Quote Originally Posted by mdm View Post
I notice that of all the pyrocat formulas Pyrocat M looks to be the simplest and least expensive. All that is required over what can be had at a brewing supply shop is a little Catechol and a very small amount of Metol, both of which are very inexpensive. I think that a pound of Catechol and a lifetime supply of metol comes at a similar price to a 50l HD kit. A very attractive option to me because of the high cost of shipping stuff here, the simplicity of the formula and the convenience of never running out.

Will it give similar results to what I have come to expect from Pyrocat HD? HD is bombproof. It is so forgiving and easy to use and what I specially like about it is the speed gain from minimal agitation development. I am very sloppy with bellows factors and exposure and it just works every time anyway. Even my seat of the pants night time exposures just worked.
Will it work ok for divided development if I think I have really cocked it up somewhere?
What will it be like with medium format film and 35mm?

Any help appreciated.

David

Pyrocat M will give very similar results to Pyrocat-MC. It is essentially identical to -MC but is mixed in water instead of glycol and contains sodium metabisulfite which is replaced functionally by ascorbic acid in -MC. Pyrocat M uses the same Stock B solution as -HD and -MC

Compared to Pyrocat-HD you should see a tad more acutance when developed with rotary processing (Jobo, BTZS tubes, etc). Film speed is slightly less than -HD but you probably won't notice the difference.

I am not sure how long the stock solution of Pyrocat M will last but you are probably safe with six months in a partially full bottle.

Sandy King