I have spoken with Simon Galley at Ilford on several occasions about this matter and he has repeatedly assured me that Ilford have no plans to produce their own "Ilfoload" system; the cost/return figures and licensing issues were the main reasons.
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This is my first post to the LF Forum and would just like to say that it is an incredibly useful resource. Thanks for all your contributions.
This is terrible news but also a little surprising insofar as, last time I checked (2 weeks ago), there was still loads of Acros QL available at the larger stores here in Tokyo. Perhaps that's part of the problem. In fact Acros QL was being sold at a 25% discount, which was kind of puzzling as QL is rarely discounted here ... makes sense now though.
Thankfully, the Japanese still love film (it's amazing how many people you see walking around with vintage Nikons, Hassys etc) and so the shops still have quite a bit of stock. Am planning to venture to Bic/Yodobashi Cameralater today and stockpile as much as possible. If any of you are traveling out to Japan I would suggest doing the same or, if possible, buying online from biccamera or Yodobashi. Not sure if they accept US credit cards though.
Am heading all the way to Monument Valley next week with a Tachihara 4x5 and a boatload of B&W and Velvia QLs. Can't wait.
V
Just pack a few suitcases full of Acros QLs, and you can resell in the U.S. and cover your trip costs :)
That may not be a bad idea. Went to three stores here (Tokyo) yesterday and could have picked up 2 dozen boxes before asking the sales guys to check the store room. Wife is already complaining about new 3 boxes in the freezer ... if she knew about the other two boxes for next week's field trip to Monument Valley it would be flowers and chocolates time. LF is certainly not the cheapest format around - QLs or otherwise.
Ok, so who wants to trade a couple of boxes of Acros quickload for a box of Polapan 55 [ I think I bought the last case in the world late last year]
Clive
Atul,
Thanks for the link. I sent my $ .02 worth. Probably worthless unless a lot more of us do the same. You never know...
Joe Dickerson
Just to let you know that AFAIK Acros QL is not discontinued. It continues to be readily available - on the Japanese market. It would appear that they have stopped distributing it on a worldwide basis.
Dirk - the question is, if ACROS QL's are available ONLY on the Japanese market,
how long can this limited market by itself support continued manufacture? Or is
this simply a case of running out existing stocks before the product disappears
entirely? Trying to read Fuji's corporate mind is quite difficult. Another analogous
problem is with 8X10 Astia 100F, which has disappeared here. Is it still in fact being
made in this size, or is a finite supply running out once for all? This is important
because one naturally would want to import when the exchange rate is somewhat
favorable. Both these products are inherently expensive, but also have no direct
replacements. Would there be any cost advantage to importing a group order of
these kinds of products?
I had asked Badger about a special order, and they said Fuji doesn't do special orders. I'd asked someone in Japan whether it could make economic sense to have a special order for the U.S. (and anywhere else which wanted one), and they said they'd explore it- but ordering from Japan now would run about $100/box plus shipping, which would be prohibitive for me.
Has anyone actually SEEN an official notice from Fuji about Acros QL's discontinuance? Apparently similar for 8x10 Astia, from Drew's post I have not come across it: we found out when vendors suddenly said things like "No Longer Available", "Discontinued", etc. Advance notice to the customer base- zero! As Drew pointed out, is Japan itself likely to be able to support sufficient Acros QL demand by itself?
And then we should trust them on continuing to supply 10-sheet boxes of Astia at high prices? Probably had a huge mis-order of 10-sheet boxes and decided to clear out the remaining Acros 4x5 with them, killing two birds with one stone. Might help if Fuji would have been more "forthcomingt"- Scott apparently can't even get them on his Analog Radio show, something he had suggested was in the works quite some time ago. Of course, they are a sponsor, so he's in a delicate position, but still...
Is France (Europe, you know) closer? Check this:
http://www.adaflex.com/pages/films/fuji.htm 70€
Jean-Claude Dal Cin, the boss of Adaflex, is a very nice guy, very much involved into LF! Use my name if you like.
I'd be in for a bulk import/export of Acros QL from Japan is there is interest in this.
Kirk
I would be interested in some boxes, depending on price.
Yes, interested.
Larry
If fuji is still making the stuff what is their issue with just throwing some in the container and shipping it over with their other film??? This defies logic....
I also would be interested in a bulk buy of some Acros QL.
Count me in as well.
Wouldn't it be nice if Fuji adopted Ilford's ULF sales approach? They could take pre-paid orders for products they make, but don't export, once a year through their dealer network. For most of us, that would be fine.
Yeah, take a look at the price gouging on Japan Exposures. $140US. The 20 sheets non Ql boxes are about what I was paying here so it sure isn't the exchange rate. Glad to see capitalism is strong in JP. I bet its $300/box next week.
Sorry!
Anglophone 1 is right, I called Jean-Claude Dal Cin at Adaflex and they dont't carry it anymore!
I need 5 boxes of the QL s.....if you can work out a bulk order!
Steve
After looking around [web] europe I can report that Robert White in UK has a batch arriving during October........
Clive
www.clive-evans.com
Hi, sorry, I am only seeing your reply now.
The Japanese photo market, including film, is huge and a lot of products are supported by the domestic market alone. I am working on a volume order of Acros QL, but it is currently sold out and the next batch is coming up in mid-December. Not the symptoms of a product that isn't selling.
As for Astia 100F and others in 8x10, also no problem. The exchange rate being favourable, I am not sure. Perhaps you are paying in gold, everything else is pretty much down against the yen, between 15-30%. Tough for me, believe me. Happy to explore group orders, contact me privately please.
Dirk - I sent you an email. I'm in on a Acros group order.
I'd be interested in a group order.
Curious, at least. Perhaps 8x10 Astia as well, though leaning towards PRO160s as my go to 8x10 color.
LJS
Would Acros in 8x10 be of interest? I am in on that depending on price of course.
Based on a reply to ordering from Dirk at japanexposures, if there is to be a "group order" thru them, it will apparently have placed by some party here in the US aggregating for a large group, as an order of 5 boxes wouldn't qualify for any discount from listed prices of $100+/box.
Rick - so you're saying we need a volunteer in the USA to coordinate it?
Hi guys,
thank you for your interest.
To make this work one of you needs to coordinate to get the maximum efficiency. Chances are that this coordinator will only need to collect payment and that the individual orders might be sent directly to the individuals. This depends on the quantities. For US import duty formalities I recommend staying under $2000 per person, around 20 boxes.
Of course we can consider other formats and films too, depending on quantities.
As I wrote before, the next Acros QL will become available in December, perhaps earlier. Thus I recommend putting things together by the end of October so we can commit on the quantities and exchange rate.
Kirk,
Amplified by Dirk's reply, I'd say so. Good thing Bernie Madoff isn't a LF photographer and potential intermediary! I think the price/box and estimated shipping will be a factor- we'd need to know that to make an informed decision.
Dirk, can you please give us some parameters?
Let's do this privately. I already supplied Kirk some details.
If anyone is interested, let me know and we can see where this can go. Email me at kirk@keyesphoto.com