Arkay CD-40 Info

[SLVRGLTN]

I just got a Arkay CD-40 can anyone give me some useful info on what the temperature should be at for sheet film and roll film and if at all possible a copy of the manual on PDF?

From people who use it or have had one! Thanks


I know these were not made for sheet film but there is plenty of room for up to 8x10 maybe even bigger!

[angusparker]

I just got a Arkay CD-40 can anyone give me some useful info on what the temperature should be at for sheet film and roll film and if at all possible a copy of the manual on PDF?

From people who use it or have had one! Thanks


I know these were not made for sheet film but there is plenty of room for up to 8x10 maybe even bigger!

Can I ask how much you paid for yours? I'm thinking of getting one myself....

[Michael Kadillak]

I acquired one of these eight years ago and after turning it on once, I came to the conclusion that there was absolutely no reason for me to ever do so again. The prospect of cycling that large a volume of air past any negative with even the most effective filter possible scared the crap out of me. I used one of these units in college and I learned to use Spotone very quickly. If you are a wet process photojournalist working with a deadline then have at it. The value of this unit for me is to allow my sheet film to dry in a perfectly static air environment and I get zero dust even in low humidity Colorado. After all isn't that the objective? I hang expensive 8x10, 11x14, 12x20 and 8x20 negatives in it and I have never felt compelled to concern myself with how quickly the film dries. I use a pin registration unit to punch two small holes in the film edge pre processing and use trimmed paper clips to hold the film in the unit. I reapplied one sided rubber gasket material from Home Depot to seal the door and placed two filters over the top and called it good. Film will dry in a couple of hours dust free and does not pull dust from your darkroom air flow. Whatever works for you.

By the way I have nearly a full case of filters if you need some you can PM me.

[tgtaylor]

I bought the CD-10 off a local craigs list 4 or 5 years back for $75. The previous owner affixed a sticker next to the heat selector with a red arrow pointing at the "4" and marked "heat setting."

I normally air dry my negatives in a wardrobe cover that I bought at Walmart for $6 and use the CD-10 as a backup for overflow. The wardrobe will hold 10 4x5 negatives and the dryer at least that many on the top rack. It's missing the middle rack which is designed to hang 11x14 film and would hold at least 10 more 4x5's. I find that it takes about 4 hours to air dry in either the wardrobe or dryer.

I have, on a couple of occasions, dried film and prints with the dryer operating at the "4" position without a problem. Took about 15 or 20 minutes I believe. If you use it with the heat/fan running, be sure that you dust it out thoroughly or you will have a problem.

Thomas

[SLVRGLTN]

I paid $200 for mine and looks about 90% new but it was sitting in storage from a guy who had it listed on CL but never really got to use it! CL is a perfect place to look for darkroom or camera equipment in my opinion sometimes cheaper the that *bay sight. I processed some 120 film and have dried them with it on and have not seen any dust thank goodness. Dust is our enemy!

I already ordered a box of filters thanks for the offer MK wish I would of seen the offer before it placed the order 3 weeks ago....

I'm definitely going to go to HD to get a new rubber seal can you tell me what you bought so I can get some to keep mine sealed for a long time.

Thanks Brian

[Michael Kadillak]

I paid $200 for mine and looks about 90% new but it was sitting in storage from a guy who had it listed on CL but never really got to use it! CL is a perfect place to look for darkroom or camera equipment in my opinion sometimes cheaper the that *bay sight. I processed some 120 film and have dried them with it on and have not seen any dust thank goodness. Dust is our enemy!

I already ordered a box of filters thanks for the offer MK wish I would of seen the offer before it placed the order 3 weeks ago....

I'm definitely going to go to HD to get a new rubber seal can you tell me what you bought so I can get some to keep mine sealed for a long time.

Thanks Brian

No problem. The product that I got from HD is 1/4" wide grey weather stripping that is 1/8" thick, has a white adhesive backing on it that you peel off and comes in rolls. I used a razor knife to take the old material off and affixed a center strip to the door and it works great. I also used that blue painters tape to seal the edges of the filter to the top of the unit so there is no chance of dust coming around a filter that does not seat properly.

[angusparker]

Thanks everyone - ended up getting a CD-10 for my 4x5 and 8x10 films - my roll film will just have to hang loose as it has before! Now I have to figure out how to hang the film - looks like there are clip rods with 10 clips a piece? I'm not sure how they attach ... my CD-10 has four rails and two flat mesh trays, I guess for print drying flat. Guess I'll have to buy a manual ... or does someone have any ideas?

[Michael Kadillak]

I only use a top and a middle rack with mine. With roll film I only use the top one as it is easy to use the alligator clips with the hook on the ends since you have leader to work with.

I found an inexpensive film registration punch at the local used camera store and pre processing punch two small registration holes in the film notch end of the film. I use a small wire cutter to cut #1 paper clips in half and use the holes to hang the film from the racks with the trimmed paper clips. The alternative is to use a hand punch that is used in the craft arena to rig up a corner punch in the edge of the sheet film. Since I use an Infrared Monocle in the darkroom I can see what I am doing and that is of great benefit with this step as well as film loading and film processing which I do in trays an with gas burst.

[Luis-F-S]

I bought my DF80 in 1995 from Ca Stainless for just under a grand. I typically don't use the heat setting, only the fan for drying prints on screens. For film, I just hang it and let it air dry. You can buy the stainless hanging rods with the clips from Ca Stainless; mine came with 2 and I've not needed more. I just changed the fan motor out on mine since it had been inoperative for about 8 years and frozen up. Moving it into my new darkroom this week.

Luis

[angusparker]

Think I'm just going to hang my sheet film using dental xray clips from the two shelves that come with the CD-10. Looks like the best option.