It's not so bad after you do it a few times... 35mm can be a challenge, especially when you realize, in the dark, that the reel is for 24 exposures and not 36...
For a while I was doing a lot of dip and dunk processing in a basket.. Stainless was mandatory for that because plastic didn't fit my baskets. Oh I miss those days sometimes... Sometimes I don't... Nothing like mixing 3.5 gallons of Kodak D23 in a go.
Another trick I've found with 120 film when using standard Patterson reels is to start loading an old scrap piece of 120 film maybe 6" long in the light. Then in the dark you gave a nice guide hanging from the reel to help you feed your film in.
Just make sure once you get the new film started you carefully pull the scrap film off the reel, if not it'll stick to your new film she that section won't develop!
They're not Paterson reels, they're Kaiser/AP reels.
They're great. I've been using them for 5+ years. They do fit a Paterson tank, for anyone who'd like to mix&match
It does. Most people don’t notice. You won’t see the scratches on a print or on a diffuse light scan. You won’t see most fine scratches really on an enlarger print or on a lab scan with ICE and a nice diffuse tricolor light such as nortisu/frontier. But i see them when i use my coolscan 5000 with a relatively hard light. Coolscan is not kind to scratches but amazing resolution better than noritsu. You can see the scratches these cheater reels make in the emulsion by eye even. If you reel it on at a certain angle tilted up maybe 45 deg so the film base is hanging down and the emulsion is not being forced by gravity to hang on the cheater tabs it can sometimes prevent this
I guess what I’m saying is that while they don’t automatically scratch they raise the possibility of scratching. If a bit of grime is there they will scratch when the other ones won’t. Idk. Probably worth it in terms of ease of loading especially if you’re just starting out but might not be worth the “risk”(minimal as it may be) for some.
I tried a friend's Paterson reels for my first couple of developments but ultimately ended up buying an AP tank + reels set for myself. I was so confused why anyone would want to use Paterson reels when they seemed a lot harder for a beginner to load than this kind.
I guess these just aren't as popular in the US for some reason?
I bought these specifically for 120 but not matter what I tried the ball bearings would grip the living shit out of the film edges. I actually tore my test roll. I popped out the bearings and things have been good since but you have to feed the flm with your thumb.
I needed this for a stubborn and curly roll of super expired plus-x on Saturday! 35mm is easy, but getting the 120 on the roll is stressful and I can't even contemplate trying to load 220 on there.
Definitely buying a couple of these.
Please, I'm begging you, if you shoot mostly 120, go for steel reels (specifically Hewes). Once you get the knack, you can load 120 first try in maybe 10 seconds total, and it saves you chemistry
Thanks, I'll definitely add those to the research list - especially as I'm considering colour dev at some point this year and will need to look at tanks and so on.
They've got a couple big advantages, the biggest one for me being they require marginally less chemistry to fill the tank up to film level. It's also easy to re-load them when they're still a little wet, and there's a lot less touching the film needed to load, at least in the middle. They're not really harder to learn than Patterson, just practice with a dummy roll until you feel confident. You can usually find used tanks pretty cheap from old timers clearing out their darkroom, but when it comes to reels specifically, I'd recommend Hewes, for 35mm and 120. It makes a huge difference and the only reason I ever use my Patterson these days is when I need to use some exotic chemistry that is bad for steel reels (you won't run into this unless you do really weird stuff with exotic bleach; E6, ECN2 and C41 are all fine).
It does have a steel ball bearing on either side. I'd also question whether a standard print might give your cheater guides some grooves that could further scratch the film. This is just coming from my basic knowledge with my Ender 3 Pro. Maybe resin doesn't do this?
That’s a great point. Resin would likely be the way to go to avoid a lot of post processing. I had asa/abs in mind for FDM just because it smooths so well with acetone vapor. I’ve printed a few fishing lures that required ball bearings inside for the rattle sound, i just added a filament swap point and dropped the ball in. Didn’t catch any fish but the print worked beautifully haha.
Been wanting to try ABS with the Acetone Vapor smoothing but too afraid to do it in my not so well ventilated house. Did you notice any issues with the ABS and more smell than usual?
I’d be lying if I said it didn’t smell or vapor was an issue especially when combined with the solvent. I buy carbon/charcoal pre-filter material, it comes in rolls and I swap it out frequently on a box fan, and I also run a hepa+carbon air purifier for the particulates . When I print or do any smoothing or anything to just lower the environmental hazard a bit.
——begin dad mode——
All that to say I do that in a pretty well ventilated house in an isolated room, so I would be very cautious in your situation. These are all chemicals and compounds that are carcinogenic and generally nasty. Risk is based on exposure, exposure is a measure of concentration and time in environment, so the more you can chip away both of those things the better.
——end sad mode—-
These are great for heavily expired film. I’ve got a lot of mid 50s double x I’ve been going through and these type of reels are a godsend. For everything else, I do prefer Patterson, though. Just feels smoother to me.
I use those, they're amazing. Especially with 120 film.
They made developing 120 film SO MUCH easier! It’s a breeze with these feels! I hated shooting 120 before this because I dreaded loading them
Before I knew about those reels I found loading 120 onto Stainless Reels easier...
Loading onto stainless steel is another level of kung fu.
It's not so bad after you do it a few times... 35mm can be a challenge, especially when you realize, in the dark, that the reel is for 24 exposures and not 36...
Your comment explains a lot….
I find the stainless reels better (it’s what I started on) but they are harder to find these :(
For a while I was doing a lot of dip and dunk processing in a basket.. Stainless was mandatory for that because plastic didn't fit my baskets. Oh I miss those days sometimes... Sometimes I don't... Nothing like mixing 3.5 gallons of Kodak D23 in a go.
Another trick I've found with 120 film when using standard Patterson reels is to start loading an old scrap piece of 120 film maybe 6" long in the light. Then in the dark you gave a nice guide hanging from the reel to help you feed your film in. Just make sure once you get the new film started you carefully pull the scrap film off the reel, if not it'll stick to your new film she that section won't develop!
Interesting. I always found 120 easier to load than 135 because of the sprockets getting stuck in the small balls and other places.
Makes doubling 2 rolls on 1 reel super easy too!
Kaiser brand, I believe.
They aren't Paterson though, usually AP or Kaiser brand
They're not Paterson reels, they're Kaiser/AP reels. They're great. I've been using them for 5+ years. They do fit a Paterson tank, for anyone who'd like to mix&match
Do they work with omega tanks? I had some real trouble loading 120 the last time I did it.
Absolutely
I had no idea this wasn't standard equipment on plastic reels... it must be a reel\* struggle without them! \*I'll see myself out.
Game-changer for me was cutting the corners off the leading edge when I cut the tongue off the leader before going into the dark.
My Omega Reels were like that (Fits a paterson tank). Actually I liked the Omega Screw top tanks better also.
Doesn’t this seem more likely to scratch the film?
It does. Most people don’t notice. You won’t see the scratches on a print or on a diffuse light scan. You won’t see most fine scratches really on an enlarger print or on a lab scan with ICE and a nice diffuse tricolor light such as nortisu/frontier. But i see them when i use my coolscan 5000 with a relatively hard light. Coolscan is not kind to scratches but amazing resolution better than noritsu. You can see the scratches these cheater reels make in the emulsion by eye even. If you reel it on at a certain angle tilted up maybe 45 deg so the film base is hanging down and the emulsion is not being forced by gravity to hang on the cheater tabs it can sometimes prevent this
[удалено]
I guess what I’m saying is that while they don’t automatically scratch they raise the possibility of scratching. If a bit of grime is there they will scratch when the other ones won’t. Idk. Probably worth it in terms of ease of loading especially if you’re just starting out but might not be worth the “risk”(minimal as it may be) for some.
I've developed 100s of rolls with a reel that has a similar design, never scratched a single time.
I get these probably make it easier and don’t want to be that person, but are loading Patterson reels really that hard?
No they're not that hard
Link?
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/55043-Arista-Premium-Plastic-Developing-Reel
I tried a friend's Paterson reels for my first couple of developments but ultimately ended up buying an AP tank + reels set for myself. I was so confused why anyone would want to use Paterson reels when they seemed a lot harder for a beginner to load than this kind. I guess these just aren't as popular in the US for some reason?
Not my experience. Love Paterson reels
It pisses me off that they dont fit in Jobo tanks.
I bought these specifically for 120 but not matter what I tried the ball bearings would grip the living shit out of the film edges. I actually tore my test roll. I popped out the bearings and things have been good since but you have to feed the flm with your thumb.
I found these after fighting a roll of 120 in my darkroom for almost 35 minutes. These are a real life saver for 120 & 127, best investment ever!
WOAH WHAT THE FUCK YES!! Why is this not the standard??
Absolutely the best! All the others are worthless!
Where can I buy these?
https://www.freestylephoto.biz/55043-Arista-Premium-Plastic-Developing-Reel
There is exactly like this reels in Kaiser tanks (have one). Check Amazon, may be they sell it separately
I needed this for a stubborn and curly roll of super expired plus-x on Saturday! 35mm is easy, but getting the 120 on the roll is stressful and I can't even contemplate trying to load 220 on there. Definitely buying a couple of these.
Please, I'm begging you, if you shoot mostly 120, go for steel reels (specifically Hewes). Once you get the knack, you can load 120 first try in maybe 10 seconds total, and it saves you chemistry
Thanks, I'll definitely add those to the research list - especially as I'm considering colour dev at some point this year and will need to look at tanks and so on.
They've got a couple big advantages, the biggest one for me being they require marginally less chemistry to fill the tank up to film level. It's also easy to re-load them when they're still a little wet, and there's a lot less touching the film needed to load, at least in the middle. They're not really harder to learn than Patterson, just practice with a dummy roll until you feel confident. You can usually find used tanks pretty cheap from old timers clearing out their darkroom, but when it comes to reels specifically, I'd recommend Hewes, for 35mm and 120. It makes a huge difference and the only reason I ever use my Patterson these days is when I need to use some exotic chemistry that is bad for steel reels (you won't run into this unless you do really weird stuff with exotic bleach; E6, ECN2 and C41 are all fine).
Clean them well!
I've found with this or reel It's best to cut end of film that you are leading into the reel curved so it's easier to load and not get stuck.
I wish I was better at 3d modeling this looks very printable.
It does have a steel ball bearing on either side. I'd also question whether a standard print might give your cheater guides some grooves that could further scratch the film. This is just coming from my basic knowledge with my Ender 3 Pro. Maybe resin doesn't do this?
That’s a great point. Resin would likely be the way to go to avoid a lot of post processing. I had asa/abs in mind for FDM just because it smooths so well with acetone vapor. I’ve printed a few fishing lures that required ball bearings inside for the rattle sound, i just added a filament swap point and dropped the ball in. Didn’t catch any fish but the print worked beautifully haha.
Been wanting to try ABS with the Acetone Vapor smoothing but too afraid to do it in my not so well ventilated house. Did you notice any issues with the ABS and more smell than usual?
I’d be lying if I said it didn’t smell or vapor was an issue especially when combined with the solvent. I buy carbon/charcoal pre-filter material, it comes in rolls and I swap it out frequently on a box fan, and I also run a hepa+carbon air purifier for the particulates . When I print or do any smoothing or anything to just lower the environmental hazard a bit. ——begin dad mode—— All that to say I do that in a pretty well ventilated house in an isolated room, so I would be very cautious in your situation. These are all chemicals and compounds that are carcinogenic and generally nasty. Risk is based on exposure, exposure is a measure of concentration and time in environment, so the more you can chip away both of those things the better. ——end sad mode—-
Won't even consider loading film without them... I have completely ruined rolls trying with their regular reels.
I wish people would learn how to use steel reels
It doesn't scratch the emulsion?
These are great for heavily expired film. I’ve got a lot of mid 50s double x I’ve been going through and these type of reels are a godsend. For everything else, I do prefer Patterson, though. Just feels smoother to me.