Good stainless developing reel?

[Dan Henderson]

I have and have used both Hewes and Kindermann, and think they are both excellent. I use the Kindermann now, because I got tired of ruining frames on 120 film from improper loading, and purchased a Kindermann loader. Loading reels is now much less stressful and more reliable.

Apparently, Murphy was also a photographer. His law always seems to come into play by ruining the most valuable frame on the roll! The Kindermann loader levels the playing field a bit.

[Tom Hoskinson]

I prefer the Hewes SS reels in both 35mm and 120. I prefer the Hewes reels over Kinderman and Nikor.

[laverdure]

Those sprocket pegs sound gorgeous. Thanks again all.

[fschifano]

...and they are. When I first spotted them on the Hewe's reels, I was astounded at what a simple solution to a thorny problem they were. A clear case of less is more if I ever saw one.

[Rob Skeoch]

Kinderman for me, although I haven't tried the Hewe's.

[Ryuji]

I have both Kindermann and Hewes. I won't use any other SS reel. I prefer Kindermann over Hewes but they're both very good.

[radiantdarkroom]

Yes Hewes, really kicks ass in 135 format. I had used other brands for about 5 years. Then I worked in a lab that had Hewes, talk about easy and fast no more swearing at the blasted little film clip and bent spiral.. I bought all the reels when they went out business.

So if you want easy, go Hewes.

[dslater]

I have Kindermann reels and love them - they work very well. The design of the clip makes it very easy to get the film properly centered

[Lee Shively]

Do the current Kinderman 35mm reels still have the clip that requires you to cut the film leader to a certain shape to fit? I had some Kinderman reels over 30 years ago that were like that. If you could manage to cut the leader to the correct shape in the dark, they were easy to load. But whittling on the leader in the dark with scissors made me learn to hate using those damn reels.

[Phillip P. Dimor]

I use Kindermann for 35mm and Hewes for 120. No problems with either.
My Kindermann reels are older and I've never cut anything, I just kind of jam them in there and start loading.. Used with the loader it's foolproof every time.

I have a box of 'cheap' 120 reels and I don't touch them ever. Just my two Hewes reels.