Sprint Film Developer

[johnreef]

Sprint film development time for TMX at 1:9 dilution, 68 degrees is 10

minutes. They also state that to get results similar to D76 1:1 you

should maintain the Sprint 1:9 dilution, but use the development time

recommended by Kodak for TMX and D76 1:1 which is 12 minutes. My

question: Is the Sprint 1:9 of a stronger solution than D76 1:1 thus

requiring shorter development time or is Sprint providing a

recommended time that deliberatly pulls development to better control

TMX contrast?

[jordan_w.]

I've wondered myself about this so-called D76 equivalence. As far as I've been able to tell, the Sprint developer is basically a phenidone-hydroquinone (PQ) developer -- how can they draw parallels with D76, which has different chemistry going on (MQ)? In any case, I've used lots of Sprint with HP5+, PanF+ and Tri-X with good results. I'm still using a bottle I opened in February with no ill effects due to age (it's almost finished) and the results overall are very nice. A good choice for those looking for an easy-mixing liquid concentrate developer.

 

I generally stick to the times Sprint provides, and the results seem about right, though I've been meaning to play with the PanF+ time to better balance skin tones.

 

I haven't tried TMX (I don't use the stuff), but I would try both times (the D76 1:1 time and Sprint's time) and see which you like best.

[mark_smith10]

John:

Although I don't have extensive experience w/Tmax 100, I thought it was recommended to develop it in TMax developer rather than generic developers such as Sprint. I use Sprint for my students and it works great for TRI X and the like. good luck mark smith

[bryan_harrison]

Thanks for the kind words about Sprint Film Developer. Perhaps I can clear-up a small point of confusion. The comparison of Sprint Standard Black & White Film Developer to Kodak D-76 Developer used 1:1 is intended to give the user a reference as to what type of results, in general, can be expected. It is not meant to imply that Sprint Film Developer and Kodak D-76 Film Developer are the same recipe or that they are always used at the same times.

 

While the results are similar we feel that compared to Kodak D-76 1:1, Sprint Standard Black & White Film Developer will yeild better shadow detail and is less likely to block highlights in areas of overexposure. Because Sprint Film Developer contains a different, proprietary blend of ingredients suggested times compared to Kodak D-76 can vary.

 

Bryan Harrison, Sprint Systems of Photography