DieterSchuld
Dear forum members,
How do you stop the CMS 20 from curling up like this once it has dried?
I’ve already attached weights to the bottom and placed a bucket of hot water underneath it.
Kind regards,
Dieter Schuld
MirkoBoeddecker
ADOX CMS €20
We don’t have any film of that type in stock.
The NC emulsion on the reverse side is top-notch.
Are you sure you haven’t got the wrong one?
Best regards,
Mirko
DieterSchuld
ADOX CMS 20 ???
We don’t have any film that’s flatter than this.
The NC emulsion on the back is top-notch.
Surely not a mix-up?
Best regards,
Mirko
ADOX CMS 20 ???
We don’t have any film of that type in stock.
The NC emulsion on the reverse side is top-notch.
Surely not a mix-up?
Regards,
Mirko
Hello Mirko,
This isn’t the first time I’ve used this film, and it does indeed say ‘ADOX CMS 20’ on the cassette and on the perforations. I’ve also developed various rolls of CMS 20 that lie completely flat. But the two I’ve just developed curl so badly that the acetate sleeve is rolling up. I exposed them about three months ago and have only just developed them. Could that be the reason?
Kind regards,
Dieter Schuld
cfb_de
Hi Dieter,
Just to set the record straight: it’s not acetate. Thanks to Kodak’s innovation, we now also shoot on finely rolled disposable PET bottles :-)
I used to have similar problems with this film’s speed equivalent. Since then, I’ve been turning off the heating in the bathroom and then saturating the air with steam from the shower (the mist needs to remain steady). Only then do I hang the film in the shower cubicle. At the top on a coat hanger, and at the bottom I attach a standard plastic clip.
It works perfectly. And the next morning, the film is dust-free and dry, just like the rest of the bathroom. Every now and then I put my hibiscus in there too; it’s quite happy there as well.
Best regards,
Franz
DieterSchuld
Hello Franz,
Just to be clear,
the casing that holds the film strips is made of acetate.
I’m just wondering about the following: this isn’t the first CMS 20 I’ve processed, and there are quite a few that were processed in the same room and are perfectly flat. Could a difference in humidity of around 15% (currently 50%, back then around 60–65%) make such a difference, or is it actually down to the storage period between exposure and processing (a good three months)?
Kind regards,
Dieter Schuld
MirkoBoeddecker
Hello Dieter,
What you’re describing makes me suspect something.
We have some incorrectly labelled ADOX Ortho films in circulation. The manufacturer accidentally exposed them with CMS.
This is also noted on the cassette.
That’s obviously a completely different film (though not necessarily one known for its tendency to curl).
Could it be that you’re mistaking these for the CMS ones by any chance?
Otherwise, I’m at a loss too.
All the films I’ve used so far (about 120 of them) have lain perfectly flat.
Best regards,
Mirko
DieterSchuld
Hello Mirko,
I went back to my darkroom straight after receiving your email and examined the cassettes. It really does say ‘cms 20’ on both cassettes, and on the perforations as well. However, this is a second batch of cms 20 that I ordered later than the previous one. I have marked the lids accordingly. I’m looking forward to the next roll of film, which I will develop straight away as exposed film without leaving it in the film canister for long. What should I do?
Kind regards,
Dieter Schuld
MirkoBoeddecker
Hi Dieter,
I developed two CMS 20 films today. The air in the darkroom was dry, and I used a drying cabinet without any humidification. Everything’s fine; they’ve come out perfectly flat.
I’m not sure what to suggest...
Were the other films OK?
Best regards,
Mirko
DieterSchuld
Hello Dieter,
I developed two CMS 20 films today. The air in the darkroom was dry, and I used a drying cabinet without humidification. Everything’s fine; they’re perfectly flat.
I’m not sure what to suggest…
Were the other films OK?
Best regards,
Mirko
Hello Mirko,
The CMS 20 films processed so far are all flawless. Could it be that the NC emulsion on the reverse side is missing? But how can we check that?
Kind regards,
Dieter Schuld
MirkoBoeddecker
Hello Dieter,
No, that’s impossible. The NC emulsion is always applied in every case.
Furthermore, all CMS units sold to date come from the same batch. The films are absolutely identical; only the cassettes have been changed.
Best regards,
Mirko
SamuliSchielke
Yesterday I developed a roll of CMS20; the box says CMS20, and the film is also marked CMS20. Yesterday, when I was drying them, they curled like crazy – but today, after spending the night in their sleeves, they’re lying a lot flatter. Still, they’re not completely flat yet. Could it be that the film is simply quite sensitive to time and climatic conditions whilst drying?
Otherwise, it’s a great film, by the way.
Samuli
DieterSchuld
Hi Samuli,
I completely agree with you about the quality of the film for my work. That’s why I’m still experimenting. I’d love to be standing next to Mirko in Berlin and see what he does to make his films lie absolutely flat. I’m just amazed.
Now, on to the curling:
I recently developed a roll of CMS 20 film that hadn’t been frozen and was developed that same evening after shooting. It curled quite a bit, but not that badly.
Then, after about three hours of drying time, I rewound the film by hand the other way round, so that the start of the film was on the outside, and then placed it in a film cartridge for about 24 hours. It was completely straight at first, but warped slightly again over time. I’m happy with that.
The next experiment will be as follows:
I’ll wind the film onto the developing reel the other way round to how I’ve done it so far. Namely, with the emulsion side facing outwards, i.e. against the direction in which it tends to curl. And then… I’m curious to see what happens.
Still a bit of a curl, then into the cassette for two days. And then??? Well, we’ll see!
Dieter Schuld
MirkoBoeddecker
I’d love to be standing next to Mirko in Berlin and see what he does to ensure his films come out perfectly flat. I can only wonder.
It’s easy to explain:
First, we develop by hand in a Jobo 1510 canister using CMS developer, stop the process, and then we transfer the films from the fixer to the drying tank system. There, they are hung in a U-shape with the emulsion side facing outwards and are slowly dried in the drying cabinet using a mixture of filtered fresh air and recirculated air.
After that, they usually hang in the U-shape for another 30 minutes until they are cut (depending on the workload).
In our own lab, we have a throughput of approx. 1–3 films a week, as the CMS service has only just started.
The following factors are known to influence a film’s tendency to curl:
1) Humidity and ambient temperature during drying
2) How long the film was in the cassette (though this only applies to films that have actually been stored in a cupboard for years or decades)
3) The wetting agent
4) Orientation of the film during drying
I once managed to flatten a Svema film that was highly prone to curling by drying it in a spiral with a fan, with the emulsion side facing outwards.
Best regards,
Mirko
