re-use film cassettes for bulk

[rob_caswell1]

<p>How do you unload the film as to not damage the film cassettes?</p>

<p>I tend to mutilate and destroy all my cassettes.</p>

<p>Any help would be appreciated...</p>

[Rick Helmke]

For the most part you don't if they are

factory loaded. I expect reloadable

cassettes are still available from B&H

or somewhere.

 

Rick H.

[johncox]

<p>It depends on the cassette, some have screw on tops some you tap against a flat surface and the top pops off. There is a type with metal twist catches too, unscrew the catch to open them. </p>

[walter_degroot]

<p>if you look carefully at the ends the staked on caops will have little crimp marks/<br>

most film cart are that way. kodak used to make "xnap cam" cart. and before that some with wide silver looking <br>

ends. I have two KALT dx cosed iso 100 snap CAPS<br>

it is possible to reuse cart from a mini lab., as they cut the film and leave a tak stickinbg out.<br>

only do this if you can use a changing bag as the tape will tear off.<br>

You can relaod open cart. by wrappong the tape about the spool and stuck to bot sides of the film<br>

I have not found suitabel tape locally. scotch tape works but could break.<br>

useing a cart from a moni lab is chancy. it may not hold/.<br>

yes the newer cart can only be torn open with a tool.<br>

also I would not use it for film being sent out for processing.<br>

If I worked in a lab I would not accept color fim that was a home relaod</p>

[Gary Naka]

<p>If the film cassette is crimped, I do not reuse it. I end up bending the end when I remove it to process the film. And trying to put the end back on a crimped cassette is an exercise in frustration. <br>

I won't chance taping new film to a leader from the old film. If you don't do it right, you may not be able to rewind the film back into the cassette. Then you will need a changing bag and light tight container to put the film into....ugly situation.<br>

Look for commercial reloadable cassettes. Adorama has them individual, pack of 4, 10 and 100<br>

http://www.adorama.com/BLCM10.html<br>

The "snap" top cassettes are easy to use. Point the end with the reel sticking out down, hold the cassette in your hand, then rap the end on the counter, the snap end will pop off. This is more difficult to do in a changing bag. You need to put in a hard surface, like a block of wood, to rap the cassette on to.</p>

[rob_caswell1]

<p>Thank you for the information. I was looking at the Adorama reloadable cassettes and wondering if there was a difference between say a Delta 100 cassette and one of the reloadables.</p>

<p>Will likley pick up 30 or so and a reloader.</p>

[john_shriver]

<p>Now is the time to stock up on the re-loadable cassettes. Word is that manufacturing of them is stopping.</p>

[lex_jenkins]

<p>Standard commercial 35mm cassettes can be reloaded. Instead of using a bottle opener to pry the crimped top off some folks will leave the leader out or use a leader retriever to pull the film out in the dark.</p>

<p>After that, just leave a little tail end of the original film outside the cassette, trimmed with scissors, and tape your bulk load film to that tail.</p>

[Mike Gammill]

Many minilabs use leader retrievers so they might give away the empty cassettes. Usually enough film sticking out to

reload. Use 'em once then discard.

[cj8281]

<p>Until my local Sam's club stopped developing film, I used to get a bunch of their empty cassettes and tape the bulk film onto the end. I have a <a href=" shots</a> of this in my flickr stream. Another thing I discovered was that there are a few cassettes that are made the the ends can come off and snap back on. These usually <a href=" like this</a> and can be found by twisting the end cap, if it twists it will come off and snap back on.</p>

<p>Another thing to add what Lex says above, I trim the corners of both the bulk film and the part that sticks out so they will easily enter and exit the cassette. See the first link above.</p>

<p>As far as reuse, I have one cassette that I have reused 7 times and then accidentally wound the tail into the cassette so I chucked it, no light leaks on any of the films.</p>

[Monophoto]

<p>I've been doing this for 35 years. But, as others have noted, not all commercial cassettes are easily reusable. Kodak (and others) criimp the end on the cassette. I think that's mainly to assure that if the cassette is dropped, the end doesn't pop off to fog the film. I have a number of cassettes (Ilford, Agfa, etc) that were produced in the late 1970's and early 1980's that don't have crimped ends and that can be easily reused.</p>

<p>You do have to be careful about crud accumulating in the felt light trap that can scratch the film emulsion. I always use a knife blade to wipe the felt to remove any dirt before I reload.</p>

<p>I use either masking tape or vinyl electrical tape to attach the film to the spool.</p>

[Fotohuis RoVo]

<p>Exactly. All manufactureres except <strong>Efke/Fotokemika</strong> were using safety cassettes which you can drop without the end is going to pop off. Before approx. 2004 <strong>Foma</strong> was also using them. So when using some Efke 25-50-100 135-36 films are easy to re-load again. Unfortunately Fotokemika ceased all production in August 2012.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>If you look on eBay, there are lots of varieties of reloadable film cans for sale. Often about 5 for $8 or $10.</p>

<p>As noted, Adorama sells pretty nice looking ones - 100 for $95 - also B&H for $0.95 for one....</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>The idea of taping film to a piece of film still coming out of a factory-loaded cassette is interesting. Should work. But it's much easier IMHO to work with reloadable cassettes. I would buy from a reliable source like B&H or Adorama.<br />At the newspapers I worked for years ago, almost all our film was bulk loaded since it was so much cheaper that way. We used both Kodak Snapcap cassettes and Ilford cassettes, which at the time had silver endcaps that snapped off easily and went back on easily. They were actualy more secure than the Kodak cassettes, where the end caps get loose after a few uses. Definitely stay away from plastic cassettes with screw-on ends -- the only turn about a quarter turn and come off easily. Tape them shut if you're using them.</p>

[User_502260]

<p>I never liked the Kodak Snapcaps. If you look at them cross-eyed they would just pop open. I always taped the end of the screw cap cartridges so they wouldn't unscrew themselves. The Afga and old Ilford cartridges opened easily but were secure when closed. Somewhere I have a feltless metal reusable Nikon cartridge for the F2. I have to try that. The last time I ordered a large quantity I think it was from Photo Warehouse. Those cartridges are ornery but usable. You need strong fingers to get them closed sometimes. About 40 years ago I was overseas and saw Ilford refills. The film was wound around the spool, taped and in a soft light tight dark paper and with a cardboard tube around that. In a darkroom or changing bag you would open the refill, take off the tape and then place it in the old cartridge. I haven't seen that type of refill since then.<br>

The problem with reusing the cartridges is not usually light leaks. It's scratching from dust. Spraying the felt openings with canned air can help. </p>

[glen_h]

<p>Before about 1960, Kodak didn't crimp them, and I used to have an Ektachrome cassette that my dad had back then. Seems that too often the ends came off, maybe during mailing them in for processing.</p>

<p>I once had a Russian roll of 35mm film that came wrapped in foil, but no cassette. If you keep it wound tight, load it dim light, and trust the film itself to keep the light out, it seemed to have worked. </p>

<p>As I understand it, the Kodak Rem-Jet backing is used for movie film that is loaded with a reel that has no outer case. The backing and film are opaque enough to keep the rest of the reel dark.</p>

[starshooter]

<p>Being a hard core cheapskate, I have been reloading film since the 1960s. I bought some old Agfa casettes years ago. They are built like Panzer tanks and you have to pound on them to open them and it takes a skilled surgeon (almost) to snap them back together after you have reloaded. But they work. I agree that some of the newer ones come apart if you sneeze within 20 feet of them. You ain't the only dude who falls victim of Darkroom Rage.</p>

[glen_h]

<p>Does anyone remember when Kodak started crimping the ends on 135 cassettes? I have a few old enough not to be crimped, but I don't know when that was.<br>

I have one with original Tri-X still inside, too.</p>

[murray_kelly]

<p>Been using lab trowouts for years. Under the 1" tongue sticking out I push the end of the reload under it until it hits the hub and stops. Then I put 2" of cellulose tape lengthwise across the back of the overlap (shiny side) and wind it in. Never had a film pull off yet. I suspect you'd have to be pretty heavy handed to over come the shear strength of tape like that.</p>