Is Alt-Rodinal the same as standard Agfa Rodinal???
Andi,
I would answer that with a resounding NO. As far as I know,
Alt-Rodinal
refers to the formula that was retrieved from the vault in Wolfen by Uncle Sam in 1945. ORWO then produced its
R09
based on this formula and also sold it to Foma. This developer is still available today from Calbe Chemie as
R09
; to my knowledge, it was also sold under the names
APH09
and
Foma R09
. A key feature of this developer is the standard dilution of 1+40. Naturally, this formula will also have been adapted over the years to market conditions (i.e. the availability of raw materials), but the dilution has remained the same.
Agfa Rodinal
, on the other hand, refers to the developer as it has been continuously developed by Agfa. The most important distinguishing feature is the changed dilution to 1+50. To my knowledge, this formula is currently available under the names
R09 one shot
,
Rodinal
or
Foma R09 new
.
To what extent
APH09
should be classified as
1+50
, I cannot say; Mirko is best placed to answer that... In any case, the text in the webshop refers to
New formula. Now identical development times and dilutions to Rodinal.
As for the development times, you really do need to pay close attention to the agitation rhythm. In my own experience, it does make a difference whether you use the classic Agfa agitation method or the variant you mentioned. Try using the search function and have a look in the related forums; a great deal has already been written about this topic in detail.
I’ve now started using this process for the Fomapan 400 and, after a few trials, have reached the point where I’m currently using ISO 250 and APH09 1+40 (the old version, which was available to buy here from the host in late summer). Only the timing still needs a bit of fine-tuning.
Martin
