First try at developing...

[David Whysong]

Hi,

I'm going to try developing B&W film in a Nikor 4x5 tank. I have TMX and TMY film, and will use Xtol as a developer. I don't have a darkroom, so I'll load the tank in a changing bag. I have a pretty good idea of how to proceed, but there are a few remaining questions...

I'll use Paul Butzi's development times as a starting point. However, he used rotary processing. Is there an adjustment to the developing time because I'm using tank instead of rotary processing?

I also read that for best results when scanning, Xtol should be used in a 1:3 dilution. I can't develop the full 12 sheets of film at 1:3; there wouldn't be enough developer in the tank. So, I can either develop 12 sheets with a 1:2 dilution with ~350 ml of Xtol in the tank, or I can develop perhaps 10 sheets in a 1:3 dilution with ~ 270 ml of Xtol. I'm not sure what to do. Can anyone comment on the choice of dilution?

Thanks...

- David

[Ed Richards]

At 1:3, you need 1000 ml of Xtol for 10 sheets by my calculations. How much does a Nikkor tank hold? You may need to go to 1:1 or use a lot fewer sheets. Grab the Xtol data sheet off the Kodak site, it has times for all sorts of processing, and they are a very good starting point:

http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/j109/j109.pdf

[Bruce Watson]

Unless you are going to make some huge prints (bigger than, say, 125 x 100 cm) I doubt seriously that you'll be able to tell the difference between XTOL 1:2 and 1:3 in your final prints, so I'd use whichever you feel most comfortable with. That is, if you feel comfortable loading all 12 sheets onto the reel, go for it.

The difference between rotary processing and small tank processing is mostly one of agitation. That is, rotary is continuous agitation, while small tank is intermittant. Therefore small tank takes longer times to reach the same Dmax as rotary. As a guess (I've not done this myself) I'd go for about 25% more time than rotary.

That time is just a ball park of course. You are going to have to find your own EI for each film, and your own normal development time since you will have your own method and times for pour-in and pour-out and agitation. But this should at least give you a starting point. Refine from there.

[Bruce Watson]

At 1:3, you need 1000 ml of Xtol for 10 sheets by my calculations. How much does a Nikkor tank hold? You may need to go to 1:1 or use a lot fewer sheets. Grab the Xtol data sheet off the Kodak site, it has times for all sorts of processing, and they are a very good starting point:

http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/j109/j109.pdf

Ed it right - XTOL wants 100 ml of stock for each 80sqin of film (four 5x4 sheets), so for 10 sheets you'd need 250ml of stock. The thing about a tank however is that you have to have enough liquid to cover the reel. These two things will largely determine what dilution you use. Or, conversely, how many sheets you process at one time.

[Donald Qualls]

At 1:3, you need 1000 ml of Xtol for 10 sheets by my calculations. How much does a Nikkor tank hold?

I have a Nikor tank the same size as the 4x5 (no 4x5 cage, though; mine has two wide-spaced 220 reels instead); with no reels, cage, or film in it, it holds about 1.3 liters.

[David Whysong]

Hi,

Thanks for all the advice! The nikor tank holds 34 fl. oz. which is ~ 1064 ml in total. When I wrote, e.g. "350 ml of Xtol" I meant 350 ml of the stock Xtol solution and ~ 700 ml water, which is a 1:2 dilution.

I guess I'll try 1:2.

- David