Quick question about film developing/agitation

[logan2z]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I'm just about to start developing my own 35mm film at home.  I bought a Hewes reel and a used Kindermann tank and have been practicing loading the reel in the dark (not quite as easy as I'd hoped!).  I did a dry (actually wet) run with the film in the tank and the tank filled with water to just cover the reel, with a little room left at the top for the water to wash freely over the reel.  I inverted the tank as I would during developing to see if the tank would leak (it did not) but did hear the reel moving around in the tank during inversion.  I had heard that the reel should not move much as that could cause surge marks on the film.  But the Hewes/Kindermann combination seems to be a common one and so I'm assuming that some movement of the reel in the tank during inversion is not going to cause any issues.  Is my assumption correct?

[pico]

All that is needed to agitate is an air bubble, usually as large as the top fill throat inside the top top of the tank.

 

Edited November 13, 2018 by pico

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[TomB_tx]

There are different height tanks to hold either one or two reels, and the appropriate amount of liquid to almost cover the contained reels.

if you have a two reel tank and do inversions, it should be used with two reels and enough liquid to cover both. Otherwise the sliding and sloshing of the single reel will over agitate and may cause streaks about the sprocket holes.

I always use a single reel tank when I process one roll, as I now use one-shot developer and don’t want to waste it. 

Back when I used stock solution developer and replenished for reuse I would use a two reel tank for a single roll, but would put a second empty reel on top of the loaded reel and fill to cover both. This prevents too much sloshing.

Pico is right, the small air bubble in the lid light trap aids in agitation during inversions.

[logan2z]

Thanks for the responses.  My original post should have mentioned that my tank holds a single reel only.  I'll take @pico's advice and just leave a tiny bit of air at the top to aid in agitation.

[Chuck Albertson]

As long as the reel isn't pistoning up and down the tank, a little play isn't a problem.

[tobey bilek]

One can not over agitate if you limit it to 5 sec every 30 or 10 per 60.   The idea is to replenish all the spent developer across the film.  The process goes to completion.  You can under agitate in which case the edges get fresh developer and the center gets less.  Try to fix that in printing when the edges are light and center is dark. 

Continuos agitation such as with machine  processing,  works well.   It works because it is uniform across the film.