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Thread: BTZS film tubes

  1. #1
    tim atherton's Avatar
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    BTZS film tubes

    Anyone use the BTZS film tube system for processing 4x5? How do you find it?

    Also, what about the daylight tank that Calumet sells (can't remember the name), that takes six negs at a time? Does this have any major problems?

    Thanks

    Tim A
    You'd be amazed how small the demand is for pictures of trees... - Fred Astaire to Audrey Hepburn

    www.photo-muse.blogspot.com blog

  2. #2

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    BTZS film tubes

    The HP Combo tank you refer to is very messy to use, it leaks and Ihad difficult y with evenness,leakage and drain & fill time times. I have had two of them at d ifferent times. The way HP recommends you use them is to set up a line of them a nd move the film basket from one to the next with a water clear between stop and fixer (for B&W) and cap each tank for daylight flip and flop agitation. Four of these tanks are hardly cheap.

    I cannot offer you advice on the BTZS tubes except to say that the people who us e them, like them.

    BTZS/ Darkroom Innovations makes/markets the best darkcloth for large format cam eras period; it is a joy to use compared to the standard "horse blanket" design.

  3. #3

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    BTZS film tubes

    If "the daylight tank that Calumet sells" is indeed the HP Combi-T tank, I also recommend avoiding it. Maybe it was the way I agitated the tank, but I found that the gizmo used to support the bottom of the negatives in the tank (the part with all the small little teeth) would gouge my negatives during processing. The result was bits of emulsion mission from my negatives. Needless to say the tank went back to the store.

    If you are set on a daylight processing tank for 4x5, look at the Jobo 2500 (2000?) series tank. Uses around 55oz. of chemistry (if you don't have a roller/processor (the Combi-T uses 36oz). It's much easier to work with and a light year better with regards to filling and draining chemistry. The results are more even because of this.

  4. #4

    BTZS film tubes

    I started out tray processing sheet film and migrated to the BTZS tubes. They work fine. Some folks will tell you about the negatives of any system as everyone has their "favorite" technique. The knocks on the BTZS system have been: 1) The time it takes to unscrew the caps of a group of tubes being processed and dump the chemistry and 2) The requirement for additional fixing to remove the dark coloration of remaining antihalation backing of the film that did not receive chemistry during processing.

    Start with one tube and work you way up to gain confidence. Shortly you will be slinging multiple tubes with the best of them. So what if you have to fix a little longer to clear the film ? I actually think that the rotational method gives great results with no potential scratching that can occur in trays. In my opinion, tha value of the BTZS system is the simplicity. A tube with a cap screwed to it. I cannot speak to the merits or the multiple sheets tanks. I look at their design and wonder what happens when all of these sheets do not line up correctly. Remember, you are setting it up in total darkness.

    The 4 x 5 tubes are much more reasonable in price as compared to the 5 x 7 and 8 x 10 tubes because of manufacturing costs. The larger tubes are precision milled. I used the 5 x 7 and 8 x 10 tubes before I went the route of a JOBO CPP2. This decision on my part was predicated on the fact that I can process 5 8 x 10 sheets at a time in one run with my 3005 drum. As I have gained experience in large format and my frustration level has decreased, (thanks in part to this forum), I now shoot more film with a new level of satisfaction.

    Check out the Darkroom Innovations web page and give them a call. They have a great brochure that they will provide you with.

  5. #5

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    BTZS film tubes

    Tim, I didn't want to pay the $$$ for the BTZS tubes so made my own from directions found at http://www.csd.uu.se/~s93bni/btz.txt. I've been using them for nearly a year. They are very easy to make and easy to use, and above all cheap. I can't imagine going back to film hangars, which I used before, or trays, which I never liked. Erik Ryberg

  6. #6
    stradibarrius stradibarrius's Avatar
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    Re: BTZS film tubes

    This thread is very old but I have just recently got into LF. My question is placing the tubes into the stop without any caps while the lights are on.
    Does this not flash the negative?

  7. #7

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    Re: BTZS film tubes

    I have used the BTZS tubes for years. Despite peoples qualms, there is no perceptipal fogging of the negs if you do it in subdued light, and quickly dump the developer and immerse the tube in stop bath. It only takes a second to unscrew the cap, with it upside down over a sink or tray, so the developer instantly drains out. You do have to give them a little more fix and clear to remove the backing. By the way, I use the combiplan tank for the fix and wash.

  8. #8
    BruceD
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    Re: BTZS film tubes

    Tim,

    I use the HP Combi rack and tank as a dip and dunk set up. It works well for me. A disadvantage to is is that all six sheets of film receive the same development. Unlike the tubes you cannot develop each sheet for a specific time and it is done in total darkness.

    If you are not going to utilize the Zone system and adjust film development times to control the density range of the negatives, the advantage the tubes provide is perhaps using less chemistry and being able to do some of the processing with the lights on.

    Bruce Douglas

  9. #9
    David de Gruyl's Avatar
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    Re: BTZS film tubes

    And I use both BZTS tubes and HP Combi tank. I do not find that the tank is particularly leaky (although it can be, if you either do not screw the vent back or if you do not open it up) or that it is uneven. It is important to remember to vary the direction that you invert (I change directions by 90 degrees every inversion).

    The tubes provide very even development, but require continuous agitation. They also allow you to vary the development on a per-sheet basis. Sometimes you want to develop edge effects, which is aided by minimal agitation (especially in a low concentration of developer). In other words: I use them both, for different reasons.

    I have no issues with stopping in subdued light, exactly as shown in the video you reference. Remember, film can be dropped into fix with the lights on and come out clear, so long as it does not come into contact with developer first. If you stop the developing, the image will never form.

  10. #10
    おせわに なります! Andrew O'Neill's Avatar
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    Re: BTZS film tubes

    I leave the lights on in my darkroom when I plunge the tube(s) into the stop. No worries about fogging. I even checked with my densitometre.
    working with these tubes is very economical, too. And, you can use different developers/dilutions, etc all at the same time. I usually develop 4 sheets, sometimes 5. Four is easier with me wee hands.
    I also use 8x10 BTZS tubes.

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