Thanks for answers!
I made collodion from an Old Workhorse recipe.
240 ml collodion
200 ml alcohol
200 ml ether
1.6 g cadmium bromide
1.4 g ammonium bromide
5.0 g ammonium iodide
I reduced the content of all components by half, keeping the proportions.
There was no mention of water in the recipe, but I dissolved each salt in 1-2 ml of distilled water and then poured into collodion already diluted with alcohol and ether.
Old Workhorse MUST ripen for at least two weeks before it is properly ready for use.Originally Posted by Andros-zz
Here is the recipe from my notes:
“OLD WORK HORSE” John Coffer
Collodion Recipe
Bromo–Iodized Alcohol Mixture:
In a Glass Beaker Dissolve:
• 0.8 gram Cadmium Bromide {Metal Salt}
• 0.7 gram Ammonium Bromide {Metal Salt}
Into 3 ml DISTILLED Water
To this ADD & Dissolve:
• 2.5 gram Potassium Iodide {Metal Salt}
ADD: 100 ml 190 Proof GRAIN Alcohol
Ether–Collodion Mixture:
In a another Glass Beaker (or Graduated Cylinder)
Combine 120 ml “PLAIN COLLODION USP”
With 50 ml of ETHER
***** ALWAYS Add ETHER TO COLLODION *****
STIR and Add Bromo–Iodized Alcohol Mixture TO Ether–Collodion Mixture
Needs to ripen for Approximately 2 Weeks
Last edited by paulbarden; 27-Feb-2022 at 17:18.
Many thanks for your answers and your invaluable experience!
In this case, I will wait another week, and then I will try the collodion and write the result. If the result is still unsatisfactory, then I will try to find better quality reagents and repeat the mixing.
Does the order of blending have a big effect on the result? I have seen different information on this subject, but the opinion of a successful collodionist is especially important.
Today I tried again to take a picture on my collodion. And now it works as it should. He really needed some time to insist. Thanks for the support and advice! I am sure that I will turn to you, experienced collodionists, for help more than once. Inspiration to you and successful shooting!
Excellent news, Andros! I was 99% certain you'd discover that the collodion just needed more time to ripen properly. Now you know what to do in the future!
I couldn't find the answer to this (doesn't mean it's not there), but how long is a silver nitrate bath good for? In other words, how many plates could I sensitize? I have been reading about sunning/heating the bath a few times a year, and this suggests the shelf life is relatively long.
I ask this because I have almost finished building my first DIY 11x14 sliding box camera, and I am weighing the pros and cons of using wet plate (which I have done with 5X7 several years ago) or using Rockland's liquid light emulsion for dry plates (which I have done in a ton of different formats for tintypes and ambrotypes and some weird stuff with enlargers).
If I can make a one silver nitrate bath that can be used many times, this would save me a TON of money in the long run. I know it is not a cheap alternative per say, but I have most of the stuff I would need already, just not the silver nitrate.
Thank you!!
My silver nitrate bath is well over ten years old and has had well over a thousand plates through it. With occasional maintenance and replenishing, I expect many more years out of it.
"I love my Verito lens, but I always have to sharpen everything in Photoshop..."
I've been doing tin types steadily for the past two years, mostly 5x7 but also 4x5 and 8x10. I'm finding I need to sun the silver and filter intensely about every 60 tins or so. I sun it for about two days, check the specific gravity and add more water/silver solution to bring up the volume. I also end up adding some silver as well to bring it to proper SG. I sometimes boil it off a little bit to get rid of the solvent build up, maybe every 200 plates or so. I'm going to guess you can do about 50 11x14 before needing to at least sun it and add more silver solution to bring up the volume. If you don't do this you'll be getting little black dots all over the plate. Silver maintenance is easily the biggest pain in the butt of wet plate.
Kent in SD
In contento ed allegria
Notte e di vogliam passar!
Thank you!! This is encouraging!!
The silver bath can last indefinitely, if properly maintained. John Coffer states that some of his silver baths are twenty-plus years old and still fully functional.
You may know by now that "maintenance" involves regular filtering, monitoring of the specific gravity of the bath (to measure how much silver you've taken out) and replenishment of the silver nitrate content. You will also have to occasionally sun the bath to let the alcohol evaporate and prompt the debris to settle out for filtering. There are other maintenance actions you may have to take further down the road as well, but replenishing, filtering and sunning are the main ones.
Note: I'm one of those practitioners who will warn you not to boil your silver bath for "heavy maintenance": you are in danger of creating silver fulminate in the process, and that compound is outrageously dangerous (explosive). There are alternatives to boiling your silver bath - get a good manual and learn the techniques. Quinn Jacobson's "Chemical Pictures" is a good option. (Quinn's not the most organized writer, so the book isn't the most coherent volume on the subject, but the actual information in the book is excellent, as long as you have the patience for his writing style)
Regarding the cost of maintaining the silver bath: Replenishing the silver content of the bath is something that must be done regularly. Measure the SG and top up the bath as needed. Many practitioners add a gram of AgNO3 after every plate making session. If you make 50 plates and then choose to replenish, you may find you are adding 20 or more grams of Silver to top it up. So its still not cheap to maintain the bath - you have to replace the silver you take out every time you sensitize a plate. But yes, its far cheaper than making a fresh bath every time after you've made 50 plates! I'll say it again: get yourself a good manual that describes these practices in more detail. John Coffers "Doers Guide" is another excellent source of information.
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