Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 15

Thread: Ilford Ilfosol 3

  1. #1

    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    Italy
    Posts
    138

    Ilford Ilfosol 3

    Hello to all,

    My Kodak HC-110 bottle is almost empty and I'm looking for a universal developer non-Kodak branded that could works well with the films I use the most: Fomapan 200, Ilford FP4, Ilford HP5.
    Since I do few developing sessions in a month, I need something durable and convenient.
    I know that Ilfotec HC is the direct countepart of Kodak HC110 but I would give Ilfosol 3 a try.

    I like D76 (ID11) too but it is anything but convenient; could Ilfosol be comparable to D76 in terms or grain and contrast rendition? Does anyone have experience with this dev?

    Thank you!
    Pressing the shutter is the only easy thing

  2. #2
    Tin Can's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    22,384

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    !0 years ago when I started my LF adventure Ilfosol 3 was the first developer I tried

    It didn't seem to last in bottle very long after opened, I disposed of it

    I soon switched to Rodinol which lasts far better, some say it never goes bad, IDK

    I was given a case of ancient sealed Rodinol, I still use some of that and many variations that all seem to work the same

    I like simple high dilution liquid developers

    Nearly everybody here has a prefered developer and says theirs is best

    They all develop film
    Tin Can

  3. #3

    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Montreal, Canada
    Posts
    1,993

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    Ilfosol will likely give you slightly less emulsion speed or shadow detail than D-76/ID-11, but it may or may not be noticeable so you’d need to try it for yourself. Ilfosol will also be more grainy than D-76/ID-11, however again, you’d really need to try it and decide if you can see a difference because perception of graininess obviously depends on which film you use and how much you enlarge your negatives.

    A liquid alternative more similar to the D-76/ID-11 would be Ilfotec DD-X.

    As you noted, Ilfotec HC might be a better choice if you want a developer similar to HC-110. Rodinal is an additional option which will be very economical, long lasting, reliable and easy to use. It will give you grainier negatives than D-76/ID-11 but as with Ilfosol the increase in graininess may or may not matter.


    Quote Originally Posted by Roberto Nania View Post
    Hello to all,

    My Kodak HC-110 bottle is almost empty and I'm looking for a universal developer non-Kodak branded that could works well with the films I use the most: Fomapan 200, Ilford FP4, Ilford HP5.
    Since I do few developing sessions in a month, I need something durable and convenient.
    I know that Ilfotec HC is the direct countepart of Kodak HC110 but I would give Ilfosol 3 a try.

    I like D76 (ID11) too but it is anything but convenient; could Ilfosol be comparable to D76 in terms or grain and contrast rendition? Does anyone have experience with this dev?

    Thank you!

  4. #4

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    Buy the raw materials to make D76H. Couldn't be easier to do and lasts a very long time.

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Jul 2020
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    457

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    I've been burned twice by Ilfosol 3. Once the container has been opened, the concentrate goes bad very quickly. By bad, I mean no image at all on the film. Completely blank. As Tin Can noted, Rodinal is a much better alternative as a high dilution developer. I've used Rodinal from partially full containers that were at least 30 years old with no problems. That being said, Rodinal is much grainier than D76/ID11, but for large format film that usually isn't a concern.

  6. #6

    Join Date
    Mar 2020
    Location
    Italy
    Posts
    138

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    Thank you gents.

    Looking at you experience, I will skip Ilfosol 3.

    I didn't like Rodinal when I used it for 35mm, I always got too contrast and poor shadow details with it; maybe it was my fault or I should test different dilution with it; it was never love with Rodinal.

    Ilfotec DDX should be the counterpart of Kodak T-Max which is a developer that I loved a lot used on HP5 and TMax3200. Though it's not cheap.

    Considering that I plan to move to the 8x10 film size(so larger volume of chemicals), maybe I would stick with HC110 for as long kodak survives and keep D76-ID11 or the D76H formula for some very special portrait shots.
    Pressing the shutter is the only easy thing

  7. #7
    Tin Can's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    22,384

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    I like grain
    Tin Can

  8. #8
    mike rosenlof's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 1998
    Location
    Louisville, Colorado, USA
    Posts
    356

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    I used Ilfosol S back in the 90s and was always happy with the results. I never had a developing failure, but I was using it up pretty quickly at that time. Still, it was probablly a couple of months to finish a bottle. I switched to hc-110 when I started developing film less often.

  9. #9

    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Chichester, UK
    Posts
    463

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    I am a big fan of DD-X. It is expensive but you can use it 1+9 to keep costs down and still get good results.

  10. #10
    おせわに なります! Andrew O'Neill's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    Coquitlam, BC, Canada, eh!
    Posts
    5,136

    Re: Ilford Ilfosol 3

    HP5 looks great in Ilfosol-3 diluted 1+14. EI 250.

Similar Threads

  1. BTZS and Ilfosol 3
    By DHodson in forum Darkroom: Film, Processing & Printing
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 20-Jan-2017, 21:17
  2. Ilfosol 3 Diluted at 1+14
    By Don Homewood in forum Darkroom: Film, Processing & Printing
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 11-Apr-2016, 10:05
  3. Ilfosol 3
    By BillGM in forum Darkroom: Film, Processing & Printing
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 1-Oct-2011, 13:39
  4. Pan F 50 & ilfosol s "what's wrong with that !!
    By GOLDFISH in forum Darkroom: Film, Processing & Printing
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 17-Nov-2009, 06:55
  5. Ilfosol 3
    By PBimages in forum Darkroom: Film, Processing & Printing
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 14-Jul-2008, 09:27

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •