I started film developing with a stainless steel tank and crappy SS reel. So I built a habit of tapping hard for dislodging bubbles, and now I can load films into Kindermann with ease even after glasses of Guiness. However, for medium format sizes, I changed to Paterson tank and reel a while ago.(posted 8178 days ago)My first Paterson tank started leaking just under the red ring on the top, right after I bought it. I sealed it a few times, and then the bottom chipping became severe (because of my firm tapping) so I put putty epoxy resin to reinforce. Finally, it broke, and replaced. While all these, my SS reel's Kalt brand plastic cap got one small crack (leak is really annoying during agitation and this stuff is cheap so I just bought a new lid).
I already put enough protection on the bottom of my new Paterson tank, but this lead me to ask here:
Do you break plastic tank (not reel) because of tapping the tank?
Do you think Paterson is worth it (despite its filmsy make for the price?)
Do you reinforce the tank to prolong its useful life? How? (any good idea??)
(for 35mm I still use cheap SS tank and Kindermann SS reels)