Back in 1968 I bought my first darkroom kit - it came with a can of GAF Universal Developer, which I understand is the same as Ansco 130. Following the instructions, I mixed a stock solution, then used one dilution for film and another for paper.

I have a formula for this developer and would like to try it again.

I can find a lot of information for using this developer with paper, but almost nothing about using it with film. Does anyone remember it, or have any information?

Thanks,
j.e.simmons

Same here. My 1946 Photo Lab Index shows Ansco 130 as a paper developer.

Maybe GAF tweaked it as a film devloper?

You can use dilute paper developer for film. It's rarely the best choice but it's possible. I'm going to go out on a limb and say this is one of those things you need to test for yourself.

I have lots of old literature on Ansco (Agfa) chemistry. Nothing is mentioned about using 130 for film. It is listed as a "Universal Paper Developer". The GAF formula may have actually been similar to Agfa 125, which is a do everything developer. A simple metol - hydroquinone formula not unlike dozens of others from that era. I will look for the GAf formula. I may have it somewhere in all this junk.

Now, that's interesting. My Agfa book from 1935 lists 125 as a developer for bromide paper (particularly Brovira.) My Photo Lab Index from 1963 lists it as a developer for all papers and for roll and sheet film when brilliant negatives are desired. Maybe this is what GAF sold as Universal Developer. Does anyone have a Photo Lab Index from the late 60s-early 70s?

If anyone wants the formula, I'll be posting it on my website within the week. http://simmonsphotos.com
j

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: paxety on 2004-01-03 10:44 ]</font>

I have a Photo Lab Index from 1965 with some updates to '68. When they say brilliant negatives, they mean higer contrast. As an interesting aside, Kodak D-72 (the original Dektol formula) was a favorite film developer of many photogs of yore.

Glenn,

Hi. I just wondered, how does the modern Dektol formula compare to the original if used for film developing?

I use Dektol for developing prints, but haven't tried neither old nor new for film...

Thanks,
Micah in NC

Micah, I can't be of much help with that question. Kodak used to publish their formulas and D-72 was one of those. Though I have read about and seen examples of prints from film developed in D-72, I have never seen any times published, nor have I used it myself. It would be experimental.
Dektol is a proprietary formula which has evolved over the years. Not quite the same as the original D-72 and unpublished. I have used Dektol quite a bit for Lith film and Fine Grain Release Positive film but not for regular continuous tone film. The answer would lie in trial and error testing.

I can't comment on the old vs new, but back in the old days at the newspaper we used to soup tri-x in Dektol. I think it was 1:2 for 5 minutes.

The grain was noticeable, certainly more that d76 straight, but the image was sharp.

Under low light conditions we had to use Recording film (asa 1000) and when run through dektol gave "golfball size grain" as we used to call it. An iteresting effect if you like it, for us it didn't matter because the paper was running a 50 dpi line screen.