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Date: Sun, 15 Dec 1996 08:56:36 -0800
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From: Joel Moskowitz <mathison@....>
Subject: Re: Minox Developing Tank Instructions (long)
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If you got a new tank it should come with instructions otherwise:

0 - if new tank wash really well with soap to get rid of any oils from
the molding process - I didn't and the oils interfear with smooth
pouring. Once clean I found the tank worked better.

1 - load cartridge - make sure the cartridge bottoms out because it
unwindes to the end of the film, not just hits the bottom of the tank.
there are cases where if the film is not properly seated under the
spring and one the pin of the column it slips and doe not unwind at all.
If you are insecure about if the film really unwound go into a darkroom
area and check. Remember top is only held on by friction so always hold
both parts to be safe.

2 - Pour develpoer in the center hole. I pour against a swizzle stick to
help avaoid air bubbles that would interfeare with the flow.

3 - Pour until liquid is leaking out from the well near the output
spigot.

4 - Tap tank sharply on counter to get rid of air bubbles.
(note: I always hold tank with finger on top since top is help on
only with friction)

5 - Agitate by shaking tank and moving thermometer up and down.
(5 secs per 30 sec )

6 - Periodically add extra developer to top off the tank. I started
doing this because it seemed like a good idea and the tank uses so
little liquid that I always mixed extra and it enaures that the ltop few
frames stay covered.


6 - At end of developemtn time drain quicky by turning tank over and
dumping with finger on top part so that tank does not come apart. (film
is still sensitive to light)

7 - pour in two or three (I use three) quick changes of water (see 2 and
3 for filling instruction) then drain (see 6). Use filtered water. (film
is still sensitive to light)

8 - Pour in fixer (see 2 and 5 for filling and agitation instructions)

9 - At end of fix time pull off top of tank (in the light) should be
able to see images on film. Dump fixer, fill tank with water, stick film
back in tank to rinse, repeat water change a couple of times before
reassembling tank. This gets rid of most the of fixer really fast.

10 - Washing by letting thin continous stream of water fill up tank
though center column and drain via outlet spout of tank. I was 20
minutes.

11 - At end of wash (This step really cuts down crap on film) pull top
off off tank and stick the entire core with the film in a glass with
pure filtered water. Swish around. change water, repeat a couple of
times. Finally add a tiny amount of fotoflo - swish around.

12 - Finally hang up film to dry in dust free area - I use closet. Use
the cartidge as the weight to keep film straight. Do not touch the film
until completly dry.

13 - Insert dry (must be dry) film into your favorite stlye of negative
sleeves and then - See what you got!!!!

Have fun - it's simpler than it sounds but I added all the steps I do to
be as complete as possible even if some of the steps are obvious.


joel

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Date: Sun, 15 Dec 1996 18:51:19 -0500
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From: peter zimmerman <peterz@E....>
Subject: using the Minox developing tank
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I would like to add a couple of suggestions to Joel's set of
instructions for the tank:

1) tilt the tank itself about 30deg off vertical when filling. It helps
with trapped air.

2) SWIRL the tank when filled with developer (and also when first filled
with fix) for 5-10 sec in addition to tapping it hard on the table/sink/etc.
The number one problem in using a Minox tank is that one can easily get an
air bell on the film and have a wholly undeveloped spot.

3) I have never believed that the tank allows a vigorous enough flow of
water to do a clean job of washing. Once the tank is cleaned out, put the
spiral with the film still on it into a pint (half liter) or quart (liter)
plastic kitchen measuring cup and wash in that. Oh yes, I would surely use
Heico or somebody's hypo eliminator with Minox film as with any other film.

pete z
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Date: Mon, 16 Dec 1996 10:59:00 EST
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From: Michael Goldfarb <MGOLDFAR@M....>
Subject: More thoughts on the Minox Tank

Pete Z wrote:
I would like to add a couple of suggestions to Joel's set of
instructions for the tank:

1) tilt the tank itself about 30deg off vertical when filling. It helps
with trapped air.

2) SWIRL the tank when filled with developer (and also when first filled
with fix) for 5-10 sec in addition to tapping it hard on the table/sink/etc.
The number one problem in using a Minox tank is that one can easily get an
air bell on the film and have a wholly undeveloped spot.

3) I have never believed that the tank allows a vigorous enough flow of
water to do a clean job of washing. Once the tank is cleaned out, put the
spiral with the film still on it into a pint (half liter) or quart (liter)
plastic kitchen measuring cup and wash in that. Oh yes, I would surely use
Heico or somebody's hypo eliminator with Minox film as with any other film.
====
A few thoughts of my own on developing in the Minox Tank:

I hadn't thought about tipping the tank. As far as swirling goes, I think
this is a good idea: I usually both bang the tank at the bottom hard, then
shake it a bit in my hand quickly - a la mixing a martini - when agitating.
(Which I do about once a minute. I also pour in more as I go, since I
usually mix 8oz each time.) When handling, I always keep my index finger
over the top portion of the tank so it doesn't open accidentally. (Aside to
Martin - A rubber band! What a GREAT idea!)

I don't wash in the tank either; in fact, I don't rinse or fix in the tank.
Since I have the advantage of working in a "real darkroom", while still in
darkness I usually remove the spiral column from the tank and dunk it a
couple of times in a quart kitchen measuring cup of cold water. Then I
submerge it (sideways) in our deep hypo try, flip it about a couple of
times, and turn on the light after about a minute. I unreel the film in the
hypo tray and let it sit for a few more minutes. Then I wash the film in a
small tray of continuously flowing cold water for about five or six
minutes. A quick dunk in very diluted PhotoFlo, then hang.

I've never had an air bubble problem or seriously uneven development. (I've
had some underdevelopment when using outdated Microdol, but I knew that was
a risk.) I've had some scratches and abrasions, and big grains of undiluted
developer at the top (tail end) of a roll. Overall, developing works fine:
darkroom dust in printing, and incidental film scratching, are still my
biggest problems.

I also find the trickiest part of using the @#%$&@! Minox Tank is loading
it! (I also find that there's no point in taking a 36th picture - I almost
always lose it to fogging. I try to shoot the one before zero when starting
a roll to make up for it.) Getting the film under the spring and on the post
can be tough, especially when you have an extra-curly roll. I totalled a
roll last year by thinking it had loaded when it hadn't - developing in the
cassette is not a pretty sight! Since I have an older, 50-exp, tank I've
come to know that the best way to determine that a roll is properly loaded
is by getting resistance at the end, when the column is 2/3rds of the way
down. (For a while I couldn't do this, because my 36-exp filler ring was
STUCK at the bottom of the tank. Since I've gotten in out, I NEVER want to
put it back in! The difference in the solution amounts are trivial, and even
though I can "feel" when the film is unspooling onto the column now, I like
the secure feeling of getting that resistance at the end.)

Don't get me wrong - the Minox Tank is a BRILLIANT design. And the fact that
it can be a true, start-to-finish daylight process is great. But even after
two dozen rolls in the 60s and more than a dozen in the last 16 months, I
find loading it a bit tricky!

MSG
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The contents of this archive, have been taken from the running conversations of Submini-L participants, from the years 1996 to the present. Please keep in mind, that they are presented largely unedited. Because these posts often represent the opinion of the speaker, the accuracy of the posts cannot be guaranteed.
Last Updated May 6, 2003