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Joan Girdler
10-Jan-2008, 12:33
My apologies for perhaps misusing this forum for not having the hang of how to pose questions. Here goes: New to LF and do not have a darkroom. Trying not to spend $4,000 on a Jobo CPP-2. A very nice, helpful man at B&H told me about a roller base
(they do not sell this) and using an expert drum 3005 along with a foot pump(they do sell these)Some old posts on this forum indicate one cld use the less expensive Jobo
2830 drum (hold 2 sheets of 8x10)inlieu of the expert drum #3005(holds 6 films). Since
I do only blk & wht this seemed like a good option. Any comments from those of you who have actually done this. Where do I buy a roller base? Can I use my Shadow Box
film changing tent as a drum loader also? Any Ideas or comments -all will be greatly appreciated. I might add that B&H has been wonderful.

Nick_3536
10-Jan-2008, 12:41
Ebay is often full of 2830 and 2840s. They also have many Unicolor and Beseler motor bases.

I've got two Unicolors for this and smaller formats. Plus prints.

No idea what a shadow box is but a closet works well for film loading. Get used to loading with a sheet of paper with the lights on.

Down side is the drums are designed for paper so don't take a massive amount of chemicals. It can be worked around but it's something to consider.

Vaughn
10-Jan-2008, 12:50
The 3005 holds 5 8x10's, and it is a worthwhile investment. And the pump is optional -- might be nice to have, but not necessary. I gently hit the lip of the lid in the counter edge to get the lid off.

You will need about 2.5 feet of space to load a 3005 with 8x10 -- the drum is about 14" tall, plus 10" of negative, plus 6" of free area to make it not too cramped.

A search should take you to other discussions of Jobo drums and motor bases on this forum. But always feel free to ask questions!

Vaughn

Ron Bose
10-Jan-2008, 12:58
The 2830 is a print processing drum.

For film processing get the Expert drums they are so worth it. the foot-pump is cheap, why risk cracking a lid when using the counter as a pry ?

If not, just process in trays ...

Jobo make drums which will take sheets on reels, but with the expert drum you curl the film and then slide it into a cleverly designed cylinder ....

John O'Connell
10-Jan-2008, 13:00
Jobo did make a manual roller base for about $20, designed for use with the little film drums. You sat the tank on top and rolled it by hand.

You can float a tube or a Jobo drum in a tray of water and roll it by hand. Back when I thought I’d buy a 3005, that’s what I intended to do.

If your only film-safe dark space is the changing tent, stick with a drum you can pour chemicals in and out of easily. You can’t use BTZS-style tubes very easily in a changing tent, as you have to open the tubes to change solutions. (Some people report that you can safely open the tubes after the developing stage in subdued light, but you’d still have to stick chemicals inside your changing tent to load the tubes to begin with. Could be very messy . . .)

Ole Tjugen
10-Jan-2008, 13:31
I'm one of the "print drum users".

With a simple small cheap second-hand CPE-2 and 2830 and 2840 drums I develop b&w films up to 30x40cm (12x16") and E6 (so far only) up to 5x7".

In an emergency, you can even load 8x10" film from holders directly into the 2830 tank in a changing bag. But that's kind of marginal, so I would recommend doing it in a dark room.

My single mishap with 8x10" in 2830 tanks was when I loaded two films on the same side of the drum instead of on opposite sides.

Vaughn
10-Jan-2008, 15:16
As you already see, be prepared for a variety of opinions here! :D It is what makes the world go 'round!

vaughn

Nick_3536
11-Jan-2008, 09:08
http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.photo.darkroom/browse_thread/thread/68953e6666792ade/4c92b4ad4ddcd3b6?hl=en&lnk=st&q=jobo+print+drums+film+khowen#4c92b4ad4ddcd3b6

Even Jobo had views on the subject.

Yong-ran Zhu
11-Jan-2008, 09:15
I use the 2830 tank for developing my 8x10 films for long time and never have any problem. However, I only develop one sheet a time for I am afraid that the tank could not hold the two sheets in place well.

MenacingTourist
11-Jan-2008, 09:25
Here's how I do this:
Harrison film changing tent.
3005 expert drum.
Beseler electric roller base.
Foot pump.

So far, so good.

Joan Girdler
11-Jan-2008, 10:12
Thank all of you so much. I'm on the cusp of a decision. My Shadow Box film changing
tent measures 27" on all sides and is 25 inches high in the center. My question is this:
does the Jobo 3005 drum have light tight seals? If it does, my idea is to load the drum
in the tent and load the chemistry into the drums OUTSIDE the tent. Am I going in the
rt. direction or have I missed something. By the way the Shadow Box film changing tent is beautifully made and apparently is used by the Hollywood folks. I dealt with
them directly and they were wonderful, plus they had other handy items for which I am saving my coins. They may be Googgled. Even though pricey, it is less than a dark room and I can take it with to load film holders. Anyone out there who can help with these final questions?

Nick_3536
11-Jan-2008, 10:14
All Jobo tanks are light tight. I'd still think a closet would be easier to load a big tank in.

MenacingTourist
14-Jan-2008, 08:40
Jobo tanks are light tight. Just make sure you put the lid in the tent before loading the film into the tank. So far I've only done this once...