I've noted this on the pure-silver and UK LF lists already, but I thought others here might find this of interest. I have several cameras that can use 2x3 sheet film. It remains my favorite format striking a great balance between image quality and portability. However the selection of films in this format has dwindled considerably. So, I've been doing some testing to see how old, new-in-box film might fare since a fair bit of the old stock is still available on places like eBay.
In the examples below, the film was developed identically: Pyrocat-HD 1.5:1:200, Semistand for 60min with an initial vigorous agitation for 2 mins and a midpoint agitation of 10seconds. Neither film was refrigerated as best as I know, certainly not by me.
Stump: Kodak Tri-X expired in July, 1974 @full box ASA of 320 (Scan of silver print)
Branch: Kodak Plus-X expired in November, 1974 @full box ASA of 125 (Scan of negative)
Both films produced entirely normal negatives and essentially full box ASA. That's attributable largely to the use of Semistand development.
The Plus-X did show some increased Film Base+Fog but not a remarkable amount.
I wouldn't buy open boxes of old film, but these tests convince me that there's no reason to not use way out of date films.
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