2]

Rick: I agitate by inverting once every 15 seconds - no other movements, such as swirling or doing figure-8s. You will have to experiment to find the technique that is best for you. I do find I have to develop longer than the time with constant agitation in trays.

Try 15% longer to start.

 

I have only seen those reels for 4x5 in a 120 tank on Ebay listings... I think they are Nikkor brand. I don't know if they are 'old' or presently available by the manufacturer.

 

I do remove the film from the tank and wash it flat in a regular tray.

 

Jay: What size/kind of rubber bands do you use? Are they wide-bodied bands or thin? It seems the films would have to be curled very severely to fit four of them into a tank - but I'd like to try this sometime. My single roll 120 tank is not tall enough to fit a 4x5 film into it, so I would have to use the double tank.

Thanks for the info!

[jay_de_fehr]

William,

 

the rubber bands I use are about 1 1/2" in diameter, and about 1/8" wide. Good luck.

 

Jay

[graham_patterson1]

I agitate my 1.5" pipe daylight tanks once a minute just like roll film using a conventional developer (FG-7, usually 1:15). I have an old Yankee tank that acts as a washer. I am a low volume user of 5x4, though, and this works for me.<br />

 

<a href="http://www.btinternet.com/~g.a.patterson/photos/lfdevelop.html"> Tube tanks</a>

[silent1]

The Nikor 4x5 stainless reels are old stock, and typically sell for upwards of $100 (can get $150 or more if in original box, exceptional condition, or with original instructions). It holds 12 sheets in a special large diameter stainless tank that holds about 48 ounces, 1350 ml (I have such a tank, with a pair of 220 reels, but haven't yet managed to afford a 4x5 cage for it). If I get the right tubes, I can develop seven sheets of 9x12 or 4x5 in this tank in open ended tubes, and I could surely do the same with a similar number of film tacos, possibly also accomodate 5x7 this way (curled so the 5" dimension is the length of the taco).

 

The Jobo 2509n, which fits in the Jobo 1500 plastic daylight tank, is the only current manufacture 4x5 reel for an inversion type tank, and IIRC $50 isn't far from the correct price. It holds six sheets up to 4x5, in a tank that holds approximately a liter.

 

Nearly any single 120 tank will accept a single sheet of 3x4 or smaller, and some will accept 9x12, with the sheet simply curled, emulsion in, against the wall of the tank; there isn't room in the tank for 3x4 film to turn over etc., and it might be possible to accommodate two sheets this way.