Plastics question for film developing

[Bob Salomon]

I never could get even development out of the Combiplan, not even close. But ever after, I've used those Combi inserts for keeping 4x5 sheets properly spaced in my big acrylic wash tank. Never a problem. Bob is right.

If you couldn’t get even development you did not follow the printed instructions. The CombiPlan would not have been on the market for over half a century if it didn’t work properly. And the only reason why it was discontinued was because the tools had to be remade and that was just too expensive.

[Oren Grad]

I've never used a Paterson 35mm reel - I wonder how the film comes off the reel easily when wet? (I know you can't load the reels wet but I've never heard anyone complain about getting the roll off reel after processing. Maybe the channels the film sits in have a lot of space so it floats around more instead of sticking. Not sure.

FWIW: yes, either 35 or 120 film slides out of wet Paterson reels easily.

EDIT: To be precise, I should have said film and Paterson reels wet with diluted Photo-Flo. Yes, I rinse my reels with plain water immediately after each use.

[Tin Can]

Sticky lock balls may happen in the reel in not washed again after film is removed

[Drew Wiley]

Don't try to leverage me with that comment, Bob. Nobody in their right mind would risk hard fought prize negatives to anything as squirrelly as that. Just the excessive drain and refill times involved would negate any high level of predictability. And that is why some people just ignore the outer part and use the insert by itself dip n' dunk method in the dark, much like old fashioned tank film hangers, which could be problematic enough. In no time flat I got dramatically better results using trays, and have never looked back. I don't want "just OK". You should see some of my own toys. Improving concepts is what I do. I too can invent and improvise. Jerry Rigg will probably be on my epitaph.

[Bob Salomon]

Don't try to leverage me with that comment, Bob. Nobody in their right mind would risk hard fought prize negatives to anything as squirrelly as that. Just the excessive drain and refill times involved would negate any high level of predictability. And that is why some people just ignore the outer part and use the insert by itself dip n' dunk method in the dark, much like old fashioned tank film holders, which could be problematic enough. In no time flat I got dramatically better results using trays, and have never looked back. I don't want "just OK". You should see some of my own toys. Improving concepts is what I do. I too can invent and improvise. Jerry Rigg will probably be on my epitaph.

Combina made the CombiPlan T daylight system and the CombiPlan L darkroom system. Both used the same tank and film insert. But the L did not have a light tight top and was for a dip and dunk type line. It also offered a floating lid to keep,chemistry clean.
As you don’t know about the L version as it was a very poor seller and not nearly as popular as the T system. The same two types were also available for 57 processing.

[Drew Wiley]

Thanks for the distinction, Bob. You are correct. All I knew about was frustrated people using the daylight components in the dark instead, improvising their own open top dunk tanks. And that was realistic.

[Bob Salomon]

Thanks for the distinction, Bob. You are correct. All I knew about was frustrated people using the daylight components in the dark instead, improvising their own open top dunk tanks. And that was realistic.

The 57 and the 45 L versions today are very hard to find as we discontinued them in 1983 after the founder of HP Marketing had retired.

The system, as well as their roll film tanks and reels was invented after the war in Germany by a guy named Krause and they were called the Krause CombiPlan and Combina system.
He sold the tools to Gepe about 20 years later and they became the Gepe CombiPlan and Combina system. In the late 80s Gepe decided that they would switch USA distribution from HP Marketing to Braun North America. But Braun was the Patterson distributor and would not take the Combina products. So Gepe sold the system to us. So originally it was a German product. Then became a Swedish product, then became an American made product. However we were not satisfied with the American molders using molds designed for European molds and since we were owned by the parent company of Gepe we sent the molds back to the Swedish factory and they again became a Swedish product until Gepe moved most of their photo product manufacturing to their factory in Garmish-Partinkirchen where it again became a German made product until the tanks were discontinued about 7 years ago. The Garmish factory is where the Pako mounts were from.
.

[Drew Wiley]

Gosh. Sounds like all the back n forth ping pong games I had to deal with over equipment distribution issues myself. A good device might be improved by someone else, or perhaps ruined instead. Once the era of vulture capitalism arrived, everything got predictable - products always got way worse.

[MartinP]

Don't try to leverage me with that comment, Bob. Nobody in their right mind would risk hard fought prize negatives to anything as squirrelly as that. Just the excessive drain and refill times involved would negate any high level of predictability. And that is why some people just ignore the outer part and use the insert by itself dip n' dunk method in the dark, much like old fashioned tank film hangers, which could be problematic enough. In no time flat I got dramatically better results using trays, and have never looked back. I don't want "just OK". You should see some of my own toys. Improving concepts is what I do. I too can invent and improvise. Jerry Rigg will probably be on my epitaph.

This is what I do, with the original tank for dev then kitchen plastic tubs for stop, fix and wash. Obviously this is in the dark. My sheet-film developing started with stainless hangers in baskets dunked in to tanks of chemicals, back in the '80s, so it is a sort of familiar method. In theory I could buy a Jobo reel for an old 2520/2820 tank that came with an enlarger I bought, but there doesn't seem to be any point so far (processing black and white only).

[Willie]

PVC pipes tall enough for a full length roll of the film you use.

One for pre-soak. One for developer. One for stop bath. One for fixer. One for rinse.

Fill each and let get to room temperature. Open film cannister or 120 roll. Put on a clip you can life and move around - weight on the end of the film for going into the tubes.

Develop in the dark, lift and shift to the next tank.

Works well but takes time to get smooth with it.