Ultrafine 100 speed 120 film

[Mike Howard]

I have several rolls of this film ready to process, and I don't really want to

waste any in clip tests etc. I have asked Ultrafineonline via email, and they

won't respond correctly. I have also searched the archives here, and none of

the threads on this subject give a definative answer, although they do lead to

a narrowing. I need to know what this film is. As far as I can tell, it is

either Fomapan 100, or Ilford Pan 100. Ultrafineonline actually came back and

told me to use developing times for Ilford FP4, which I know this film is NOT,

and the times for it are much different from the other two. Also, Fomapan 100

and Ilford Pan 100 are grossly different in developing times. Please help me.

Like I said, I'll do clip tests if I have to, but surely someone knows for sure

what this film is.

[glenn_mabbutt]

Can't help you directly, but I can commiserate - I had read some of their film at least used to be Ilford Pan, so the question I asked of them was if their film was currently produced or just a quantity of new old stock, as I wanted to standardize and not have to worry about switching films the next time I ordered. (It's my understanding that Ilford Pan isn't being produced post-bankruptcy.)

 

They did eventually send a reply, but avoided the question entirely, and when I replied that I wanted to placed an order anyway (the price was right, worth gambling), I received no further reply whatsoever. So, fine, if they really don't want my business, nuts to them.

[larrydressler]

The 100 is Agfa APX the 125 is Ilford FP4 I know I have a bunch of it ....

 

Larry

[chuck_albertson1]

Ilford Pan F *is* being produced, in both 35mm and 120.

[frank.schifano]

Yes, PanF+ is still being produced. There were two other emulsions produced by Ilford prior to their financial troubles called Pan 100 and Pan 400. These were not the same as FP4+ and HP5+, and I've never seen them on the US market. These films are no longer listed on the Ilford Photo website, so maybe they've been discontinued. It could also be that these emulsions are still being manufactured to be sold only as rebranded products. I don't know. What we do know from Ilford is that FP4+, HP5+ PanF+, and the Delta line are not being sold to repackagers.

[rustys pics]

You have to realize that the guys at Ultrafine may be under legal obligation NOT to tell you where the film is produced. I've used it before, and based on the film base, backing paper,etc I'm fairly certain it is Fomapan 100. Good film. Just use those times and you should be in the ballpark. Never had a problem with their customer service. My main complaint is that they're slow to ship.

[Mike Howard]

Thanks for the help. Now, according to massive dev chart, in rodinal 1+50, Agfa apx100 is 13 min, Fomapan 100 is 7 minutes. Agfa in 35mm is grey base, Fomapan 100 is bluish tint. I'm going to cut off a sample and process, to see which base tint it is. Thanks for narrowing it down a little for me. Also, I know UFO may not want to tell which it is, that's OK. But they could have answered my question about which starting time to use with Rodinal 1+50! I have usually had good luck with Ultrafine, in fact, I also have a bunch of APX100 100' rolls in my freezer, waiting to expire by 2010. Finally, Freestyle has Ilford pan 100 in 35mm 100' rolls. It must be old stock, since Ilford doesn't list it anymore.

[rustys pics]

Glad to help. Please post back and let us know what the color of the base is. When I used it a couple of year's back it was decidely blue, like Fomapan. Wish they had the Foma 200 in 120 rolls. That's their best film.

[mfophotos]

If in doubt, use Diafine.

[Mike Howard]

That's a good point, Mark. I may still go with that. I did the clip test, amazingly, I only cut off a sliver of negative 2. The base is definately blue, and thin and curled like my other not-rebranded Fomapan 100. I developed for 10 minutes, and the negs are pretty hard, but I think printable. This was a pretty good lesson in rebranded film. Ultrafine's 35mm 100 speed film is for sure Agfa APX, but who knows when it might change to something else. I think for the future I will stick with the real thing, whatever it might be, although it is tough to pass on those really great Ultrafine deals.

[glenn_mabbutt]

Sorry, I mispoke - I am aware that Pan F is still being produced, but I believe the Pan 100 and Pan 400 are not. Some old posts on various forums indicated they were FP4 and HP5-like respectively, but produced with slightly lower quality standards and intended to be cheaper for markets where people may not be able to afford FP4 or HP5, and weren't marketed in North America at all directly.

 

They were of interest to me if that's what Ultrafine 100 and 400 are, as "close enough" to FP4 and HP5 is fine for me while learning B&W development. But it appears they're not anymore, or at least I can't determine if they are for a certainty. So, no worries, I bought a quanitity of expired Tri-X in 120 and some short ends of Kodak cinematic 35mm film, and some 100ft rolls of the "real stuff" to start, so I'm now set for quite some time with B&W :)

[dakotah_jackson]

"I need to know what this film is."

 

It is Ultrafine 100.

 

"I have several rolls of this film ready to process, and I don't really want to waste any in clip tests etc."

 

If you don't have time to do some basic testing maybe you should take up knitting or something similar instead of trying to be a "picture taker".

 

If you are too lazy to shoot a test roll or two and do some basic development checks you are wasting your time with a camera.

[pete_c__uk_]

Ilford's Pan 100 and Pan 400 were intended for markets that were experiencing problems with grey products and undercutting. They enabled Ilford dealers to remain competitive by offering these lower cost Ilford lines. Although they may not be shown on the Ilford website they appear to still be in production in 35mm size (36 exp & 30m bulk length). They were certainly sitting on the shelves of the Ilford factory warehouse when I was there in June last year and are listed on the website of First Call, a UK mail order dealer. They are not normally available in the UK but I read elsewhere that there is at least one other UK source.