Freakscene
Obscure member
FOTOIMPEX 110 Developer 500 ml conc. - fotoimpex.com analogue photography
Kodak chemicals are temporarily unavailable this is why we purchase the original mixture made to the exact same formulary which has been sold by Kodak in the past three ...
Fotoimpex have bought HC-110 new formula and are offering it. It is unclear if this is a temporary solution or if it will be available as an ongoing measure, but Kodak chemicals have been unavailable for some time. Adox XT-3 is an improved version of Xtol, and now they are producing HC-110. Why go anywhere else for your chemistry?
I haven’t tested it beyond a quick sensitometric check to assure myself that it is the same as new HC-110. It is. If you shoot film and have lost something by the unavailability of Kodak chemistry, here’s an answer.
Kai-san
Filmwaster
They also do an improved version of D76. I'm using the XT-3 as my main developer, and it lasts for months as opposed to the newest version of XTOL which barely lasted 2 weeks before I had to dump most of the 5 liter batch. The XT-3 is just as good as XTOL if not better.
Freakscene
Obscure member
I agree it is better than the current Xtol.
rulnacco
Well-known
Well, that might be good news--particularly if it's a long-term solution, and if it's available from US sellers. At a not unreasonable price.
I've got one nearly full bottle of HC110 syrup I'm holding onto, and I'm currently working my way through a bottle of Ilfotec HC I brought back from London. I was thinking *that* would be my replacement for HC110, but even though it only costs around £48 for a litre in London currently (which is not far from double what it cost in the summer of 2022), US prices right now are around $90 per litre. Aieeeeee! Good lord.
I've got one nearly full bottle of HC110 syrup I'm holding onto, and I'm currently working my way through a bottle of Ilfotec HC I brought back from London. I was thinking *that* would be my replacement for HC110, but even though it only costs around £48 for a litre in London currently (which is not far from double what it cost in the summer of 2022), US prices right now are around $90 per litre. Aieeeeee! Good lord.
Freakscene
Obscure member
I have 5L of the ‘old’ pre-2019 HC-110 and mostly use it for old film. So I’m set. But if you use HC-110 as your regular developer, particularly if you use dilution B and go through it quickly, and are having supply problems, this may help. This seems to be the same as the ‘new’ HC-110, not the old pre-2019 product and is probably the same as Legacy Pro L110, but depending on where you are, you may not be able to get that either.
rulnacco
Well-known
Yeah, since I mostly shoot HP5+ and am about to shoot up two expired 100-foot reels of Delta 400, I pretty much use HC110 all the time. But I've settled on using it at Dilution H, so a litre, fortunately, does tend to last me a while. I can do roughly 125 rolls of film with a litre, so I guess I shouldn't complain too much about the cost of Ilfotec HC; but damn, I wish we still had good, old, syrupy HC110, at the $18-$20 per bottle it used to cost, sigh.
Freakscene
Obscure member
The cost increase is inevitable as these become niche processes and things generally get more expensive. Continued access to the old product would be nice, but the water-free formula is somewhat complex to manufacture - it involves a step in which sulfur dioxide and hydrobromic acid gases are bubbled into organic alkali. This makes ‘liquid sulfite’ and it aids resisting oxidation, but it is much easier to dissolve sodium sulfite in water and bring it and the developing agents to the correct concentration and pH. It pours better too.
Rayt
Nonplayer Character
So which of the current iterations of HC110 is most true to the old Kodak HC110? I bought some AristaPro L110 but haven’t used any yet. The Fotoimpex sounds really good if I can buy some in the US. As much as I want to shoot more film it isn’t going to happen not anywhere near 50 rolls a month like 3 years ago. So I want to stick with one film and one developer for all formats and HC110 will last for years even opened. Knowing if the current 110 copies also have such longevity matters a lot. If not then I’ll shoot Rodinal and TMY.
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Erik van Straten
Mentor
I use TMY400 and soup it in Perceptol. Prices are also up.
p.giannakis
Pan Giannakis
What's the shelf life of Perceptol Erik?
Freakscene
Obscure member
None are like the old HC-110 chemically. All provide basically the same time and temperature and results. The main difference is the question mark over longevity.
Marty
Freakscene
Obscure member
Ilford says 6 months in a full bottle and 3 partly full. It comes in packages to make 1L, which helps. The powder will last a long time.
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Erik van Straten
Mentor
That is very long I guess, it comes in powder bags for one litre (in a in a cardboard box). I can soup ten films in that. To prepare the stuff is some work. I put it in a glass wine bottle of 1 litre. I use a little handpump to create a vacuum in the bottle every time after I develope a film. The pump is called "Vacuvin", costs next to nothing and is available in wineshops, complete with two corks.
One part developer is mixed with two parts water and is thrown away after use, so the developer is always fresh.
x-ray
Mentor
I use and recommend “wine preserver”. It’s available through Amazon and can be found under other names as well. It’s argon gas which is inert. When I open a bottle of HC110 or Rodinal after I measure out what I need I put a blanket of argon in the bottle and that prevents oxidation. Argon is inert so it doesn’t react with anything.
The little vacuum pumps are pretty anemic and don’t pump enough oxygen out to prevent oxidation. If you had a lab vacuum pump you could pull a pretty high vacuum but you run the risk of imploding your bottle.