Which way do you prefer to develop your 4x5 sheet films

[kintatsu]

For timing, I use a metronome set to 60 beats per minute and a kitchen timer. By counting ticks, you can keep track of the time and cycle your agitation to your method and schedule. The kitchen timer's just a reminder that the developing time is up. The metronome I use is online at seven strings website, and plays over your PC speakers.

[EdSawyer]

Nikor tank for B&W, Phototherm SSK4 for color.

[Leigh]

Also with tray processing what do people use to time the developing etc.?
No led timers etc allowed in "complete darkness".

I use a Gralab 900 timer. It has an LED display, with provision to turn it off if desired.

It's a process timer, with nine independent steps, automatically switching from one to the next.

It has programmable tones that beep every 30 seconds, and rapidly in the last 10 seconds of each step.



- Leigh

[Light Guru]

Also with tray processing what do people use to time the developing etc.? No led timers etc allowed in "complete darkness". Gralab timer in a far away corner I guess.

I use the timer on my phone.

I use the massive dev app on my iPhone. I turn the brightness on the phone all the way down and then put the app into green mode. I have the phone positioned a ways back on a shelf above my developing trays. This lets me see the timer and I have had no issues at all with it effecting the film.

[dncswclds]

A Gralab timer 4' or more away will not cause you a problem. I have one above the sink which has been there for over 30 years and never had a problem. Of course, it is facing me, not the film in the tray.

Well for one thing I do not have 4' to work with (a bathroom) so what I can do is leave it on the floor by the door and develop in the bath tub. Just need to get smaller trays as I only have 8x10. First step is getting my 4x5 resealed from light.

[Dennis]

The very best tray for developing 4x5 film is a Pyrex glass bread pan. It is just smaller than 4 inches across at the bottom though wider than that at the top. The film will be held straight in a stack if you do multiple sheets and they will never touch the bottom so you can easily get a finger under the stack to rotate. I do emulsion down for multiple sheets and emulsion up if I do only one sheet. A liter of developer gives a luxurious volume in the bread pan. Buy it at a grocery store.
Dennis

[mdarnton]

Hmmm. Odd man out, I guess: hangers.

[Leigh]

Hangers are nice. I use them with deep tanks when I have a large number of sheets to do.

The downside in my experience has been the large amount of chemistry required for the tanks.

I have small 8x10 tanks that accommodate six hangers, each holding four 4x5 sheets = 24 sheets.
These hold 4 quarts (3785 ml) of solution. 4000 ml of Rodinal at 1:100 is enough to do 16 sheets.

- Leigh

[Kirk Gittings]

Yes I have had Graylabs fog Tri-x in trays at even greater distance. Also Graylabs lose accuracy so test them. After 20 years with one I discovered mine was 1.5 MINUTES slow at a 10 minute setting.

My replacement which is now 10 years old is still bang on.

[sdynes]

+1 for massive dev app on the iPhone. I use the sounds, and have the phone upside down so there's no light. Now if only they'd develop a voice interface so rather than tapping the screen with your Pyrocatted gloves to go to the next timer stage you could say 'start stop', 'start fix' etc...