how to flatten film out?

[cheewai_m6]

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how do you flatten film out for scanning? i've put them under hard cover books for long long periods, but as soon as you put them in the film tray, they just curl up again.

 

i don't do my own process. c41 films are fine, but, for instance, fuji neopan, the curl up both directions. i flatten them in the film tray, and curl the other. and the curl makes a big difference to the scan quality right?

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[tobey bilek]

Leave the leader and trailer on. Roll in 2" dia circle emulsion out. Clip edges with clothes pins, you know the things used to hold wet clothes on the outside line. Also good for hanging sheet film.

 

Leave curled 24/48 hours. Put in sleeves, weight with book.

 

Dead flat for my KM 5400 scanner. Every grain is sharp.

 

Glass is better, but.

[Austinite]

Easy. After drying is complete put the film back on the reel.( plastic works well here) Then use a hair dryer to warm the film up while on the reel. Don't let it get too hot. If the hand holding the reel and film is comfortable with the heat you're ok. Doesn't take more than a minute and you'll find that curl will vanish in a hurry.

[menos I M6]

Easy. After drying is complete put the film back on the reel.( plastic works well here) Then use a hair dryer to warm the film up while on the reel. Don't let it get too hot. If the hand holding the reel and film is comfortable with the heat you're ok. Doesn't take more than a minute and you'll find that curl will vanish in a hurry.

 

I like that one !

I'll get some extra reels today for batch drying, while developing the next rolls.

 

Anybody ruined bone dry film with a hairdryer already (I won't try, to use the hairdryer on wet film though)?

[nhabedi]

Anybody ruined bone dry film with a hairdryer already (I won't try, to use the hairdryer on wet film though)?

 

Don't know if it was a hairdryer and I think it was wet film, but one of the most famous rolls of film (Robert Capa, D-Day) was ruined that way. Thought I should mention this...

[nhabedi]

Leave the leader and trailer on. Roll in 2" dia circle emulsion out. Clip edges with clothes pins, you know the things used to hold wet clothes on the outside line. Also good for hanging sheet film.

 

Leave curled 24/48 hours. Put in sleeves, weight with book.

 

I do something similar except that I roll it to a smaller diameter and put the film back into its canister (no clothes pins) for about 12 hours.

 

Also, my experience is that some films simply need more flattening effort than others. The worst offender I know is unfortunately my favorite - Tri-X.

[Xmas]

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Hi

 

Never had Neopan or Trix dry off and file sleeve other than flat.

 

When it is wet in the spiral and its final rinse is done what to you do to dry it and are their temperature or humidity variations as it dries?

 

Noel

[j. borger]

Tri-x has the worst u-curl (from left to right) from any film i used so far. So much that i seriously consider to switch to another iso 400 film.

Delta 100 on the other hand dries as flat as a pancake.

I also have little to none curling problems with Acros and Agfa APX100.

 

For Tri-x .... i only have the heavy u- curl with 35mm film not with rollfilm!

 

For flattening it i have to put Tri-x between heavy books for about a week !

 

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[cheewai_m6]

Thanks for the responses but I meant to say I don't do my own deveopong. By the time I get my film back it's already cut into six exposure strips.

[nhabedi]

Thanks for the responses but I meant to say I don't do my own deveopong. By the time I get my film back it's already cut into six exposure strips.

 

When I had my films developed by a lab, even Tri-X, they always delivered it perfectly flat - which is what I would expect from pros. If your lab doesn't do that, I'd consider switching to another one or at least complaining.

[Xmas]

Hi

 

Concur if you go to a pro lab they all should come back flat.

 

Noel

[menos I M6]

When I had my films developed by a lab, even Tri-X, they always delivered it perfectly flat - which is what I would expect from pros. If your lab doesn't do that, I'd consider switching to another one or at least complaining.

 

The good people at the lab, I bring my film, when I am too lazy get Tri-X delivered flat.

 

I get mine always heavily curled.

 

I guess, it might have to do with the used developer and most strict temperature control from developing to rinsing, which I don't do up to par with the lab.

 

I do develop with T-Max developer.

The lab uses D76.

I tried X-Tol from the lab once, which also was flat (but I didn't like the grainy lifted shadows - D76 always gave me a finer grain).

 

I do ISO3200 push with Tri-X (sometimes 6400).

I like T-Max developer, cause I like the mixing better than D76.

Would love to try Rodinal, but can't seem, to get it in Shanghai.

[Xmas]

Hi

 

The curl is dependent on how you dry it, how do you dry it?

 

From it in the spiral, in final rinse, then...?

 

Humidity and air temperature?

 

Noel

[menos I M6]

Hi

 

The curl is dependent on how you dry it, how do you dry it?

 

From it in the spiral, in final rinse, then...?

 

Humidity and air temperature?

 

Noel

 

- rinse,

- take out of reel,

- wash with photo flo,

- straight hang on two hooks, weight on the end

- 20 − 25ºC,

- 50 − 80% humidity

[cheewai_m6]

the negs to come flat. it's always delivered cut, and in between 2 pieces of thick cardboard taped together. the lab is very good. but when i put it in the film holder of my scanner, epson v500, it curls. i guess you can only do so much trying to flatten them? i'm looking at getting those glass inserts for the scanner film holder. they're not cheap, $30USD each!

[Xmas]

- rinse,

- take out of reel,

- wash with photo flo,

- straight hang on two hooks, weight on the end

- 20 − 25ºC,

- 50 − 80% humidity

 

Thanks that is pretty much what I have here

 

- 17- 20ºC (winter to summer)

- 50-70%

 

Note final wash is close to 20ºC but might have drifted a little cooler to 17ºC.

 

The only thing I do different which should not make much difference is squeegee, with a film sueegee, which speeds up drying but your higher temperatures should have the same effect.

 

And I add photoflo to final wash while film is in the reel, that is not going to make any difference.

 

So you could try a film squeegee, I'd not expect that to help, but I'm otherwise at a loss to help you, beyond saying mine never curl. I stand for 120 minutes in Rodinal 1:100 at 20ºC wash in water and rapid fix. The water is not so hard you need to descale kettles.

 

note I wash the squeegee in the final rinse which is loaded with photo flow rub the wiping surfaces with finger and squeegee immediately after the film is hung.

 

If some film don't curl I'd use them instead.

 

Noel

[menos I M6]

Noel, I tried the squeegee the very first roll and put lots of stripes on the film, which later could be seen in scan.

 

From the very second film, I developed, I do not use such tools, but let the film dry hang in the shower over night.

 

I will use reels with emulsion outwards for drying the next batch.

Should I get a curl this way, it really doesn't matter that much, as does the darn u-curl, I get now for the film holders in the EPSON scanner.

[Xmas]

Noel, I tried the squeegee the very first roll and put lots of stripes on the film, which later could be seen in scan.

 

From the very second film, I developed, I do not use such tools, but let the film dry hang in the shower over night.

 

I will use reels with emulsion outwards for drying the next batch.

Should I get a curl this way, it really doesn't matter that much, as does the darn u-curl, I get now for the film holders in the EPSON scanner.

Hi

 

Since I have used IXMOO I don't get scratches, the squeegee has fixed the drying marks and reduced the dust.

 

I dry in the shower area overnight as well, un-wound from spiral hanging vertically with weight at bottom from curtain rail.

 

Sorry about the curl, glad I don't get it. I can only assume it is humidity related...

 

Noel

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Hallo,

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