Adolux developer

Gast · 2004-09-20T15:53:34+00:00

Grüße an alle im Forum! Sind der Adolux ATM49 mit dem Calbe A49 und der APH09 mit dem R09 verwandt oder gar identisch - oder bin ich da nur den Zahlen auf...

Gast

Greetings to everyone on the forum! Are the Adolux ATM49 and the Calbe A49, and the APH09 and the R09, related or even identical – or have I just been misled by the numbers?

MirkoBoeddecker

ADOLUX is our new ADOX range of chemicals. As previously mentioned in this forum, we intend to bring all products developed in-house under our ADOX brand in future. In the case of Calbe, this means: Calbe produces a range of black-and-white chemicals for us, whereby we continue to ensure the continuation of production through our large orders and, in some cases, have also suggested and supported product improvements. It’s just that it will say ADOLUX on the packaging. With a view to successful international marketing, a ‘facelift’ of the packaging was long overdue anyway. This does not affect the prices. However, when you consider that, in order to meet the minimum order quantity of several tens of thousands of units, we sometimes have two years’ worth of stock in our warehouse, it is quite possible that, due to increased raw material prices, minor adjustments may have to be made during subsequent production next year. After all, A49 and R09 have had stable prices for over 6 years! In the case of R09, until recently we were able to draw on remaining stocks of p-aminophenol from the GDR era. These have now been used up and a new batch will certainly be a few percentage points more expensive. Just to reiterate: bottling as ADOX does not cause prices to rise – in the short term, they will actually fall slightly because we are producing larger batch sizes in one go than before. FOTOIMPEX

Gast

Hmm – well, I’ll take that as a ‘business-like’ YES. (Well, I do want to know what I need to order to get hold of the fabric that everyone’s raving about...) Thanks for your reply

hyoro

I’ve now signed up to the forum – this looks much better... To follow up on my question, or rather expand on it: So far I’ve only done enlargements, but haven’t developed any film myself yet – that’s set to change soon. Contrary to all the advice to focus on just one developer at first: Am I completely wrong in inferring from the wealth of information that Rodinal/R09 and the A49 have roughly ‘opposite’ properties? Or is there not much difference at all (e.g. I’m not planning on making poster-sized prints – more like enlargements of details; the upper limit so far has been 18x24))? I’d actually like to try out how differently various developers work, but on the other hand I’d also like to start with standard, straightforward ‘stuff’. I haven’t settled on a particular film yet, of course (how could I, when it’s always somehow brewed by Großabor...), but I’ve mostly used HP4, HP5 and APX100. Am I on the right track with these two developers as a starting point for experimentation, or are there better combinations?

GerdK

Am I completely off the mark if I gather from all this information that Rodinal/R09 and the A49 have more or less ‘opposite’ characteristics? … though I’ve mostly used HP4, HP5 and APX100. Am I more or less on the right track in using these two developers as a starting point for experimentation, or are there better combinations?

Hello Hyoro, I’m actually a bit reluctant to use that form of address. No, you’re not mistaken. The R09 is a balancing developer that produces very nice grey gradations in the image and offers acutance, but results in visible grain. The good thing is that it keeps well and doesn’t go off. In any case, my 0.5 litres have lasted 2.5 years now. The A49 is a fine-grain developer that achieves the ISO sensitivities on most films. The grey gradations are good, and it has a balancing effect. Acutance is better with R09. The downside is that in summer, it goes off after 6 weeks in a half-full bottle. I’ve tested ‘your’ films with both, and the results are good to very good. Bye, Gerd

MirkoBoeddecker

Hello Hyoro, You’re right, and Gerd has provided a good abstract. A49 is a representative of the ultra-fine-grain developer category, and R09 is a representative of the balancing developers. Until now, it has only been possible to combine these two approaches to a limited extent, if at all, in a single developer. The new ADOLUX 2-component developer ADX achieves this. Ultra-fine grain, acutance and brilliance all in one. So far, this has only been tested in the lab; practical tests are still to come, but we are already very excited. The first units will be ready for delivery shortly after Photokina. Best regards, Mirko

hyoro

Thanks! Now I know where to start...