Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/12/03
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Joe: >It matters not whether the reels come from Germany, Japan, England, or Libya >provided that they be stainless steel reels. Some brands are stronger than >others, but I have used them all and have no preference for one brand over >an other. I've recently gotten some no name bum reels. I used to think the brand didn't matter. A reel is a reel is a reel. These past reels changed that thinking. It turns out that they didn't come out of the box exactly level. I ruined a few rolls of film before I figured that out. The one that I mock loaded before going into the darkroom turned out to be the best one of the bunch. That dang Murphy. So I tried loading the others in daylight, too, and noticed they were catching at various spots. If I bent the reel away from the spot where they were catching, it seemed to work a lot better. Decided my film wasn't worth taking chances with, though. So I grudgingly went ahead and bought 4 Hewes reels. Never a problem with them since. Before this last bunch, I had never had problems with any cheap brands of reels. If you're ruining film and are running out of patience with yourself, I'd give Hewes reels a shot. What have ya got to lose? :) Eric - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html