Over sized 35mm film?

sirch

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Just processed a roll of Delta 35mm which would simply would not go on the Paterson spiral, it would go on so far, perhaps 2/3 of the length and then just refuse to move and buckle and pop out of the spiral. After 3 attempts I wound it back into the can and got out the Jobo tank and loaded it in there. It was still tight but I got it on and developed. When I wound it back into the can it was tight and it felt a bit stiff in the camera.

So I'm wondering if it is possible that the film is slightly over size. When it's dry I'll try to measure it.
 
I've had this a couple times now with HP5. It would start fine but just start getting tighter, tighter then I would expect as the reel filled up. Tried with Paterson reel and AP reel.

TBH I can't see Ilford QC letting the film out the door that wasn't a constant size.

I'm saying user error on my part.
 
If it fitted and ran in the camera......that infers the size was 'fine'.

Now my daft thought (has been more than 50 years since I used Dev kit) , as you mentioned it that one loaded and one for not! How long (number of exposures?) is the film compared to others processed before.....is it longer???
 
My guess would have been a tiny drop of water near the middle of the spiral but the same behaviour on a different reel sort of disproves that theory.
 
Maybe there was an issues with the Paterson spiral (not perfectly dry or residue from previous chemicals?) and because the film was then a bit buckled it was tight on the Jobo?
 
This is one (albeit minor) reason why I shoot hand rolled 24 exposures. I find 36 to get very stiff towards the end of the roll. Always presumed it was down to the amount of film and general friction.

I did wonder if perhaps the reel is getting clogged with gunk. Looking at the reels I have all next to each other, some are white & clean and others are what my wife would describe as "filthy". Time to go through the dishwasher I think, or maybe a bleach bath...
 
I've processed countless rolls on this Paterson spiral, I always clean it with a dry tooth brush before use and there was definitely no water on the spiral. I have never had to have 3 attempts at loading and whilst I have had all the usual problems over the years this one was unusual in that a good amount of film went on and then it just refused to budge.

The advantage of the Jobo spiral is that there are indents on the sides where you can get your fingers on the film edge and easy it round, I had to do this a lot with this film.

If it fitted and ran in the camera......that infers the size was 'fine'.
There is quite a bit of room in the camera, Pentax ME Super, perhaps 1 or 2mm on the take-up side
 
If Paterson reels are stored in an airing cupboard or similar I've found them always easy to load. As has been pointed out above, the slightest dampness can prevent the film from sliding in smoothly.
 
BTW it was 36 exposure which pretty much all the 35mm I use films are, I agree with Ian @Harlequin565 that 35mm 36 exp always gets difficult towards the end but this roll didn't get near the end.

The reel was not in anyway damp
 
So here is a scan of the leader from the Delta next to a leader from Fuji superia, fractionally larger but you would hope that wouldn't cause such trouble, although there is nothing to say that this piece of Fujifilm is not a tad oversize in the first place

OversizedDeltaSmall.jpg

OversizedDeltaCrop.jpg
 
I'd have thought the spools would have enough tolerance to allow for valuations in film width.
 
Just measured a Paterson and Jobo reel using a digital caliper. The Paterson has about 35.5mm width for the film, and the Jobo has about 36.5mm. This was done while pressing the two halves of each together in the centre to minimise tilt. The depth of the spiral (ie, how much it overlaps the edges of the film) is about 2.6mm and 3mm respectively.

Also measures some film: Tri-X was 34.85mm and Rollei Retro 400S was 34.95mm.

So far as I can see, there should be enough room in either reel for the width of the film (assuming the film is within 35mm), provided the reel halves don't have any undue tilt causing the gap to narrow.
 
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