1 roll in a 2 roll tank

[janet_morley]

When developing one roll of film in my two roll tank I tend to get varying results. Usually over developed or right on. Is this because of the extra room in the tank and the chemicals can move more vigorously? I don't like to wait too long to develop rolls, but maybe this is my best bet? I usually use TMax 100 in TMax developer at 68' for 7 min. and agitate 5 times every 30 sec. and get very good results (with 2 rolls). Maybe shorten the developing time? Janet

[ann_c_lancy2]

Janet

Try putting an empty reel on top. I have my students to one inversion

each 30 seconds.

[john_stockdale2]

You can get very different agitation. Image a single roll tank

(capacity of liquid=250mL) with a single roll, and developer almost

up to the lid. Inverting this will, in effect, cause a bubble of

about (I'm guessing here) 40mL to go through the film reel area and

back again.

 

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Now imaging the same film and quantity of liquid in a double sized

tank. Tipping it upside down drains all of the liquid from the film.

 

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This must result in much greater redistribution and maybe by draining

the film, it hay have a greater effect of removing and replenishing

the liquid in the emulsion of the film.

[charlie_strack]

You don't describe your technique (roller processing, inversion

agitation, twirling agitation, how much developer you use, etc.) so

we are just shooting in the dark, but:

 

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If you using inversion or twirling agitation, you must put a blank

reel above the full one to keep the full one in place.

 

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Use only as much developer as is needed to cover the lower reel,

assuming you're not at extremely weak dilution. This allows empty

space for the development by-products to equally distribute when

inverting.

 

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With normal developers, using a two-reel tank, top reel empty, and

only covering the lower reel with developer is my STANDARD method.

I've always gotten consistent development.

 

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By the way, use empty reels and add water to cover the lower reel.

Measure how much water was needed to cover the lower reel, so you can

go my measurement, not estimation, on how much developer is needed.

[arden_howell]

Your agitation rate combined with only one reel is probably causing

your problem.I suspect you have pretty contrasty negs! I agree with

Ann, put another reel in the tank. I agitate 5 seconds every 30

seconds, as this is what works for me. The main thing however, is

your consistency. Don't change more than one variable at a time.

[nigel_smith2]

I never use two reels in a two reel Paterson System 4 tank when

developing one film, which I do 99% (nearly always) of the time.

I've never had a problem with the spool moving on the central column,

it's a firm fit. I usually want the other spool dry so I can run

another film straight away.<P>As far as agitation is concerned, I

usually invert 3 times every minute, twisting the tank as I go. I

believe those 3 inversions take about 6-7secs, so if you're inverting

5 times every 30secs, that's a lot higher ratio of agitation to

sitting time. Not necessarily a bad thing, but maybe you need to

accomodate it with shorter development times. Some experimentation

might be in order. I think it's a good thing the System 4 tanks have

a lot of air space (in the funnel area) so the developer gets to mix

thoughly<P>This might be way of the mark, but is it a Kodak thing to

agitate every 30secs (I use Ilford/Agfa developers) cause whenever

anyone says they agitae every 30sec it's usually about a Kodak film

(bit of a generalisation).

[janet_morley]

I guess I could have been clearer in my developing techniques. I

follow the directions for the TMax film with TMax developer which

states it needs more vigorous agitation. I tip upside down and give

it one half turn, 5 times in ten seconds. This works well with 2

rolls, but not 1. I guess I'll need to shorten the development time

for a single roll. Now all I have to do is figure out how much

shorter, Or shoot more film! Thanks everyone. Janet

[warren_allen]

Wow! I would never advise to have one roll in a 2 roll tank with

only enough developer to cover the bottom reel but I think that's

what I'm hearing. I used to see this a lot as a lab tech at a local

JC and there were problems EVERY time. If you have 1 roll of

film and always use a 2 roll or larger tanks, fill with empty reels

so you are not sloshing all over and fill that sucker up as if you

are developing a full tank. Develope at your normal time and

temp. Other methods may work this one Will work.

HTH

W

[ted_kaufman]

I completely second what Warren just wrote. Fill the tank, whether

it's one roll or two. It's the only way you'll get consistent

results. If you're worried about wasting chemistry, get a one reel

tank.

[nigel_smith2]

I disagree regarding consistancy. Maybe good advice for a beginner,

but I'm going to keep doing it the same way I have for the last 20

years... The only time I've had a problem was when I mixed only

enough developer for a 35mm roll and not the 120 I was developing and

I can only blame operator error on that one!