[pure-silver] Re: stopbath kills fixer
- From: "John Black" <jblack@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 25 Jan 2005 14:37:24 -0500
>
> I use it for a completely different reason (several, actually), so it
> appears the above cannot be 'the only reason'. (Not to split hairs, but I
> don't really think of my fixer as powerfully alkaline; it is probably more
> like neutral to mildly alkaline. I use the formula called 'Plain Fixer'
> Ansel Adams published in the Appendix to "The Print".)
My fixer as well, is only about pH 7.0-7.3 but the old style acid fix was
fairly low (pH 4.0-4.5 or so). But all of the acid fix formulas used acetic
acid and I didn't like the smell either.
>
> Well, I've used a good ol' time hypo pretty much neutral or maybe a tad
> alkaline fixer for years, as outlined above. I'd like to see some evidence
> to back up the statement of doubt regarding their performance. I have the
> evidence of my own experience to convince me that such a fixer performs
> just fine, and in fact suits my working needs and style much better than a
> commercial fixer based on ammonium thiosulfate. It's also very cheap and a
> snap to prepare, plus if any cleanup is necessary it's easy.
Let me rephrase, old time hypo (Na thiosulfate) used to give me fits as far
as prolonged washing was concerned. I am basically lazy and don't wish to
prolong the washing steps any further than I have to. I now wash film and
prints less than 20% as long as I once did. But you are right, pH has no
effect on fixer activity so Na versus NH4 thiosulfate is mostly a matter of
convenience for me.
>
> (I think in reality the old time hypo was sodium thiosulfate pentahydrate.
> These days the anhydrous form is readily available, and is very easy to
> work with.)
Older formulas usually give weights in both "dry" and "crystaline" form. I
have not worked with anything other than anhydrous. But now I buy the NH4
thiosulfate in liquid form from PF in gallons. It can also be obtained from
some farmers co-ops as it can be found as a liquid fertilizer. This form
works, but has some sort of contaminant that makes it stink horribly.
JB
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