Hi all,

Still working on not screwing up my negatives. Seems like an endless problem.

Currently I'm using Chromega 8x10 and 11x14 drums on Chromega bases (the bases have assymetrical wheels that create waves in the tube). I also am using one Unicolor 8x10 drum. I have been doing 4 5x7s in the 11x14 drums, and also 2 5x7s in the 8x10 drums. Also...4 4x5's in the Chromega 8x10 drums.

So:
Problem 1: I'm getting light lines in my negatives parallel to the edge. They are very straight.

Problem 2: I recently switched to all Arista.edu. In the 11x14 drums, they are getting loose and ruined, pretty much 100% of the time. Not sure why.

#1: Some examples:


This is a 5x7


This is happening both on the Arista.edu film and on a couple of sheets of HP5 I had left over. It doesn't happen on every picture, even when I shoot two of the same negative. It generally seems to be paralell to the rails in the tubes, which would make me think it's something to do with the developer splashing over the side, but then in this negative, it's appears perpendicular to the others:


So...any thoughts? My only thought is that it could be from developer splashing over the rails that hold the film in. Not sure though about the last one though. This is from two different cameras, two different films. So it appears I'm screwing something up in development.

#2: I've used these 11x14 drums quite a bit with 5x7 HP5 with generally good results, at least as far as the film staying secured. With the Arista.edu, the film is coming loose almost 100% of the time. I've tried several times and lost a lot of shots. It appears to be secure with the rails and the sliding clips (I only have one per drum), but by the end of development, usually two shots have come loose.

There are several slots to slide the rails into. There is a slightly tighter slot that just almost fits 5x7 but it's a few mm too tight. I'm not able to get my developed film to fit it. I'm just wondering if the film expands slightly while being developed? I think that's a ridiculous thought, but it doesn't, does it? I'm not sure why I had no problem with HP5 coming loose but the Foma is flying all over the place. They appear to be exactly the same size.

I may have to give up this whole rotary thing. I can't afford a jobo and I'm not getting perfect results. But I do enjoy the convenience of it, if I could get it to work, I'd be psyched.


Sorry for another nebulous question, I'm not sure there are going to be any super clear answers for these ones. But I appreciate your thoughts.

Paul