too old to care Posted April 2, 2012 Share #1 Posted April 2, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) I loaded my last roll of Plus X tonight to shoot over the next few days. I have been OK with Tmax-100 for 6x6cm, but never tried it in 135. Tmax-100 does not seem seem to have much grain, and I love the grain and texture of Plus X. I am not a lover of Tri X. I am wondering if Ilford FP4 Plus is pretty much the same as Plus X. I normally use Rodinal 50 to 1 for most of my work. Thanks in advance for any advice on grain, developing, etc. Wayne Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted April 2, 2012 Posted April 2, 2012 Hi too old to care, Take a look here I loaded my last roll of Plus X tonight.. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
AlanG Posted April 2, 2012 Share #2 Posted April 2, 2012 I can't answer your question but something came up today that is related to Plus X being discontinued. I spent some time today with a former college classmate that I hadn't seen in years. He worked at Kodak for 30 years or so, lastly in the film division - testing it, coming up with the best ways to process it for various qualities, etc. He said that when film use started to decline he was recommending ways to keep production of less popular films going in smaller quantities. E.g. Kodak could still make a few million dollars here and there on various emulsions. He said the higher ups were not interested in doing this and he described it as a primary focus on pleasing the stock holders. Whereas previously the primary focus was on the customers. According to my friend, they now can't really produce film in smallish quantities. He said the research lab made emulsions in 10 gallon sizes. Then they scaled this up a bit to 50 gallons. And finally production was in batches of 10,000 gallons in a completely different facility. He said he recommended to photographers and labs better ways to process T Max film that was at variance to the official instructions, but resulted in a tonal look that was more pleasing to many photographers. It was pretty interesting to learn from him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
too old to care Posted April 2, 2012 Author Share #3 Posted April 2, 2012 I would be interested in learning more. To me Plus X has the perfect amount of grain and tones. Thanks, Wayne Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidbaddley Posted April 2, 2012 Share #4 Posted April 2, 2012 I feel your pain. My last roll of Plus-X (also in Rodinal) was a few months ago. FP-4 Plus isn't anything like it, very different grain character (I like the Plus-X much better, but others will feel differently). Also, be careful with the Ilford/Rodinal combo. Although Agfa listed times for for FP-4 Plus, many have had problems with under-development, and HP-5 Plus was recommended against. While I like Plus-X better than FP-4 Plus or T-MAX 100, my all-time favorite was Agfa APX-100 in Rodinal. I wept for years over that loss. I've been told that ADOX makes an identical product, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
too old to care Posted April 2, 2012 Author Share #5 Posted April 2, 2012 See the recent post on Adox 20 CMS posted just a few minutes ago. We may be on to something here. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokoshawnuff Posted April 2, 2012 Share #6 Posted April 2, 2012 Efke/Adox 100 is similar, but more expensive and with a very high silver content... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidbaddley Posted April 2, 2012 Share #7 Posted April 2, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) ADOX CHS 100 in Rodinal would probably be closest to Plus-X in Rodinal, perhaps even a little better. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpattison Posted April 2, 2012 Share #8 Posted April 2, 2012 my all-time favorite was Agfa APX-100 in Rodinal. I wept for years over that loss. I've been told that ADOX makes an identical product, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet. try this... AGFA PHOTO John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidbaddley Posted April 2, 2012 Share #9 Posted April 2, 2012 Wow. Where did this come from? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
too old to care Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share #10 Posted April 3, 2012 Went to Freestyle and saw they still have Plus X, so I ordered a bunch from them. I also ordered some other film to try out in 120 size. I hope I will have enough for another year or two. Thanks all for advice on other films. I am going to try Agfa too. Wayne Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveYork Posted April 4, 2012 Share #11 Posted April 4, 2012 Plus-x, one of my favorites. In the last year or so I shot a bunch of rolls. And such an iconic film too; it dates from the late 1930's. Almost old as Kodachrome. The last 40 rolls in my freezer I'll save for a bit. Shoot it in a couple of years when Plus-X is only a memory. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidbaddley Posted April 4, 2012 Share #12 Posted April 4, 2012 try this...AGFA PHOTO John Do you know the story behind this? Agfa FAMOUSLY stopped making film several years ago. Did they fire up the old factory for a limited run (couldn't find it anywhere in The States), or did someone else purchase the name? Is it the same product, or just the same box? I'm very curious. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
StS Posted April 5, 2012 Share #13 Posted April 5, 2012 I guess this is some old stock. Carefully refrigerated, it should last for decades. Agfapan is still in the shelves over here (Germany). Adox bought the old Agfa machines and are selling Adoxpan now. They claim the Adoxpan 400 is an improvement of the Agfapan 400 (I haven't tried it yet) and are preparing an Adoxpan 100. Stefan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpattison Posted April 5, 2012 Share #14 Posted April 5, 2012 Theres a discussion here... http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=1850691 John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mascarpone Posted April 8, 2012 Share #15 Posted April 8, 2012 ...and I love the grain and texture of Plus X... You might like this one: Flickr: Discussing Times Temp Developer E.I. in ORWO Films + It's not the same but comparable. The big downside is that you have to spool your own films because it is only available in bulk rolls. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
too old to care Posted April 23, 2012 Author Share #16 Posted April 23, 2012 Shot a roll of Ilford FP4 yesterday (120) and developed it tonight. At first I was worried because the exhausted Rodinal came out clear instead of the purple like I was used too with Plus X. However, the images are there. I usually expose a bit lower than the rated ISO go get a denser negative. I did the same with the Ilford film. So far, it look pretty much the same as the Plus X as far as exposure goes, maybe a bit lighter, but not much. I did notice that the film is thinner, that is the plastic does not seem as thick. It goes through the camera easier because of this (501C), but feels flimsy when loading in the reels. Tomorrow I will spend some time in the darkroom to make my final decision if this will replace Plus X. I was able to get 10 rolls of Plus X from Freestyle before it disappeared, wish I could have gotten more. Freestyle recommended FP4, as well as Arista Ultra B&W as a replacement to Plus X. I think I will try some too, although it sounds like it may be a low cost (quality) solution. Wayne Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveYork Posted April 24, 2012 Share #17 Posted April 24, 2012 Arista Ultra is Fomapan. I like it, long as it's exposed a bit less then the rated speed. Otherwise way high contrast. It's a grainy film. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
too old to care Posted April 24, 2012 Author Share #18 Posted April 24, 2012 After developing the FP4 and printing some photos, I can say that the film is ok. The grain is there, not too much or too little. The film is a little flimsy, but it goes through the camera easier than Kodak. I have to underexpose it a little to get good negatives, but I always do that anyway. It is also easy to get. The only negative (no pun intended) is it curls a bit more than Plus X. I can live with that. I am going to try some Arista too. Wayne Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth3kpl Posted April 24, 2012 Share #19 Posted April 24, 2012 After developing the FP4 and printing some photos, I can say that the film is ok. I have to underexpose it a little to get good negatives, Wayne Really? What're you developing with? Pete Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
too old to care Posted April 25, 2012 Author Share #20 Posted April 25, 2012 My mistake Pete, I overexposed it a bit, a little less than one stop. I do this by setting my meter a little under the rated ISO, to 75 from the normal 125 . I recently started using Rodinal at 50 to 1. Normally I use D76 and love it, but I wanted a sharper negative, thus the Rodinal. Wayne Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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