Ansco 130

[jglass]

I'm also interested in answers to brian s's question and would also like to know if 130 lasts as long at dilution 1:1 or 1:3 as LPD, which seems virtually immortal to me at this point! But please talk about how you judge or test for activity in a paper developer.

[brian steinberger]

Jeff, LPD is the other paper developer I use as well. I've been liking what 130 has been giving me over the past year and want to stick with. I've been using the same 1:1 working solution since last November but tonight noticed that the prints went slightly reddish in the selenium. Everything was done as I normally do, Oriental VC FB, 2min, selenium toner is fresh. I have heard that as developers are re-used and re-used they get to be warmer and warmer due to bromide build-up I believe. I'm thinking that is why my prints went reddish in the selenium. This is not the look I go for with the Oriental and 130 combo. With fresh developer the prints go to a beautiful charcoal, almost perfect neutral, slightly cold tone. I'm planning to mix up a new working solution and even add some benzotriazole to it to make it even colder.

[andy-b-photo]

I've been reading through this thread and I just wanted to clarify a few things since I am going to order some 130 from Formulary. I've been using up the last of my Harmon Cold Tone (sob) and can't deal with Edwal Ultra Black having a shelf life of a few microseconds after the bottle is opened (well, maybe a bit longer). So I think I will give the old Ansco formula a try (ugh, I'm old enough to remember Ansco film). I use Ilford Warm Tone and Adox MCC 110 as warmer / colder papers and have like the results in the Harmon CT.

In the thread I see some variation in the working solution. Formulary says 1:1, but some seem to be using it at 1:2 and 1:3. Any suggestions, comments, what changes?

I see that some of you are keeping your working solution. I assume that you bottle it up, but has anyone left it in a tray? If you are saving the working solution, how long will it last and are you counting prints or just looking for signs of exhaustion?

Any other ideas?

Thanks

Andy

[Rafal Lukawiecki]

I count prints and mark off on a label stuck to a 3l plastic bottle. It usually has about 2.5l of working solution. I kept it up to 4 weeks and it seemed to work well enough. It was 1:1 from stock, which is the only dilution I used. I think I like this developer a lot at the moment.

[brian steinberger]

Andy, I'm mixing up 2L of working solution 1:1 and have been using it for 3 months now, no signs of exhaustion, though it is nearing the end, I keep track of prints run through it. If you're a fan of Ilford Coldtone developer, maybe you want to try omitting the bromide and substituting benzotriazole. This is what I plan to do with the next batch of PF130 I mix up. I'm happy with it now, but if I could get cooler tones from it that'd be better. I'm printing on Ilford MGWT and Oriental fiber papers.

[jnanian]

hi andy

usually the more dilute you use the developer the warmer it tends to be.
( or at least that is my experience ) i have left it in a tray, and it gets dark in color,
but works well still. even dark as cocacola it will work. i sometimes save a bunch of the
black stuff for processing paper negatives, or i use it in tandem with a coffee based developer
alternating between the 2 baths, sometimes i cut fresh developer with
the dark-stuff to take "the edge" off. i have only used it once until it was completely exhausted and it took
a long time to get that to happen.
i just opened another gallon ( i buy and mix 7 gallons at once ) it was mixed about a year ago, and
the prints i just posted in the gallery today were processed in it ...

have fun!
john

[brian steinberger]

I just wanted to add that I just started using 130 BZT, which is Evan Clarke's variation on 130. Omit the bromide and substitute 15ml of 1% solution of benzotriazole per liter of working solution. Also up the carbonate. Dilute 1:3 for 3 minutes. I've only used this developer with MGIV FB so far and am impressed. The tones are wonderful, as always with 130, but now cooler. Just slightly cooler than LPD, but more cooler once selenium toned. I toned in Kodak selenium at 1:9 for 6 minutes and it cooled down very nicely.

I still have yet to try 130 BZT with MGWT but that is what I'm really excited about. I want to see just how much it will cool it down.

[Mark Layne]

Anyone has experience using Ansco 130 and AZO paper? Thanks in advance.

Works beautifully -dilute 1:1 or 1:2
Have been hoping you would post some of your work again Francesco!
Mark

[Luseboy]

So I've been using the same bottle of Photographer formulary 130 for about 8 months now, it still works beautifully... is this normal? It seems a bit excessivley long... I've probably run about 150 sheets of 8x10 total. It just keeps going! and it still has great contrast at 2 minutes, it still is great. the only thing is that it had some black particulate, but i filtered it out with a paper towel last night when i put the developer back in it's bottle... How much longer is this stuff gonna last? I've got a coffe can full of some old ansco stuff (amidol i think) that is supposed to make 10 gallons of working solution, which i am itching to mix up...

[TheFlyingCamera]

That's one of the great strengths of 130 - it lasts like Rodinal does. it takes a LOT to kill it.