Response to Amidol differences???

Like Conrad says, I doubt Amidol is used in food processing because it is toxic but who the hell knows? I always thought the reason Amidol was so expensive was because photography was about the only use for it (as compared to something like sulfite which is used in mountainous quantities in food processing). I kind of like slightly used Amidol in solution. After I've put a few prints through it, it starts giving me a very pleasant warm tone that I like - I know that the oxidation product of Amidol is supposed to be an incredibly good restrainer, so maybe there is something going on. I've ordered Amidol from Artcraft and its always been decent - it arrives as a light grey green powder and stays that way for quite some time if you keep the air out. If left long enough, it forms some black crystals but these black crystals still seem to work fine (maybe its only the surface of the crytal that is oxidized and the insides are fine). I've noticed minor differences in tone but I can't rule out that this might have been some other process variation. In general, the stuff works fine. I'm curious about this red version - have never encountered it before. Incidentally, some Amidol formulae are actually quite cheap. I've also never had the famed problem of Amidol being shortlived. I've put upto 60 8x10 prints through a litre over a 48 hour period and the Amidol was still going strong. Cheers, DJ.

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