RE: LC-1 developer question

[Richard Knoppow <dickburk@ix.netcom.com>]

At 02:06 PM 3/29/2008, you wrote:
> David,
>
> I never had problem with crystallization when mixing LC-1B either. 
> Are you following the common practice of dissolving a pinch of 
> sodium sulfite first and then dissolve the metol, and then followed 
> by the rest of sodium sulfite? There is a strange phenomenon that if 
> you dissolve all the sulfite first, then it is very difficult to 
> dissolve the metol, so metol has to be dissolved first. But metol 
> gets oxidized easily, so a pinch of sulfite usually dissolved before 
> the metol (well, I usually use more than "a pinch." I use 1-2 
> teaspoon roughly).
>
>
> Dave
     A pinch of the Metol will also absorb much of the oxygen. One 
can eliminate most of the dissolved gasses in the water by boiling 
it. This also removes some of the permanent hardness and will 
coagulate any organic material in it. Boiling will not remove some 
materials but a trip through an activated charcoal filter, like a 
Brita filter, will take out much of what boiling leaves behind. Boil 
for perhaps 3 to 5 minutes and allow to cool without being disturbed, 
the syphon off the clear water.
     Kodak, in their early chemical books, suggested dissolving some 
of the ingredients for developers separately and then adding the 
solutions together. The only drawback is that some ingredients 
dissolve with difficulty if the pH isn't right. However, this might 
be a way of avoiding having the Metol come out of solution later.




--
Richard Knoppow
Los Angeles, CA, USA
dickburk@ix.netcom.com