RA4 tabletop Processors

LonerMatt

LonerMatt

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Hey guys,

I'm looking to buy a RA4 processor and have found 3 I could buy: Ilford ICP42, Durst RCP40 VSN or a Durst RCP 20.

I just want to make small prints (never bigger than an 8x10 size) and have something that's dry to dry and doesn't use too many chemicals. I've been using the Rapid Eye darkroom in London (which I would recommend to anyone to use, it's great), but when I move back to Australia I need to find somewhere else to print - hopefully at home.

I'd imagine myself using it either for a whole day or for 2-3 hours at a time (depending on how the unit stores and uses chemicals), and that's a big concern - units that are less intensive in their use of chemicals are ideal

Any advice about any of these? Know it's a long shot.

Thanks,

Matt
 
Hi Matt - I looked at the desktop processors last year when I started RA4, but ended up buying a four slot heated Nova tank (dev, stop, rinse, blix). I chose it because they are cheaper, there's a lot less to go wrong, it supports bigger prints (16x12), cleaning and filling is simpler and quicker and you can leave the chemicals in them for weeks. The downsides are that they're not dry-to-dry, so you have to wash the prints manually (I have a Nova two slot washer sitting next to the processor) and dry them like any other dark room print. I print large and at low volumes, so this isn't an issue, especially as RA4 paper dries very quickly.

If you're printing high volumes then the desktops may be better, but I'd still have a look at the Nova tanks because the manual RA4 process is really quick. You can whizz through loads of prints in a few hours (45 sec dev, 45 sec blix + a few minutes in the wash).
 
Thanks for the suggestion - I've never learned how to wash or dry.

I presume drying is easy (either leaving it to dry or a hair dryer I've seen used), but washing might be a pain.

I'll have a look again at the Nova stuff and see what it's like.

The reason I'm a bit picky is that I really only know how to print with a processor - and it makes it really easy to formulate casts/colour balances much faster for me.
 
LonerMatt said:
Thanks for the suggestion - I've never learned how to wash or dry.

I presume drying is easy (either leaving it to dry or a hair dryer I've seen used), but washing might be a pain.

I'll have a look again at the Nova stuff and see what it's like.

The reason I'm a bit picky is that I really only know how to print with a processor - and it makes it really easy to formulate casts/colour balances much faster for me.
Click to expand...

Washing is really easy with RA4 - either 5 minutes in a wash tank, or as I used to do, a couple of changes of water in a tray. I just have one of those upright plastic racks for drying prints. It holds ten 8x10 or five 12x16 prints. The first ones are dry by the time it's full. I use a hairdryer for test strips.
 
Thanks - I'm actually moving back to Australia so finding a unit there is a bit more convenient.

If washing and drying is pretty easy then I think I'll go for the Ilford ICP40 - it seems to be a reliable unit and I've found a manual for it with instructions for pretty much every part.
 
Not sure if you can find Jobo Duolab They are small as well as Fab machines!
 
FujiLove said:
Washing is really easy with RA4 - either 5 minutes in a wash tank, or as I used to do, a couple of changes of water in a tray. I just have one of those upright plastic racks for drying prints. It holds ten 8x10 or five 12x16 prints. The first ones are dry by the time it's full. I use a hairdryer for test strips.
Click to expand...

Hey,

This is a bit of a long shot as this thread dates back to 2016, but I found your responses really helpful and I hoped I could run something past you as I have just got my hands on one of the 8x10 nova four slot processors for ra-4 printing.

One thing I'm wondering is if you are doing your washing in a separate tank or tray, then does the nova processor with dev, stop, rinse, and blix taking up the four slots require a flow of water or can it be stagnant and topped up accordingly after each print session? I saw in the nova manual that you can attach a tap, and I assumed that this would mean some people are doing the washing stage within the processor. The reason I ask is because needing a running water supply will limit where I can set up to print, where as if once the paper is no longer light sensitive I can just take the print to a separate room to rinse / dry this would be a lot more convenient.

Thanks in advance, any info on this would be really helpful :)

Joe
 
I print ra4 in open trays rather than with a nova processor, but dont see why it would need a running water supply for the ra4 process itself. You could take them out of the blix, put them in a tray or bucket of water so they're submerged, then remove them & wash as necessary in a different room. A couple of things that spring to mind though,

TI find the water tray quickly goes deep brown and it becomes increasingly difficult to 'clear' the blix enough to accurately assess the colours & casts in the print so i find myself changing this water bath quite often. I also find RA4 paper doesnt 'store' as well in water as B&W RC before it goes crinkled on the edges, so depending on the length of your sessions you may need to make a couple of wash trips and get them hanging to dry :)
 
Joepbar said:
Hey,

This is a bit of a long shot as this thread dates back to 2016, but I found your responses really helpful and I hoped I could run something past you as I have just got my hands on one of the 8x10 nova four slot processors for ra-4 printing.

One thing I'm wondering is if you are doing your washing in a separate tank or tray, then does the nova processor with dev, stop, rinse, and blix taking up the four slots require a flow of water or can it be stagnant and topped up accordingly after each print session? I saw in the nova manual that you can attach a tap, and I assumed that this would mean some people are doing the washing stage within the processor. The reason I ask is because needing a running water supply will limit where I can set up to print, where as if once the paper is no longer light sensitive I can just take the print to a separate room to rinse / dry this would be a lot more convenient.

Thanks in advance, any info on this would be really helpful :)

Joe
Click to expand...

Hi Joe - Nova processors don't require flowing water. They're just topped-up after each printing session.

I started off washing my prints in a tray. It was easy as I was using a bathroom as my darkroom, so could put the try in the bath and let the waste water flow out. I now use a Nova vertical two slot print washer in the darkroom. I wasn't aware you could turn one of the slots of a Nova tank into a washer, but I guess that would be possible simply by putting a hose into the top and opening the bottom tap...which is basically how the dedicated washers work.

Have fun with your printing adventures! :)
 
The Nova Clubmate has 3 chemical slots and a 4th slot for washing which has water inlet and outlet. It came in 8x10 and 12x16 sizes.
 
And these days we all have detention every day as well :(
 
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