Drum rollers / processors in Europe

[kleinbatavia]

Good morning all,

As a long term mf shooter, I have recently stepped up to LF. I came across a wista dx that was just too good to pass up. As I have shot film for decades and am used to metering, the actual taking of the pictures has been surprisingly straight forward. That said, I am sure there is a lot to be improved as far as my technique goes. It will be a while before I master all the movements and can use them to my creative advantage.

However, as having LF developed is prohibitively expensive, I have also taken he plunge and am now developing my own film. After significant research, I settled on a job expert drum and I found one for a song from someone who had it in a garage, new in box. Had to drive 240 kilometers to get it, but it was worth it. So far, I have done a few batches and they have turned out surprisingly well. However, I am now rolling the drum by hand, as I have not yet come across a rolling base or processor that was affordable. I'm looking for things like Jobo, Simma, Beseler, Philips, Durst, Uniroller, etc. It seems that either will hold an expert drum.

My question here is whether I should have a preference for one or the other. I do not intend to process color, as it seems to complicated. Hence, a processor like a CPE by jobo might be excessive. That said, if an affordable one shows up in the classifieds, I will of course jump at it. Happy to hear about your thoughts and experiences on rollers and on what is available and preferred in Europe!

Thanks,

Z

[Cor]

I use an Expert drum on a Simma roller (it makes the tank "wobble" because of the out of center placed axles of the wheels). No complains on that combination

Do you live in The Netherlands, if so I have lead to such a roller for you.

Best,


Cor

[kleinbatavia]

Good evening Cor,

Thank you very much for your reply! I travel between The Netherlands, Spain and Hong Kong, but am currently in The Netherlands. Over the years, I have found that for new tech, HK is often attractive, however, there is a large number of people who collect classic cameras and gear. This drives prices up and means that a lot is sold and traded at "invitation only" markets that are held at various venues.

I will be in NL for another week and a half, so if there is a lead on a roller, that would be great. I can use a car here, so it should be easy to go somewhere to collect it if required.

Just did another batch of film in the drum this afternoon, rolling it by hand on the floor. Besides the floor being a bit uneven, the rolling speed is not constant as I need to stretch and relax every once in a while, but the negatives come out just fine. Don't have any issues with a roller that has a slight wobble. If you can let me know where I should be looking that would be very much appreciated! If better by mail, my address is jungledweller250@hotmail.com

Thank you in advance and kind regards,

Z

[photonsoup]

You can spin the tube in a sink or tub of water. Use the inversion lid and cap to keep chemistry in and water out

[koraks]

Keep an eye on marktplaats.nl (if you speak Dutch, which I suspect is the case). CPE/CPE2 processors pop up once in a while (say, one per month), usually bundled with other darkroom gear. It's how I got mine. Shouldn't set you back too much and it should be (more than) sufficient for your needs.

[kleinbatavia]

Photonsoup: The drum in the sink (or bath tub in my case) was a moderate succes at best. I need two hands to spin it, or have it bang against the side all the time. Considering the discomfort of leaning over the bath, I quickly switched to rolling it on the floor. It's ok, but not ideal... Would really welcome a roller to my kit!

Koraks: Have been looking about on marktplaats, 2ehands, speurders, fotoapparatuur, etc. I've found one or two people asking for a roller but no one selling one. At some stage there was someone who had one as part of a kit, but after agreeing to sell it separately, he disappeared. There was one on eBay last week. I think it was a uniroller, but at over 100 euros for the buy it now and shipping it seemed somewhat excessive. There was a CPE2 too, it sold for hundreds of euros and had some cracks and missing bits (I doubt the buyer understood the french text...).

Alas, I'll be on the look-out. Just done scanning my afternoon batch, quite happy with the results. Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

[stiganas]

I am in the same situation, I give up searching for a base roller. Here is a quick hack (it works OK by hand).

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?120742-DIY-(motorized)-roller-base-from-Lego

[kleinbatavia]

That looks cool! Believe it or not, I used to have a lot of lego (didn't we all at some stage). It has crossed my mind to see if I could do a roller with it, but now I definitely have o start looking where the stuff is. Thanks!