B&W 120 Film - Getting the Damn thing on a spool

[borya]

I'm sorry I couldn't find answers to this question so please point me

in the right direction if you have ever suffered getting 120 film

onto a development spool. I'd done it loads of times for 35mm but 120

is doing my head in - oh and yes, I have tried plenty of time in the

daylight with an old roll.

 

Any top tips or handy hints from people out there?

[doug grosjean]

Sacrifice a blank roll of 120 and practice with that roll in daylight.

 

FWIW, I find 35mm hard to spool and 120 easy. I always kink the 35mm at the sprocket holes, but the 120 film with no holes seems stronger. Doesn't help you any, but it might make you feel better...

 

Doug

[nikos peri]

Sounds like you already have sacrificed that roll! ;-)<p>

What kind of reel? Patersons and similar must be absolutely bone dry. I heat them up even

with a hair dryer just to be safe. <p>

Ah yes I forgot... sounds bad. Glad it has NEVER happened to me! ;-)

[stephen_kruft]

If you mean a stainless steel reel - try 220 if you want hard! Seriously, 120 is thinner than 35mm and does not need to be bent as hard to get it under the little hooks inside the reel. Do it in daylight with your eyes closed.

[pok_hon_wally_yu]

I assume you are using a steel reel. For either the "Kalt" or the "Hewes" design, make sure you align the film properly. If you remove the paper back by cutting the film, it will be easier to tuck in the film from the uncut side. The position of insertion is critical because of the bigger size of 120 film. When you insert the film, use your fingers to feel if the film is at the right place before reeling the film in. In that regard, the "Hewes" design is much easier since you can press the tongue down with one hand while moving the film with another hand. As everybody suggests, practice makes perfect.

[Ed_Ingold]

If you use a stainless steel spool, don't fasten the film in the clip. This bends the film and makes it hard to feed without buckling. simply hold the straight end of the film through the ends of the core - after a turn or two, there is enough friction to keep the film from slipping.

 

If you are using a plastic reel, you have my sympathy. A S/S reel takes a little practice, but a plastic reel will be impossible if even slightly damp or once it gets rough with age and chemical attack.

[fred_elliott]

I use only good quality ss reels, kinderman is my favorite, because of how the film is started on the reel. It takes alot of practice, but you will find that the ss reels are the easiest to use. I have tried using the patterson plastic reels and find them too frustrating to get started on the reel, also like others have said, the plastic reels must be absolutely dry. I also like using a popup changing bag so that my hands are completely free sitting down loading the reels in the changing bag. What kind of reel are you trying to use?

[mike_bates]

As the others have said, keep practicing with an old roll of film. I much prefer the stainless reels over the plastic ones. It took me a little longer to feel confident with them, but I'd never go back to plastic now.

 

I did have one SS reel that was much more difficult to load than others of the same brand. It must have been slightly bent or warped somehow. I couldn't tell by looking at it or rolling it, but it was certainly harder to load. I threw it away. Used SS reels are cheap and plentiful on ebay. I'd pick up a couple more reels and see if you just have a difficult one.

[leicaglow]

My 2ﾢ:

 

Using stainless reels, if you're right handed, hold the reel in your left hand. Gently roll the edges of the film together to find where the center of the film is. If you have clips, lightly clip the center of the film to it (you should adjust these before you go dark).

 

Then hold the edge of the film about a foot away from the reel and gently roll the film on using the left hand. As you get more film on the reel, switch to loading the rest of the roll with the right hand.

 

Loose and relaxed is the way I get those suckers loaded!

[stephen hazelton]

Problem I have is that the film has enough curl that it will also curl lengthwise and pop out of the plastic reel at the leading edge. My solution is to fold about a 1/8" strip of the front of the film back double, which stiffens it up enough to stay in, and the rest of it follows.

 

Good luck. It's not just you, if that helps.

[fred_elliott]

Here is my routine that works everytime for me: let's say I'm only going to develop one 120 roll...with the roll,tank,and reel in the popup changing bag, I like to take the film and seperate it completely from the paper backing first by letting the film roll up into its own roll while removing the paper backing...I reach the end where the tape is, tear the tape off from the paper, push the paper out of the way, I now have the roll of film in my left hand while I take my right index finger and remove the remaining tape stuck on the film... I always take the tape I remove and stick it to the paper backing I had pushed to the side so the tape doesn't wind up somewhere you don't want it to ... now with the reel in my left hand and the roll in my right, I feel for end of the reel spiral to make sure it is going to wind on in the right direction(this happens once in awhile-it doesn't take you long to figure your trying to wind on the film in the opposite direction)...now with my right hand holding on to the film roll, I reach out with my left fingers to grab and guide the end of the film(my left palm is on top of the reel)to the center of the reel and start it in the clip(depending on the brand of reel), some reels like someone said before it is better to just hold the end in(with your left index or middle)and start winding,,, now this is where I only very slightly curl and guide the film on the reel with my right hand, my right hand is right at the outside of the reel and I can feel the reel with right index and middle finger and thumb as I turn the reel with my left and guide the film on with my right. You can listen and feel the film go on smoothly. Sometimes something doesn't sound right or feel right and I'll unwind it a little...then resume. At the end, the film will finish at the same spot very close to where the reel winding ends(usually about 1/2 inch),( I have one 220 reel where the film end lays 1 inch past),but my 120's are usually about 3/4 to 1/2 inch inside the end of the reel ends. The reason I'm talking about this so much, is if you layed the film on top of itself earlier on..it will finish way shorter than the end of the reel...also at the end I always make sure the end is laying square and should be able to push it back in the reel about 1/8 inch with ease...that lets me know everything is good. Hope all this detail helps you, I'm sure others will have their own variations of this.

[William Kahn]

Bottom line: Forget plastic, use stainless, and practice, practice, practice......

[h._p.]

Paterson nylon reels are easy to use if you observe two simple rules: firstly, make sure the reel is dry - I store mine in the airing cupboard so that's never a problem. Secondly, reverse wind the first few inches of the film. I just peel open the adhesive strip and start winding the backing paper backwards, keeping a finger out for the film. When I find it, I just feed it into the backward wound roll and keep on for six inches or a foot. Then I just let the roll unwind and feed the start of the film into the reel. It's altogether faster to do than to describe and the film goes in like a charm every time.

[lee_shively]

I haven't used plastic reels in decades so I can't help you with that. I do remember the silly things had to be totally dry.

 

The only trick I have in using stainless reels is to leave the tape attached to the film, folded under. This forms a thicker leader that the clip can grab. That gets you started more easily. I'm sure someone will say this is a no-no but I've never had the tape to leave any gunk on the film during processing. I suppose it's a possibility but it's never happened to me.

 

Another thing to watch out for--some cheap stainless reels will have the clip attached backwards. I have a reel like this and the place where I once worked had a couple. You can still load film on the reels but you have to remember not to use the clip.

[david_m]

It helps to snip the leading corners of the film at a 45 degree angle. I also use Paterson reels and find them the best. Its a bit tricky but gets easier with practice.

[enw]

David M. mentioned the key, but it needs to be emphasized -- and I assume you're using metal reels. Loading is a snap if you'll just cut the corners of the film at a 45 degree angle. It is then MUCH easier to get the film into the clip at the core of the real in a straight fashion -- if it isn't straight, which I know you've learned by now, it will kink while loading. Getting it straight in the beginning is the key. So sacrifice a roll and try it in the daylight. Cut both corners, just slightly, at a 45 degree angle, slip the cut end into the clip at the core, pause, take a deep breath, and begin to wind. Repeat as needed until you're comfortable. Piece of cake!