Re: [Leica] ORWO

[Christer Almqvist <christer@almqvist.net>]

>I remember press reports from a couple of years ago saying that ORWO
>stopped making film. What they still did for a while was spooling film
>from other manufacturers (Scotch, Konica and the like) and sold it under
>ORWO name through discount stores.
>
>In their catalog from last year, Fotoimpex offered "Maco UP 400+",
>saying that this is the same as HP5+.


Hans-Peter;

if Ilford sold HP5+ to Maco to be repackaged under the Maco brand, 
Ilford would never publicly admit this and they would not allow Maco 
or anybody else to say 'HP5+ inside'. Who would buy HP5+ then with a 
25-33% price difference? What I have seen being said about Maco 400 
is that it is 'very similar' to HP5+. If Fotoimpex said 'same as', 
then they may be in trouble. But, as you say, the Maco 400 is good, 
but I do not like the frame numbers, they are truly 2nd grade. And I 
have had some light piping, even into the picture area and it came 
via the sprocket holes.


>I also found "Maco UP 100+" in a
>cologne shop. I tried the 400+ which indeed looked very much like HP5+.
>My technique is however not refined enough to say, whether it was 2nd
>grade material or whether there was more dust and scratches from loading
>(was reported on Efke films). The negs had proper numbers from 1A to 36B
>and even a "UP 400+" printed in between the perforation. So it was not
>respooled bulk film, like the other offerings. Maco's website
>"www.mahn.net" did not reveal the manufacturer.
>
>Most probably it is just what Fotoimpex is saying, HP5+ sold under a
>different trademark, possibly even spooled and packaged by Ilford in the
>UK. Not only 2nd grade manufactures (Scotch, Konica and the like), but
>also Agfa and Kodak sell at least their previous generation of colour
>neg film under "house" label through drugstore chains or photo
>discounters.
>
>Hans-Peter

- -- 
Christer Almqvist
D-20255 Hamburg, Germany and/or
F-50590 Regnéville-sur-Mer, France