Home brewed way of straightening out negative strips

[larrylarry]

looking for a home brewed way to straighten out negative strips that have been stored for many years. No kinks in them but have been rolled up for a long time. Soak them in warm water, but Im worried about water spots. Any ideas?

 

[ConradH]

Doing anything with old negs is risky. I'd find an out of the way spot and just hang them with a weight for a couple months. Never soak in warm water, only cold, and even then you can have problems with emulsion coming off. You might find that even after soaking and Photo-flo and hanging until dry, they still curl. There's a chance that if you soak and redry, the grain structure itself might change, i.e., the prints could be subtly different. I'd leave well enough alone.

 

[larrylarry]

If I were to have them scaned would it pose a problem if there was a 45° bend on the strip?

 

[ConradH]

How sharp a bend? If it's a crease it might be difficult to flatten out, but if it's just a gradual curve I'd hope a good scanner would hold it flat. Another idea is to roll them up backwards and put them in a film can for a while.

 

[larrylarry]

Well I figured out what to do, had to revert back to long lost memory. I used to develop my own film many years ago. When the film was ready to come out of the tank Id hang it to dry with alligator clips. I soaked the negs. in luke warm water for 20 mins. Then added weight to the bottom clip. Blew off most of the water drops with CO2. They straighten out great. One of those things where you post a question an the gears in my head start turning an you find your answer. Thanks for your replies.

 

[ConradH]

Glad that worked out. I tend to be very conservative with such things, having had bad things happen to very old negs of uncertain history. More recent film is more robust.