no pre-soak for Ilford films?

[andress007]

Just browsed all Ilford film data-sheets and they all says: "A pre-rinse is not recommended as it can lead to uneven processing."

[David Karp]

I always used a presoak with Ilford films before going to 2 bath developers, and never had a problem. This was with ID-11/D76, XTol, Ilfosol-S, PMK, etc.

[vinny]

I pre soak it just like everything else.

[Gem Singer]

According to the Ilford tech I spoke to a few years ago, there is a wetting agent incorporated in their films. Pre-soaking will remove the wetting agent and possibly lead to uneven development.

I have found no difference in the results if I pre-soak, or not, with HP-5+ and FP-4+. I use those films in 120 rolls and 4X5,5X7, and 8X10 sheets.

However, when developing film in trays, it does help to pre-soak to prevent the sheets from sticking together.

[Jeff Graves]

I do a 5 min presoak in jobo expert drums changing the water once. This removes the purple anti-halation layer. I've found without it there is more of a chance of uneven development.

[Jim Fitzgerald]

I just did some 11x14 FP4+ and presoaked it for 5 minutes before developing it in Pyrocat-HD. The negs are great.

Jim

[Glenn Thoreson]

I do it the easy way. I pre soak everything. No problems.

[Jim Graves]

I presoak FP-4 and HP-5 in 120 (Jobo 1520), 4x5, 5x7, Whole Plate, and 8x10 sizes (Jobo 3005) ... 2 minutes, then one change and 2 minutes more ... no uneven development.

If I don't, I occasionally have some anti-halation left on the negatives. I think it also makes sure the tank and film are at or close to 68 degrees before I introduce the developer.

I use HC-110, Perceptol, PMK, or Pyrocat, water stop, fix, 6 changes of water over 15 minutes of wash, and Photoflo final rinse.

[walter23]

I use rotary processing and pre-wash for about 10 to 20 seconds before developing. Never have any problems.

[clay harmon]

I used to presoak all the time and about two years ago tried developing without the presoak. No difference other than very slightly faster development times. So I decided to save time and skip this step because it apparently is not necessary.