Question for those who process Super 8 at home

[jamesb]

Long time lurker, first time poster here!

I am about to make the plunge to processing 100D S8 at home. From what my friends tell me it is best to go with a Lomo tank. Wanted some opinions/recommendations. Just wondering what the benefits of a Lomo are over, say, a Paterson tank. Also if a Paterson is okay to use, what model is recommended for S8 single cartridges?

Thank you.

James.

[woods01]

AFAIK Patterson never sold tanks capable of loading 50ft of film into a tank. People tend to use the larger Patterson tanks for bucket or spaghetti style processing. If you're going to do that type of processing then save yourself some money and just use regular buckets and develop in the dark. The only advantage to a Patterson tank is that you can agitate with the lights on. I've had good success with just regular buckets, you'll still get some scratches but with experience you can get decent results.

With the Lomo you want to make sure you get the 50ft or 30m sized tank so you don't have to cut your film in the middle. Most of the tanks on eBay are the 15m variety which are a lot more affordable and if you don't mind a splice in the middle of your roll can be a good start. Once you've learned how to load the the spiral in the dark its a pretty straightforward way to develop film. You can get near-lab results. The first time I used a Lomo I was amazed at how good the results were after years of bucket processing!

You can also get the Arkay G-3 rewind tank, its the same basic design of the more common Morse G-3 tank, the difference is that the Arkay can do 8/16/35mm where the Morse is 16/35. The Arkay rewinds are all black plastic where the Morse rewinds use metal and I believe the Arkay design does not have the re-exposure window (or at least my version doesn't). Its a slow process but its easier to load than the Lomo for newbies IMO. Its difficult to get as consistent results as you do with the Lomo but to me that is exactly the reason to use a G-3 tank. With the rewind tank you can get a pulsing in the images and sometimes a 'ghosting' effect, kind of like random flashes of solarization, due to underdevelopment. For the right kind of film its a pretty cool effect. The G-3 tanks are a lot more common and cheaper.

I've only done B&W processing at home but its been a rewarding choice. You have incredible control of your images: Push/Pull, solarizing, cross-process, tinting, coffee developing, etc. you can do it anything you want. Good luck!

[jamesb]

Woods-

Thank you for that detailed explanation. The 30m Lomo is a rarity unfortunately. I like the idea of the bucket technique. It's too bad a safe light cannot be used in handling of the film but I guess it something you get the hang of. I'm excited to try and process some. Not sure if it will be cost effective but i appreciate having more control as you said. Thanks very much again.

[71er]

For Super 8 you only need the 15 m Lomo tank. I can confirm that the results are good.
One thing I don't understand about "bucket processing" is how you manage to sort out the 15 m of intertwined film again. I have sometimes problems with the 7,5 m of slit standard 8 film, which is DRY.

[aj]

Jobo series 2500 or 3000 have larger diameters. The paperversions of these can be had quite affordable. Film versions of 3000/expert models can be very very expensive. Paper drums can be had from several brands and usually cost barely next to nothing.

Doing bucket in these would allow for lights-on chemistry swaps.

Would you think of doing rotational processing in these you would need something to drag the film through the baths. I.e. a rack or a set of sprirals with some spokes. The fluid will stay stationary of course

[joelpierre]

http://super8data.com/database/accessor ... s_list.htm

http://super8data.com/database/accessor ... 8-16mm.htm

http://super8data.com/database/accessor ... _nikor.htm

http://super8data.com/database/accessor ... -60150.htm

http://super8data.com/database/accessor ... rk_vii.htm

http://super8data.com/database/accessor ... cessor.htm

[peaceman]

or, cheapest: http://www.peaceman.de/blog/index.php/i ... ssing-tank

[woods01]

For Super 8 you only need the 15 m Lomo tank. I can confirm that the results are good.
One thing I don't understand about "bucket processing" is how you manage to sort out the 15 m of intertwined film again. I have sometimes problems with the 7,5 m of slit standard 8 film, which is DRY.

That's right, I made a mistake about the 15/30m tanks. Its the 10m tank that you have to be aware about
though compared to bucket processing a single splice is a going to be a lot less damaging.

Untangling the film after you're done is the hardest part! Thought with practice and a little luck you can
do it quite quickly, I find its best to use a large amount of chemistry (3 to 4L) so I don't have to be very
aggressive when agitating. Saves on scratching and tangling.

[MattWalters]

according to something I've found it looks really easy to process super 8 in its own cartridge in a bucket or flat bottomed plastic box - this from a schematic I have seen let me dig it up..

steps:

buy a plastic box or bucket

glue a few guides to make a super 8 cartridge fit snug into the bottom

glue a stick with a bearing on the bottom a few cm away from where the cart sits

put some kind of rubber around the bearing area, or a soft surface

make another stick that has two prongs in it (to fit into the super 8 claw area

insert the cart into the guide area

put the stick into the claw area on the cart

pull out just enough film to get it around the bearing wheel stick

turn off the lights

pour in your liquid

turn the cart to rewind it all the way and keep a steady pace so the film touches the same amount of liquid

figure out the timings

voila, no scratches no nothing, no complicated machine needed, and its easy

[MattWalters]

I've never tried it before, but I got the info from this schematic

[richard p. t.]

I've never tried it before, but I got the info from this schematic

That's not possible. While there is a core on the take up side of the cartridge, there is no core on the supply side of the cartrdige. You can see part of the take up core on the non-lable side of the cartridge. It is the device you have referred to as a 'claw'. There is no such device on the other, 'supply' side of the cartridge. And if there was, how you could you access this core if the cartridge is face down in the bucket? Perhaps you are thinking that by rotating the taku-up core the other way you will be turning the core on the supply side - but sadly, there is no supply side core to turn.

[MattWalters]

maybe your just have to rewind the cart first ? in the dark of course? break a hole in it i guess from the other side, then use the claw area to roll through it again

[peaceman]

Rolling the film back and forth without actually supporting it through the sprocket holes is guaranteed to make bad scratches all over.
Also, before just pulling out the film out of the cartridge, one needs to break the ratchet -- otherwise the film will break soon. This method is not at all practical.

[wahiba]

Here are a couple of pictures of a frame that may be used with a developing dish. From a web site under construction.

http://www52.jimdo.com/app/s12969c5bdb7 ... ndow-close

[henk88]

If you're looking for a movie developing tank, take a look here:

http://www.super8camera.com/movie%20developing%20tank/

...you have to take care though NOT to buy the small 10 meter Lomo tank which can only hold about 2/3 a super-8 cartridge ;-)
(My first Lomo tank was one of those, bought it for too much... luckily later I found a few unused big ones in Prague for less.)