Newbie - loading film into reel in portable changing room

[sanjay_chaudary]

<p>Hi,<br>

I am trying to develop C-41 at home and was trying to load 35mm color negative roll onto a hewes stainless steel film developing reel.<br>

It's easy to do it in light, but I find it bit tricky doing it in portable changing room. <br>

I normally wind the film leader in fully, unless I change a roll mid-way. <br>

A) how does one cut the film leader properly when it's not visible? Is there a gap between first frame and the leader once the tapered portion ends?<br>

B) There is a strip attaching the film to the spindle in the film cassette, at the end. How do u cut this in the dark?</p>

<p>thanks in advance.</p>

[carbon_dragon]

I'm not sure how color changes the equation but with black and white I take a changing bag and put my reel, a bottle

opener, the case, a sissors, the top of the reel, and the cartridge in the bag and then zip it up. I remove my watch if it has

luminous numbers and put my hands into the sleeves to make a light seal. I then open up the film cartridge in the bag

with the bottle opener, pull out the leader, feed it into the developer reel, and wind it till it's done. I then put it in the

container, put on the cap and I'm done. I watch TV while doing it so I won't feel the need to hurry. I sit down too, it can

take a while.

 

I practice with a dummy roll of bad film to get so I can do it pretty easily. Even so I usually use a plastic reel rather than a

metal reel though the metal one has some benefits (less chemicals needed usually due to size and you can use it even if

it is wet).

[thirteenthumbs]

<blockquote>

<p>A) how does one cut the film leader properly when it's not visible? Is there a gap between first frame and the leader once the tapered portion ends?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Yes there is a gap. How long that gap is depends on whether your camera winds all the film onto the take up then rewinds it into the cassette as the exposures are made or if it winds onto the take up as they are made. The gap should be 2 to 3 frames.<br>

1. get and use a film leader retriever, http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=film+leader+retriever&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ma&Top+Nav-Search= , pull out enough leader to handle easily and cut before putting the cassette in the changing bag.<br>

2. in the change bag feel the point where the sprocket holes start on both sides of the film then position the scissors at the edge of one of the sprocket hole pairs.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>B) There is a strip attaching the film to the spindle in the film cassette, at the end. How do u cut this in the dark?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>1. tear the tape.<br>

2. place the scissors against the cassette spindle and cut.</p>

[Alan Marcus]

<p>If you are going to develop your film, color or black and white, try not to rewind all the way. Best if you can leave the tongue dangling out of the cassette. If the tongue disappears inside you now need to retrieve it. Look on the web for 35mm tongue extractors. You can purchase inexpensive devices as well as special adhesive tape to perform this task. Tongue extraction, even with the correct tools can be challenging, it takes practice. A neighborhood camera shop or one-hour photo lab will do it for you if you ask nicely. They will likely also sell you a tool. They might remove the film completely for you and place it in a lightproof container. <br>

Today’s cassettes are not easily popped open. In olden days we could just rap the cassette on a table and the bottom cap would pop off. We could even reuse them. Today the top and bottom cap are sealed tightly however they can be removed with a bottle opener or preyed open with a pocket knife. Once so opened they can’t be reused. <br>

Inside the cassette the film is taped to the winding shaft. You should practice with a sacrificial cassette so you can practice opening or tongue extraction. OK to cut the film with scissors near where it is taped to the spindle. Place a scissors, a bottle opener, and a small pocket knife inside the changing bag.<br>

Best of luck. </p>

[jean_yves_mead]

It's easy to just rip the cassette open inside the changing bag (a bottle opener should work for this) and

then cut off the leader by feel - since you're using a Hewes reel, there's no way to load the film crooked so

you don't have to cut the film dead square, and all you have to worry about is keeping your fingers out of

the way.

[CoryAmmerman]

<p>Like Alan said, if you are using a camera with manual rewind, try to not rewind the leader into the cassette. It will make your life much easier. You should be able to feel a difference in tension once the leader is off the take-up spool. I usually just give the rewind crank another half turn or so and leave the rest of the leader out. That way the longer length of leader lets me know which rolls have been exposed.</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>The key to do this is to use a practice roll and just do it over and over again. First do it with the lights on and looking at what your'e doing, then do it with your eyes closed, then do it in the dark and finally do it in the changing bag. (It's a bag, not a room.) Open the cartridge with an old fashioned bottle opener, and push the spool out. You cut the tapered leader off with scissors and it's fairly easy to line them up by feel at a 90 degree angle to the film. The tape on the end of the roll just pulls or tears off the spool and you can peel what's left off the film (stick it to your hand or somwhere so it doesn't end up inside the tank).<br /><br />I've been doing this since I was 12 (and I'm 53 now). If a 12 year old can do it, you can do it. :)</p>

[sanjay_chaudary]

<p>Hi,<br>

thanks all for the replies. I did not think of the luminous dial on the watch. Thanks for that.<br>

I am using Adorama film opener ( looks similar to a bottle opener) and it works fine. I need to get the snipping of the leader and end right. I was able to load the film on second attempt in the changing bag.<br>

I need to make sure I don't get my fingers on the roll when I get it out of the cartridge before cutting the leader. ( I leave the leader rewound into the cartridge)<br>

thanks once again.<br>

:) Craig</p>

[donbright]

<p>Here is an issue that requires practice, over, and over, and over again until getting it right in the light to get the feel for something that is totally foreign to anything you've ever done, or will ever do. Eventually you would want you hands, and fingers to get to a relaxed state, comfortable, confident, then move into the dark. So give up a couple of rolls of film for practice.</p>