kodak Tmax RS developer formula

[Pat Kearns]

In a recent exchange of emails it appears that Tmax RS developer is a thing of the past. Any users of it will have to start looking for another developer. Below is the email reply on the Tmax RS inquiry.



From: kodakpaperchem [mailto:kodakpaperchem@pro.sinopromise.com]
Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 2021 11:19 PM
To: Pat Kearns
Subject: Tmax RS developer inquiry

Pat,
We received your email inquiry forwarded to us from Tim Ryugo.

After looking into this for you I've learned that now both products have been discontinued and unfortunately, we do not have an alternative product at this time. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you.

From: Pat Kearns
Sent: Monday, June 28, 2021 4:46 PM
To: Timothy K Ryugo <timothy.ryugo@KodakMomentscom>
Subject: RE: Tmax RS developer inquiry

[CAUTION: This email originated from outside of Kodak Alaris. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.]
________________________________________
Dear Tim,
In October 2019 , you told me that the Kodak Tmax RS developer & replenisher Cat Number 844 6163 had been discontinued but Kodak 2x25L T-Max RS developer Product #5054184 was available.

I have recently been told by B&H Photo and Freestyle that Kodak 2x25L T-Max RS developer Product #5054184 has been discontinued. Can you check to see if Kodak Alaris has completely discontinued T-Max RS liquid developer or is it being packaged and sold in a different quantity and product number? Thanks.

Best regards,
Pat Kearns

[John Brady]

Thanks for updating this thread, it may be time to start a new thread/new discussion about the demise of T-max RS as well as T-max 100 large format sheet film (8x10 in my case), maybe the rest to follow?
This combination has been my working combination for many years, as well as for many others. I am not as technical as most on this site, therefore testing new combinations is a bit more daunting. I'm a, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, type. Well, now it's broke.

My current thought is Ilford Delta 100 and Ilford DD-x developer, hopefully 1:9 at 75 deg (I live in Florida) What will or have the rest of you done?

In a recent exchange of emails it appears that Tmax RS developer is a thing of the past. Any users of it will have to start looking for another developer. Below is the email reply on the Tmax RS inquiry.



From: kodakpaperchem [mailto:kodakpaperchem@pro.sinopromise.com]
Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 2021 11:19 PM
To: Pat Kearns
Subject: Tmax RS developer inquiry

Pat,
We received your email inquiry forwarded to us from Tim Ryugo.

After looking into this for you I've learned that now both products have been discontinued and unfortunately, we do not have an alternative product at this time. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you.

From: Pat Kearns
Sent: Monday, June 28, 2021 4:46 PM
To: Timothy K Ryugo <timothy.ryugo@KodakMomentscom>
Subject: RE: Tmax RS developer inquiry

[CAUTION: This email originated from outside of Kodak Alaris. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.]
________________________________________
Dear Tim,
In October 2019 , you told me that the Kodak Tmax RS developer & replenisher Cat Number 844 6163 had been discontinued but Kodak 2x25L T-Max RS developer Product #5054184 was available.

I have recently been told by B&H Photo and Freestyle that Kodak 2x25L T-Max RS developer Product #5054184 has been discontinued. Can you check to see if Kodak Alaris has completely discontinued T-Max RS liquid developer or is it being packaged and sold in a different quantity and product number? Thanks.

Best regards,
Pat Kearns

[interneg]

the demise of T-max RS as well as T-max 100 large format sheet film

Sorry, but whatever conflations you are making are incorrect. Tmax RS seems to have been discontinued in the handover of the Kodak branded chemistry from Alaris to Sino Promise. I suspect there was not enough demand for it to be worth reformulating in the way that Tmax and HC-110 have been. Tmax 100 is manufactured by Kodak for Kodak Alaris and has been special order only in 8x10 for some considerable time. It's made as a stock item in 4x5 and on reaching an MOQ (which some sellers are able to reach - and Keith Canham marshals orders on a routine basis for various special cuts) in 8x10 (and other sizes). 320TXP seems to have returned to the 2021 product catalogue as a stock item in 8x10.

[John Brady]

Sorry, but whatever conflations you are making are incorrect.

Conflation, great word. Yes, 35mm, medium format and 4x5 are still available. 8x10 and larger, which I should have been more specific about, is not. Ordering film once a year is not ideal.
Below, as an example from one manufacturer, I think it’s fair to say an item no longer manufactured is discontinued.

Kodak TMAX 100 iso 8x10/10 sheets TXP
Model: 8095440
Manufacturer: Kodak

This item is no longer manufactured.

[interneg]

Conflation, great word. Yes, 35mm, medium format and 4x5 are still available. 8x10 and larger, which I should have been more specific about, is not. Ordering film once a year is not ideal.
Below, as an example from one manufacturer, I think it’s fair to say an item no longer manufactured is discontinued.

Kodak TMAX 100 iso 8x10/10 sheets TXP
Model: 8095440
Manufacturer: Kodak

This item is no longer manufactured.

This is the current 2021 range - https://imaging.kodakalaris.com/site...talog_List.pdf

And these are common enough special orders to have acquired ID codes - https://imaging.kodakalaris.com/site...cial-Order.pdf

For what it's worth, Kodak's 4x5 conversion is done on a fairly highly automated machine by 1-2 operators, while the other sheet formats require several discrete machines and more operator steps.

Nothing wrong with Delta 100 at all - I like its colour rendering the best of the lot (and it's incredibly sharp) - but if you need Tmax 100, then you need to work with the current situation - and I think most people prefer speed over granularity with 8x10.

[Drew Wiley]

TMax sheet films respond well to all kinds of developers; they're highly versatile in that respect. TMax RS developer used full strength would yield the most consistent straight line (pricey in that manner, if it were still around). But dilute HC-110 is far more affordable and a decent second if you have a special application needing minimal bowing in the middle portion of the curve. For pictorial work, I prefer PMK pyro developer for TMY400. It's excellent for TMX100 too, though I have recently switched to Perceptol 1:3 for TMX100 in order to enhance its otherwise weak edge effect (lesser 1:1 or 1:2 dilutions won't do that).

I consider Delta 100 a so-so emergency substitute. It has more of a toe to it, so for many of my purposes, it must be shot an entire stop slower in order to boost deep shadows up onto the straight line. I strongly prefer the spectral sensitivity of TMax to that of Delta. And TMax 100 doubles as an excellent lab film for sake of things like masking and color separations in a manner which Delta simply does not, so I always have sheets of 4X5 and 8x10 on hand anyway.

But TMY400 is really the cat's meow when it comes to outdoor view camera shooting, especially on breezy days. I've never noticed any problem in availability except briefly. The secret is just to keep a few extra boxes of 8x10 in the freezer. Large quantities of 8x10 in both 100 and 400 speed TMax are periodically cut for certain dealers. Yes, they eventually run out; but then the build-up to the next volume order begins. Keith Canham is a good source.

[tax888]

It's excellent for TMX100 too, though I have recently switched to Perceptol 1:3 for TMX100 in order to enhance its otherwise weak edge effect (lesser 1:1 or 1:2 dilutions won't do that).

Is Perceptol 1:3 the same as D-23 1:3?

Thank you Drew!

[Drew Wiley]

No. D-23 is different, and has more of a silver-solvent effect (exactly what I wouldn't want with TMX100). Perceptol is a common Ilford powder product, but it is possible to formulate something similar entirely from scratch.

[interneg]

Is Perceptol 1:3 the same as D-23 1:3?

Perceptol and Microdol-X are essentially the same. Both evolved from D-23 via the addition of Sodium Chloride as a further silver solvent, then some further anti-dichroic stain agents in tiny quantities - dichroic stain issues with tray processing etc seems to have been why the RS variant of Tmax was made - though most emulsions today incorporate ingredients designed to resist dichroic stain. The use of Metol exhaustion is not the only route to producing edge effects - the various Phenidones seem to do so through inhibition effects.

[Michael R]

No. D-23 is different, and has more of a silver-solvent effect (exactly what I wouldn't want with TMX100). Perceptol is a common Ilford powder product, but it is possible to formulate something similar entirely from scratch.

Opposite, Drew. Perceptol is essentially Microdol, which was essentially D-23 with (probably) a little less metol and the addition of sodium chloride for additional solvent effect. Microdol-type formulas were originally intended to be extra fine grain developers.

Of course at a 1+3 dilution both will have a little less solvent effect.