Jobo CPP3 - Test Drive

I returned home to the city on November 6th, after spending five days out in Nordegg.  I came down with a bad cold shortly after I arrived at the cottage, and didn't really accomplish a lot.  Mostly I just lounged around with Hank, enjoyed the solitude, and tried to get better.  After I got back, and beginnig to get over the cold, I got to work in my darkroom.  I finished up mounting and matting some prints that I had been working on before I left, and made some space for my next project.

Then on November 9th I set up my Jobo Processor.  I have had two old Jobo CPP2 Processors for many years.  Both of them died this past year, and I had to retire them.  I still intend to try to get around to parting them out and hopefully making a little money on the remains.  Earlier this year I bought a new Jobo CPP3 Processor.  This version is supposed to be improved, and includes a stronger motor that can properly rotate the large Expert drums, without burning out.  This was the problem with my old units.  Although I've had the new unit for some time, I haven't got around to using it yet... until now.

I mixed up a batch of C-41 Chemistry and set to work processing a bunch of color negative film.  This included five rolls of 35mm.  Some of that film was actually not color.  This was Ilford XP2 and the now discontinued Kodak BW400CN.  These are both monochrome films that use the color process.  The advantage to this is that the color process converts the metallic silver image to dye, and there is very little grain.  This can be helpful when the smaller 35mm format is used, particularly when the film is pushed under low light.  With the excess chemistry, left over after the roll films were done, I also processed ten sheets of 4x5 color negative film.

Many of the shots on the 35mm film were from various Beer Parlour Project outings over the past year.  I am trying to get caught up on processing this stuff so that the photo galleries on the Beer Parlour Project website can be updated.  Look for that in the coming weeks, and I will also share some of the images here.

The instructions that came with the processor were somewhat lacking.  The unit was originally designed and manufactured in what was then East Germany.  The translated instructions are somewhat abrupt and abbreviated.  But the unit is pretty intuitive in its operation, so I mostly figured it out.  Not bad for a technologically inept old geezer I figured...!