Does anyone have a recipe that is or mimics Edwal Ultra Black?

[Marek Warunkiewicz]

Does anyone have a recipe that is or mimics Edwal Ultra Black?

It's getting almost impossible to find here.

Thanks!

Marek

[Mike Wilde]

I have not tried this formula, but it's title would seem to make sense. Dassonville D-1 Charcoal Black Paper Developer, per the darkroom cookbook.

Start w/ 750ml quite warm water to help the metol dissolve. Add a 'pinch' of sulfite to keep the metol from oxidising before it can work on the paper.

3 g metol - developer
43g sodium sulfite - preservative
11g hydroquinone - developer - works with metol better than either on thier own.
35g sodium carbonate, monhydrate - alkaline - only amidol develops in acid solutions. This amount is about half of the content of most other typical stock solutions
2 g potassium bromide - restrainer
water to 1l.

use 1:1, developing prints for 2 minutes are the given instructions.

Most other developers are more commonly used at 1:2 or even 1:3, so there is more developing agents per litre of working solution - so this should correspond to longer development in film developer. The blacks would develop to completion, but the almost blacks would also head toward completion. The reduced alkaline should balance out the tendency to drive too much of the partial greys to full black.

[Nicholas Lindan]

Does anyone have a recipe that is or mimics Edwal Ultra Black?

Dr. Richard Henry tested this developer - densitometer results showed it produced a black identical to Dektol 1:1.

[Marek Warunkiewicz]

Thanks all.... Will try the Dektol route as well as Mike's suggestion.

Marek

[dpurdy]

Very similar formula with more potas carbonate

From Photo-Lab Index 1977 issue, Page 429, Kodak D72 (approximately the
some as Dektol) stock solution:
Water 500 ml
Metol 3 g
Sodium sulphite (desic) 45 g
Hydroquinone 12 g
Sodium carbonate (mono hydr) 80 g
Potassium bromide 2 g
Water to make 1 lite

[Philippe-Georges]

This is a very good working and environmentally more friendly alternative to Dektol, and cheap too...
I think it is even better.
Thanks to Chris Patton

Philippe