Topic: Rollei wetting agent

[Pete_R]

Bought some of this recently to try after Trevor Crone's recommendation in B&W. I bought it from Silverprint. I paid the same as Trevor did and the Silverprint part number was the same, but what I got wasn't what Trevor had. His was labelled 'SC' (super concentrate) which had a dilution of 1 to 999. Mine is labelled 'C' (concentrate) and has a dilution of 10 to 990. In other words, I got tens times less than Trevor for the same price. I'm pissed...

Haven't sorted this with Silverprint yet but thought I would post it in case anyone else happens to be buying it.

[david b]

I didn't really understand that review - he never explained what the advantage was over cheaper and more common wetting agents like Ilford's Ilfotol.

[Pete_R]

I didn't really understand that review - he never explained what the advantage was over cheaper and more common wetting agents like Ilford's Ilfotol.

True he didn't compare it with Ilfotol but he did with Mirasol. The main point that I think he made was that with the Rollei, in his hard water area, he got a better result i.e. no water marks. I have hard water as well and have always had problems getting clean negs so I thought it was worth trying.

[david b]

Fair enough - I've never suffered with water marks with Ilfotol, so I've never felt the need to try anything else.  In fact, I think I've been using the same bottle for 4 or 5 years now!

[Pete_R]

Well I cracked it open a couple of hours ago and used it for the first time. I followed the instructions and, for the first time ever as far as I can remember, didn't squeegee the film. Result? Absolutely awful... utter pants, water marks everywhere.

They were only on the non-emulsion side of the film and did (mostly) come off with a gentle rub from a lens tissue but I get a better result with fairy liquid (my ususal wetting agent) and a light squeegee.

[david b]

Have you considered doing a final rinse in distilled water?  I wouldn't ever squeegee film .. the idea is terrifying to me!

[Pete_R]

Have you considered doing a final rinse in distilled water?  I wouldn't ever squeegee film .. the idea is terrifying to me!

Yes I have considered it, but I've never actually tried.

I've never, knowingly, damaged a film by squeegeeing it. I use a Paterson squeegee I bought, maybe, 25 years ago, I always rinse it before use and only use it lightly. I can get very clean negs if I'm careful but I rarely get them perfect, hence why I thought I would try someting new.

[david b]

I'd give it a go ... really if you're using a wetting agent the water should just sluice off the negs really quickly without any hassle or need for the squeegee.  The other thing to try - if you don't already do this - is to hang the negs diagonally.  That way the water runs very quickly down and along the edge (rather than the surface) of the film.

[LT]

I bought a reasonably cheap Reverse osmosis filter from purityfilters on ebay - it only makes about 5litres per hour without a supplementary pump, but it has got rid of all the problems i was having from the chalky water - chemicals never get precipitates anymore, my homemix catechol devs dont show any probs anymore, and most importantly, negs are water mark free in both ilfosol and mirasol.  I think it cost me ?80 and took 1o mins to plumb in.

Squeegee film?  arggh - never!  And to think that when I started all this malarky up, I used to dry film off with toilet tissue and wonder why I spent so much time spotting prints!

[david b]

I get distilled water from a friend who works in a lab (shh, don't tell anyone), but I only really use it to mix up my Xtol stock solution.  If I was in Kent I'd do as Leon does though - when I visit family there I'm always amazed how hard the water is.  Even the tea tastes funny to my refined soft-Mancunian-water palate!

[LT]

Even the tea tastes funny to my refined soft-Mancunian-water palate!

Bahh - soft Northerners - bet you enjoy a nice Gin and Tonic of an evening too. whereas I drink beer and smoke tabs, me.

seriously  - if you're ever visiting and have an afternoon spare, it would be good to meet up for a chat, cup of chalky tea and a squached fly biscuit or two ?

[Pete_R]

Squeegee film?  arggh - never! 

Have you ever actually tried leon? I mean, with a proper film squeegee - not toilet tissue. I think the idea that a squeegee will damage the film is one of those myths that has built up over a long time and doesn't necessarily justify the outright condemnation it gets. Another is to not load 35mm film into a spiral straight from the can as pulling the film through the light trap will scratch the film . Of course, all things are possible, but how often does it actually happen?

As I said, I've always squeegeed films and have never seen a negative (pun intended) effect of doing so. I also load film straight from the can...

[LT]

of course I've tried!  I wouldnt make a statement like that If I hadn't!  

... and after continual scratches down the length of the film I stopped trying and left the air to do it's work.

My films get scratched if I so much as breathe on them too hard

[david b]

I must admit to have never actually tried the squeegee (and, by the way, I've now typed that word more times this afternoon than in my entire life up to this point) but I'm just deathly afraid of touching wet emulsion.

Bahh - soft Northerners - bet you enjoy a nice Gin and Tonic of an evening too. whereas I drink beer and smoke tabs, me.

seriously  - if you're ever visiting and have an afternoon spare, it would be good to meet up for a chat, cup of chalky tea and a squached fly biscuit or two ?

Hah - pint of Black Sheep or Old Peculier more like!  Anyway I was born in Kent, so I'm equal parts soft Southerner and Northerner.  Chalky blood flows in these veins!  A cuppa and a chat would be grand at some point - but at the moment I've got no idea when I'll next be down that way.

[seekingfocus]

of course I've tried!  I wouldnt make a statement like that If I hadn't!  

... and after continual scratches down the length of the film I stopped trying and left the air to do it's work.

My films get scratched if I so much as breathe on them too hard

I'll second that... I still squeegee my films, just for lack of a better solution. But, every once in a while, I do notice the tell tale lateral scratches down the film (even with a freshly washed and grit-free squeegee).

The comment about hanging films diagonally seems to make a lot of sense though! Why didn't I think of that before?!? 

-Jason

[david b]

The comment about hanging films diagonally seems to make a lot of sense though! Why didn't I think of that before?!? 

I can't remember where I got that from, but it's something I've done ever since I started developing my own film.  It's a particularly good idea with roll film.

[roryot]

What's the best method of hanging the negs diagonally? Two lines above a bath? I was thinking of attempting a Les Mclean homemade drying cabinet, but to be honest if I am shooting something critical (ie for somebody else), then I'll usually go down the C41 Neopan / XP2 route. Less scary, blame someone else ....!

[david b]

Well, my method is embarrassingly low tech and unprofessional.  I dry my negs in the shower, so they hang from the shower rail and then I have two suction cups with a length of wire between them that I attach to the tiled wall opposite. These are adjusted so that the strips are correctly taut with the faces vertical. I use the Paterson clips with the plastic hooks.

Hmm, I now feel I've given too much away about my sordid little life, playing with suction cups in the shower.  I'm sure people can figure out more elegant solutions!

[roryot]

Hmm, I now feel I've given too much away about my sordid little life, playing with suction cups in the shower.  I'm sure people can figure out more elegant solutions!

haha! I'll try something similar sometime soon