loading 120 film into plastic developing reels

December 9, 2005, from Lloyd Erlick,

Lately I've been working on a backlog of
about two hundred rolls of 120 format black
and white film. At first I was doing them in
ten roll batches, then I switched to twenty
rolls at a time.

I use the Jobo 1501 plastic reels, which hold
two rolls of 120 film each. The film is
'walked' into the reel from its outer edge.

In the course of loading ten or twenty rolls,
it has always been possible for a snag to
occur, making it difficult to finish loading
a reel, or forcing me to remove the roll and
start again.

Many people advise snipping the 'leading'
corners of the roll before inserting it into
the reel. I've always resisted this because
it slows me down too much. Aiming the nail
clippers at the tiny corner tips in the dark
is just too slow. Of course, snagged film
slows one down far more.

But -- I've made the first change in my
technique in years. Instead of snipping the
corners so they can't snag on the reel's
ribs, I tried folding the corners up. It
works like a charm. In eighty rolls so far,
not a single snag. I can load twenty rolls in
forty minutes.

The fold I make is the smallest my fingers
can manage. The folded-up tip of each corner
must not be so large that it binds against
the 'top' of the groove. It has to enter the
gate at the entrance to the reel without too
much resistance. Basically, I found if I just
fold up the smallest amount of film I can,
it's fine.

regards,
--le
________________________________
Lloyd Erlick Portraits, Toronto.
voice: 416-686-0326
email:
net: www.heylloyd.com
________________________________
--

The other occasional "snipping" problem is the "snips" can end up in the
tank and locally block development. Avoidable but only after you become
aware of the potential for a problem.

--
darkroommike


"Lloyd Erlick" Lloyd at @the-wire. dot com wrote in message
...
December 9, 2005, from Lloyd Erlick,

Lately I've been working on a backlog of
about two hundred rolls of 120 format black
and white film. At first I was doing them in
ten roll batches, then I switched to twenty
rolls at a time.

I use the Jobo 1501 plastic reels, which hold
two rolls of 120 film each. The film is
'walked' into the reel from its outer edge.

In the course of loading ten or twenty rolls,
it has always been possible for a snag to
occur, making it difficult to finish loading
a reel, or forcing me to remove the roll and
start again.

Many people advise snipping the 'leading'
corners of the roll before inserting it into
the reel. I've always resisted this because
it slows me down too much. Aiming the nail
clippers at the tiny corner tips in the dark
is just too slow. Of course, snagged film
slows one down far more.

But -- I've made the first change in my
technique in years. Instead of snipping the
corners so they can't snag on the reel's
ribs, I tried folding the corners up. It
works like a charm. In eighty rolls so far,
not a single snag. I can load twenty rolls in
forty minutes.

The fold I make is the smallest my fingers
can manage. The folded-up tip of each corner
must not be so large that it binds against
the 'top' of the groove. It has to enter the
gate at the entrance to the reel without too
much resistance. Basically, I found if I just
fold up the smallest amount of film I can,
it's fine.

regards,
--le
________________________________
Lloyd Erlick Portraits, Toronto.
voice: 416-686-0326
email:
net: www.heylloyd.com
________________________________
--

An interesting tip Lloyd, I will try that next time I load my Jobo reels. I
expect with around 200 or so rolls that you will be spending more time
processing and drying them than taking photo`s. Very tedious if you don`t
enjoy film processing.
Good luck.

"Lloyd Erlick" Lloyd at @the-wire. dot com wrote in message
...
December 9, 2005, from Lloyd Erlick,

Lately I've been working on a backlog of
about two hundred rolls of 120 format black
and white film. At first I was doing them in
ten roll batches, then I switched to twenty
rolls at a time.

I use the Jobo 1501 plastic reels, which hold
two rolls of 120 film each. The film is
'walked' into the reel from its outer edge.

In the course of loading ten or twenty rolls,
it has always been possible for a snag to
occur, making it difficult to finish loading
a reel, or forcing me to remove the roll and
start again.

Many people advise snipping the 'leading'
corners of the roll before inserting it into
the reel. I've always resisted this because
it slows me down too much. Aiming the nail
clippers at the tiny corner tips in the dark
is just too slow. Of course, snagged film
slows one down far more.

But -- I've made the first change in my
technique in years. Instead of snipping the
corners so they can't snag on the reel's
ribs, I tried folding the corners up. It
works like a charm. In eighty rolls so far,
not a single snag. I can load twenty rolls in
forty minutes.

The fold I make is the smallest my fingers
can manage. The folded-up tip of each corner
must not be so large that it binds against
the 'top' of the groove. It has to enter the
gate at the entrance to the reel without too
much resistance. Basically, I found if I just
fold up the smallest amount of film I can,
it's fine.

regards,
--le
________________________________
Lloyd Erlick Portraits, Toronto.
voice: 416-686-0326
email:
net: www.heylloyd.com
________________________________
--

On Wed, 14 Dec 2005 18:03:24 -0000, "Keith
Tapscott" wrote:

with around 200 or so rolls that you will be spending more time
processing and drying them than taking photo`s. Very tedious if you don`t
enjoy film processing.
Good luck.


December 15, 2005, from Lloyd Erlick,

It has been a film developing marathon. I
finished just a few days ago, on Sunday. I do
enjoy it, though, even though it indeed has
its tedious side. I like to develop film in
total darkness. I usually wait until I have a
number of rolls, so I can do ten or twenty
roll batches. The tank would be very heavy if
I wanted to agitate by inversion. I just set
out a bunch of open-top cylindrical tanks and
agitate by lift and lower. I'm happy sitting
there in peace. Silence, trickling water, the
radio, I don't care. I just shut off the
computer -- and the phone.

My shower is kind of a walk-in-closet-deep
tile affair. I suspended some dowels across
the top, and hang my rolls of film there. I
like to sluice distilled water down both
sides of each roll after I hang them, so the
shower is the perfect place.

regards,
--le
________________________________
Lloyd Erlick Portraits, Toronto.
voice: 416-686-0326
email:
net: www.heylloyd.com
________________________________
--