[Leica] Free: unopened packets of Xtol

[mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)]

> Brian:
> Pictures will follow, soon.  Badness is purged.
> 
> Mark:
> Simply adding ascorbate to an MQ or PQ developer is no guarantee of 
> success.
> Firstly, if you use a 'tab' of vitamin C, the calcium (if they are calcium
> ascorbate) or the pH change (if it is ascorbic acid) may cause problems 
> with
> development.  You really should go to a health food store and buy pure
> ascorbate or ascorbic acid powder.
> 
> You can also get infectious development if you add ascorbate to high pH
> developers like Rodinal.  This can be ameliorated by adding 1g/L borax to 
> the
> developer.
> 
> I agree that ascorbate developers are great, but I am also keen to make 
> sure
> that everyone understands that they are not a cure-all and especially that
> they may require more attentive handling than what you're used to.
> 
> M
> 

Rodinal is not a PQ or MQ developer
I said to add ascorbic acid  PQ or MQ developer.

People have had nothing but success and lots of it by adding all kinds of
crude forms of versions of ascorbic acid with all kinds of impurities in it
from all kinds of sources. Its a a bit of a phenomenon I'd not believe if
id' not read it time and time again on darkroom lists with person after
person looking for some vitamin C to put in their D67. and people
communicating with me one on one..
It goes against common sense I try to be careful with stuff normally and get
stuff from a professional source. Not a health food store..
But in this case there seems to be a shocking lack of needing to be careful.
People have gotten their ascorbic acid from Fred Flintstone bottles for all
I know and all seems to have gone well with very little secondary searching
or screw up negs. It never seemed to have made anybodies negs worse. Only
better. Zero screw ups.
An amazing amount of leeway this is the record.


But no of course you don't put it in Rodinal.
What would be the point of saying I said that?


Mark William Rabiner
markrabiner.com