pyro and 4x5 sheets: Are hangers and tanks recommended?

[keith_baker1]

Hi Folks,

I'm keen on trying pyro. I went and bought Gordon Hutchings book and

some PMK solutions. In my reading I picked up that pyro and the

tank/hanger combo may not give even development and staining. I have

developed lots of 4x5 in tanks with XTOL without any problems. I

would like to know if even staining is possible with pyro and

hangers/tanks or whether I should adopt another technique. Please

advise. Thanks in advance, Keith

[doug_theall2]

Keith,

Just follow the directions in his book and you should see great results. You couldn't have convinced me that you could sharpen a negative with developer but after trying it I'm a beleiver. This may be one of the last great secrets around. I did two exact back to back shots on a Ilford produced 4x5 negative and the pyro negative was noticably sharper. Go for it.

Doug Theall

[pat_krentz]

I develope Tri-X in PMK,SD-1 and ABC pyro all the time with hangers and a tank I built myself,(much better than tray development)and never have a problem with un-even development, streaking or under-development. Pat

[james___]

I use tanks to process my 4x5 and 8x10 sheets all the time and have no problems with uneven development. I have never gone back to tray development after the first few tries. To big a hassle. I'm all thumbs and every sheet was scratched no matter how many or few sheets I tried.

[scott_killian1]

I know you specifically asked about hangers, but you may want to

try a slosh tray or "cradle". There are other posts in here about

them, including links to a site that tells you how to make one, but

I just bought one from www.summitek.com and it works very,

very well. I am terrible at shuffling and have scratched many a

negative. These cradles hold 6 sheets of 4x5 emulsion side up

and you lower them into a standard developing tray. The

developer flows through holes in the sides and bottom of the

cradle - just use your regular agitation cycle.

 

I use PMK exclusively and the result for me has been very even

negatives, nice stain and not a single scratch. The device is so

simple and fool-proof, I wonder why more people aren't using

them.

[sergio_ortega6]

On the road I've often used one of the Combi-Plan daylight tanks that holds up to six sheets of 4x5 and it worked fine; development and staining is very even. Development times can be a bit hard to precisely control with the slow fill and drain times.

[jean_bernard_roux]

I agree with Sergio. I use a Combi-Pla daylight tank and it works well.

2 advices :

1) despite Combi-Plan can hold 6 sheets, it will be safefull to use it with 4 sheets

2) be aware with filling and draining times which are quite long (between 30 and 45 seconds)

 

Jean-Bernard

[michael_dowdall]

Hi Keith,

I'm new to using pyro myself. I've never tried hangers but used the tray method. New to shuffling, I scratched the film and had uneven development. After posting my problem here I was directed to this site; http://philbard.com/panel.html . Here you will find plans to build a processing panel or as some call it a slosh tray. Since making it I havn't scratched any negs. Or any uneven development. On my panel I made a couple of modifications; 1) Rounded off each of the corners so that it fits my 8X10 tray, 2) Used a thicker peice of plexiglass, 3) Because the plexiglass is thicker and threaded there was no need for the bottom nuts to lock the bolts in place, this cut useing 2 liters of developer for 4 sheats to 1.25 liters with the same results, 4) Used 4 three inch bolts, one in each corner for holders so that the tray can be agitated and lifted out without putting my fingers near the film. I'm very happy with how my negs. come out now. If you go this route please let me know how it turns out. Any improvments you can see would be most welcome.

 

Michael