Reddit mentions of Ultrafine Unicolor C-41 Powder 35mm / 120 Film Home Developer Kit (1 Liter)

I actually just bought the whole kit and started to develop at home again since I am no longer able to access the college darkroom facilities.

I will link you everything I bought (which was on B&H/amazon/walmart) in USD.

FOR B/W:

• Large Changing Bag $23.95
  
• Kodak D-76 Developer $6.95
  
• TF-4 Fixer $13.95
  
• [Delta 1 Chemical Storage Bottle] (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/70862-REG/Delta_11140_Datatainer_Chemical_Storage_Bottle.html) $7.95
  
• Two measuring cups $0.88 x2
  
• Paterson Tank $26.75
  
• Can opener $5.22 (but you can find these at thrift stores/good will for 50 cents or your parents might have one)
  
• scissors (you have this)
  
• additionally you can get a thermometer, PhotoFLO, and clips to hang your negatives.
  
  
• Total cost: $81.81 put aside $100 for everything.
  
• Cost for just chemicals: $20.90
  
  You can get around 20 rolls of film per 1 liter dev of D76 1:1 & TF-4 Fixer. This means you'll be spending 1 dollar per developed roll
  
  
• ps. TF-4 Fixer is amazing. It takes 3-4 minutes to fix, no need for stop bath (use water), no need for hypo clear. Just two chemicals and you're done!
  
  FOR C-41 COLOR:
  
  
• C-41 $29.95
  
• 32 oz Bottles $11.98 for 2 pack (you need 3)
  
• thermometer; very important to have for constant temp when developing
  
  
  Check out the side bar for how to develop B/W & C-41. Or check out youtube videos.

Hi everyone- long time reader, first time caller.

B&W Development

I'll be using HC-110 (liquid concentrate), tap water for a quick "stop" bath, and Ilford Rapid Fixer. I bought my current liter of HC-110 concentrate back in 2017 and I've maybe used ~5% of the bottle. If I only ever use Dilution B, some quick math says it's good for a total of 64 rolls of film (35mmx36 or 120). Some Googling tells me that it'll last forever in concentrate form, even if it isn't airtight. My bottle has some dark brown spots and streaks in the air portion of it and for the time being, I've squeezed the air out.

Question 1: What do y'all think about the HC-110? It should be fine, right? I'm going to get one of those accordion bottles and transfer the concentrate I have out of the original bottle and into one of those. (Unless anyone has an alternate suggestion?) I leave all my chemistry in a fairly dark cabinet in a relatively dry part of the house, but given that I shoot so little film, I'd prefer not to have to rebuy chemistry every year if I can avoid it.

Ilford's documentation for the Ilford Rapid Fixer is that a single batch diluted to 1+4 is good for 600 rolls, but if it's stored AIRTIGHT, it should be replaced after 12mo. Knowing that 12mo will always elapse long before I get through 600 rolls and because I couldn't think of a way to keep it airtight before stumbling across those accordion bottles, I basically use it as a single shot liquid, just like developer.

Question 2: Does fixer last longer in concentrate form? Should I leave it as a concentrate and dilute as needed? Does anyone have any suggestions other than those "accordion" bottles for fixer? It's been a full calendar year since I used what I have on hand and, frankly, I just don't trust it anymore so I want to be smart about how I use the next set that I buy.

Question 3: I've heard that developer and fixer shouldn't be put down the drain. I've been collecting spent developer and "spent" fixer in additional jugs; can anyone tell me how I could go about figuring out where I can take this stuff?


Color Development

Full disclosure: I've never done color development before. BUT we got a sous vide recently and some Googling confirmed that it can be used to get chemistry up to temp reliably for C41 processing, so I want to give it a shot. Now, I see these C41 "kits" that include developer, blix, and stabilizer and they say that the developer is good for 8 rolls.

Question 4: Since it all comes in a kit, am I correct in assuming that all three fluids should be replaced after 8 rolls? Also, they specifically say 8 rolls of 35mmx36, which according to my back-of-the-envelope math, is the same as 8 rolls of 120. Do I have this right? And since its only 8 rolls, I plan on just putting this stuff in some amber 1L bottles I have laying around from back when I attempted to make Kombucha. Do y'all have any thoughts on this?

Thanks everyone!!

Since you didn't specify, I'm assuming color development. You'll need the following. I've linked some items to amazon for reference, but do your own shopping as these are likely not the best prices.

• 1 x Unicolor C-41 1L kit link
  
• 3 x 1 Liter containers with lid, preferably opaque
  
• 2 x funnels
  
• 1 x Digital thermometer
  
• 1 x paterson style development tank + development reels. I got the 2 reel tank, so you can develop 2 rolls at the same time. link
  
• 1 x dark bag link
  
• 1 x film canister opener link or film leader puller link
  
• 1 x scissors
  
• 1 x box of latex gloves

I just bought a Powder C-41 Processing Kit and I have first-time developing questions:

1. The instructions that came with the developing kit require that the temperature of the chemicals to be at 102°F. Is there a benefit to keeping the chemicals at a certain temperature?
   
   
2. After each chemical process, do I just pour the previous chemical back into it's respective bottle and then pour the next chemical process in?
   
   Any help and advice is very much appreciated! If there is also anyone who can who has experience with developing with this kit, I would love to get in touch!

Try this. I haven't personally tried it, but it looks exactly like the same thing.

http://www.freestylephoto.biz/search?q=unicolor+1+liter

http://www.amazon.com/Ultrafine-Unicolor-Powder-Developer-Liter/dp/B00OU6LXUG

https://www.amazon.com/Ultrafine-Unicolor-Powder-Developer-Liter/dp/B00OU6LXUGn - you can probably get 8 - 12 rolls out of this before it's used up. You'll need a lot misc supplies for at home dev; the more you do it the more items you "realize" you need. My current list:

• patterson tank (obviously) with reels
  
  
• high temperature accurate (105+ degrees) thermostat
  
  
• 3 1 liter amber bottles (for color dev, B&W requires different chems/bottles)
  
  
• graduated cylinders
  
  
• distilled water (not required, but strongly recommended to keep film clean as possible and without watermarks)
  
  
• rubber gloves (keeps hands safe. I have sensitive hand skin so for C-41 these are required personally, but if you're careful and have strong and healthy hands this might not be required)
  
  
• clothes hangers to hang film to dry
  
  
• can/bottle opener to open film
  
  
• timer
  
  
• film sleeves to store negatives
  
  
• (recommended) a jug to store used chemicals to dispose of at a chemical plant. I don't recommend dumping them down the sink. If you're gonna use old processes in a new world, best to do it responsibly.
  
  I probably missed something but that's all I can think of. Watch Ted Forbes' video on at - home C-41 dev to get a better idea of the routine. Hope this helps. I estimate I spent somwhere between 30-70 on the whole thing, but it's definitely worth it versus the 10 dollars per roll I have to pay at a lab.
  
  You also have to, though, factor in scanning. I have a scanner at my College's film lab that they let me use, but if you don't have access to one that's something else to consider. If you don't care too much about quality, most libraries have printers with decent scanners.
  
  Good luck!