Does anyone out there use Agfa Viradon brown toner regularly? I'm wondering if there's any way to "stop" the action of the toner once the print has been removed from the bath. With some fiber-base papers, I am able to get the subtle effects I want with very short immersions (30 sec.) at high dilution (1:200). At first it appears that little or no toning has occurred, but as the print sits in the syphon rinse tray, the color gradually increases, reaching the understated hint of warmth I'm looking for after 5-8 minutes. But then it just keeps on toning in the print washer, eventually turning a hideous yellow-brown after 15-20 minutes. From there it just gets uglier and uglier. Yes, I am using Orbit Bath, mixed with the toner. How can I stop the toner when I see the color I want?

I've gotten results I like with cold tone RC papers toned in Viradon for 1-3 minutes; as soon as they hit the rinse, the toning stops. There must be a way to control Viradon's effect on fiber paper, otherwise I can't imagine why anyone would use it.

-- James Moore (riddler35@hotmail.com), November 11, 1998

Answers

I'm just guessing, but you might try putting the print in acetic acid stop bath. The toner is quite alkaline. Of course, you will then have to wash both the acid and the toner out of the paper.

-- Peter Hughes (leonine@redshift.com), November 12, 1998.

Viradon problem

After my last post, I visited Agfa's website and found a page of instructions for using Viradon (it would be nice if they'd include these instructions in the Viradon package!). They suggested using a solution of 10% sodium sulfite as a "stop bath; I tried it and initially it seemed to work, but after a full wash, the prints were still yellower than they were in the first rinse. It is so frustrating to see an elusive print tone you've been searching for when the print comes out of the toner, only to have it degrade and mutate in the wash. Agfa Multicontrast Classic in Viradon 1:100 and Ilford Warmtone in Viradon 1:200 were both giving me something like a beautiful duotone reproduction that blends a neutral black ink with a warm Pantone gray ink. Just a subtle hint of gray-brown. Not olive green, not red-purple, not cool blue.

Next, I'm going to try what Kodak reccomends as a follow-up to their brown and poly toners: a 2-minute rinse, followed by hypo-clearing solution and then a hardening bath (yuck!), before washing. Though it seems dumb to add hardening bath right before the wash, maybe this is the only way to neutralize the activity of the toner.

All suggestions welcome.

-- James Moore (riddler35@hotmail.com), November 13, 1998.