I normally use Ilford Rapid fixer (as of recently, at 1:4) with my fibre prints. I ran out yesterday, and someone gave me some Kodak hardening fixer, which was meant to be used for 5-10 minutes. So I used it for about 7.5 minutes, then continued with my normal Ilford wash/Washaid/wash sequence. I do my toning on another day, so I haven't done that yet. My prints this morning seem VERY BRITTLE to me, and I was wondering if this is a result of the hardened fixer. Normally, I was told you don't need a hardening fixer below 85 degrees, and I am usually (unavoidably) around 75-80 degrees, so I never use it. I'm worried now that the prints I did yesterday may be too brittle to work with again--to tone I mean, or to even look at the wrong way (!). I thought I was going to crack one of them just by bending it slightly...Any suggestions? maybe a wash in Photo-Flo or something to soften them up a bit?...though I know I won't be using that Kodak stuff again...yikes. Shawn

-- shawn gibson (shawn.gibson@utoronto.ca), July 27, 1999

Answers

sounds very strange, don't concentrate on it being Kodak too much because I have used Kodak hard fixers for as long as I can remember and have never had this problem. make sure you check and recheck everything you did.

-- mark lindsey (lindseygraves@msn.com), July 27, 1999.

I suspect you are just not used to the feel of a properly hardened print. You should note that hardened prints require longer wash times. I used Kodak fixer for years before switching to Ilford's rapid fix.

-- Ed Buffaloe (edbuffaloe@unblinkingeye.com), July 28, 1999.

sorry Ed, don't think so.

-- mark lindsey (lindseygraves@msn.com), July 28, 1999.

Shawn - What you will more than likely find is that it will take a bit longer to tone to the same point as your non-hardened prints. You might also find that the emulsion will be a bit more resistant to any spoting that the prints might need. There is a reason they call it Hardener. It hardens the gelatin coating. You should also be a bit more careful in handeling the surface of these prints because with this type of fixer the surface is more likely to show surface scratchs.

-- jim megargee (jim@mvlabs.com), July 29, 1999.