Spent 2 hours fighting a stuck film spool in a changing bag

I was loading my 35mm reel in the dark and the film spool just would not catch. Kept sliding off the reel and jamming up against the sides. After what felt like forever I finally got it but the whole roll was shot in the darkroom. Has anyone else had that issue with Paterson reels? I'm thinking about switching to stainless steel just to avoid this headache.

2 comments

2 Comments

uma_reed2614d ago

That's a good point about keeping the reel dry, @the_luna, but I've found that running a hair dryer over the reel for a few seconds before loading makes it almost foolproof. One thing nobody's mentioned is that sometimes the film itself is the problem, especially with older stock that's developed a bit of a curl.

the_luna16d ago

Oh man, hard disagree here! Paterson reels are way easier to deal with than stainless steel once you get the hang of them. Stainless reels are honestly a nightmare in the dark because you gotta bend the film just right or it slips off completely. At least with plastic you can feel the little ball bearings click into place if you take your time. Plus stainless reels are expensive and a pain to clean if any chemistry dries on them. The trick with Paterson is making sure the reel is bone dry before loading and kinda bending the film into a gentle U shape so the spool catches the edges first.