Developing B&W 35mm film: Did I do something wrong???

[Josh66]

I've developed a lot of film in my life time but I've never seen this. I'd bet bad batch of film

I've had this happen ONCE before... I can't remember exactly what caused it, but it wasn't a bad batch - film from the same batch came out fine later. I want to say that the chemical temperature being too high sounds right.

The edges of the film are damaged too. I don't think a squeegee would have done that.

 

[Josh66]

Ummmm, yeah, that is my thought too. My guess is that in the wash, the water was allowed to get very hot.

Might be, but even Foma gelatine should withstand 27 C without a problem or came off uniformly. I wonder, if OP controlled the wash temperature at all and it's quite possible, that not.

That is my thought EXACTLY....that after a while, the hot water from the water heater got reallllllly hot. I've seen this issue before, and that was what it was from; HOT water wash.

It would be a very easy mistake to make.

Assuming that he was using a thermometer and adjusting the hot and cold taps till the temperature was just right - in a few minutes the hot water is MUCH hotter than when you started.

When I'm developing color film, I run the hot water till the temperature stabilizes, THEN start adding cold water to get it right.

 

[vimwiz]

nice share, i'm newbie here.

You develop?

Top ways to ruin your film:

Poor temperature control.
Poor light tightness.
Poor timing.
Squeegeeing!
Water spots.
Dust during drying.
Scratching it on the reel.
Over-agitation.

 

[padaek]

I'd love a dollar for every roll or sheet I processed during my film days.

Here's what I think happened. Wet film emulsion is very soft and should never be handled. What I used to do was use a good quality wetting agent. I believe the good ones are ethylene glycol based. I'd run the film through the wetting agent a couple of times the give the film a 'flick' (like a whip) to flick off any water droplets, then hang the film in a dust free environment. I never had scratches or dust.

I used to work (late 1970s to late 1980s) in the photographic unit in a large heavy industrial plant. We would do our own B/W processing and printing. At time we had to work with very tight deadlines. My boss came up with an idea of mixing wetting agent with a bit of methylated spirits in water to aid in the drying process. It worked.

 

[timor]

My boss came up with an idea of mixing wetting agent with a bit of methylated spirits in water to aid in the drying process. It worked.

Your boss ? Did he said it was his idea ? What else he ascribe to himself ?
Technique of quick drying with alcohol must be a century old.