Anybody used Paterson FX-50 yet?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : B&W Photo - Film & Processing : One Thread

At the Photo Expo show I picked up a Paterson brochure which described their FX-50 developer. According to the literature it's the best thing since sliced bread. Can be used as 1 or 2 bath, can be used for maximum sharpness, finest grain or maximum film speed depending on the ratio of parts A and B mixed. Eco-friendly (ascorbic acid??), speed increase up to 1.5 stops, "new standard of tonal reproduction". Sounds like it's at least worth a try.

The only problem is that I can find no data on it at all anywhere on the web - except for two questions here which didn't get any real responses (nobody had used it or found it for sale in the US). I don't see it listed for sale by anyone in the US either.

Anyone else had better luck?

-- Bob Atkins (bobatkins@hotmail.com), November 07, 2001

Answers

Just for reference, this is the only source I've been able to find so far (A href="http://www.jessops.com/search/viewproduct.cfm?PRODUCT=PATFX50225 0&BRAND=PAT&CONTINUE=false&FEATS=&FIRSTPRICE=0&KEYWORD=&LEVEL=&MODELNU MBER=&NEWQUERY=True&NODE=147&ORD=ASC&ORDERBY=&QUANTITY=10&REFINE=&SEAR CH_FOR=&SEARCHNODE=0&SEARCHURL=dointellisearch.cfm&SECONDPRICE=999999& SHOWCASEID=&STARTROW=11&SUBS=&WORD_SEARCH=N&">Jessops in the UK).

-- Bob Atkins (bobatkins@hotmail.com), November 08, 2001.

Let's try that one again!

Just for reference, this is the only source I've been able to find so far (Jessops in the UK).

-- Bob Atkins (bobatkins@hotmail.com), November 08, 2001.


Bob, I asked the same question quite some time ago:

"The only trace of Paterson's new ascorbic-based FX-50 here in the US has been brief mention in Photokina reports. A visit to the Jessops site shows current UK retail availability. Has anyone over there tried it, and, if so, would you please share your results? My fantasy has FX-50 as an Xtol equivalent that performs consistently. Hope springs eternal! Thanks in advance.

-- Sal Santamaura (bc_hill@qwestinternet.net), January 05, 2001"

No one ever posted any experiences with the product. I've since "discovered" Ilfosol-S, and find that it reliably provides Xtol-like results.

-- Sal Santamaura (santamaura@earthlink.net), November 08, 2001.


Sal - Yes, I saw your question. I was hoping someone may have found some in the last 9 months! I notice B&H carry FX-39, but not FX-50. I emailed them about availability of FX-50 and I'll report back if I get a response.

-- Bob Atkins (bobatkins@hotmail.com), November 08, 2001.

Sal, have you tried Acros in Ilfosol-S?

-- John Hicks (jbh@magicnet.net), November 09, 2001.


No John, I haven't tried Acros at all. I hardly use 35 these days, you reported that the 120 base is thin and hard to handle, and, now that TMX is available in single sheet ReadyLoads, there's no motivation for me to use Acros in that size either.

-- Sal Santamaura (santamaura@earthlink.net), November 09, 2001.

There are several other ascorbic acid based negative developers on the market that seem to work fine. One is Tetenal Negafin, about which I have not seen any negative comments concerning failures. The Tetenal product should be available in the US. I have not used it, but the reviews in the European photo journals were excellent and it has become one of the standard developers here. Also Foma markets a ascorbic acid developer under the name EXCEL, which probably is not available in the US, but can be ordered through Fotoimpex in Berlin. I have used Foma EXCEL with very good results. It is made in Poland by Foton, a formerly independent photochemical company that was purchased not too long ago by Bochemie, the owner of Foma. You might want to consider one of these two products as an alternative to XTOL.

-- Volker Schier (Volker.Schier@fen-net.de), November 10, 2001.

The reason I asked about Acros in Ilfosol-S was a reality check.

In my initial testing with Ilfosol-S 1:14 the film reaches D-Max at 1.80DU or, iow, above a "normal" Zone X density the curve goes flat. This appears to be a capacity issue, but otoh no other film I use does this in Ilfosol-S 1:14; curve shapes are normal.

I wonder what gives.

-- John Hicks (jbh@magicnet.net), November 10, 2001.


I've not tested capacity limits for Ilfosol-S. Little enough film gets developed here that I just play it safe and use the urban legend "250 ml per 80 square inches." That would be 25 ml of concentrate at 1:9, so I use 375 ml total at 1:14 for a 120 roll of TMX in the Jobo. No shoulders noted.

-- Sal Santamaura (santamaura@earthlink.net), November 10, 2001.

Noticed a Paterson ad in the Jan/Feb 2002 issue of Photo Techniques that arrived yesterday. It included FX-50, a Web site and a US (Georgia) address. B&H still doesn't list FX-50, so I went to the Paterson site. This page:

http://www.patersonphotographic.com/chemistry/developers.html#two

indicates that FX-50 will be available next Spring. Wait and see.

-- Sal Santamaura (santamaura@earthlink.net), December 18, 2001.



Moderation questions? read the FAQ