Dignan's 150 photographic formulas

[retina_restoration]

It's worth noting that, while the recipe for D76 has been known for a very long time, most people that use it have been using the Kodak envelopes. The majority of people who mix their own developers are probably not mixing D76. Until recently, the Kodak envelop was cheaper than mixing it yourself, unless you could find a very cheap source for sodium sulfite.

If there is an improvement, it's probably pretty subtle. I may mix it up sometime and try it out.

Artcraft sells five pounds of Sodium sulfite for $18.11
D-76 requires 100 grams to make a liter ($0.80 per 100g) of developer. The Kodak packages of D-76 make 3.8 liters, which requires $3.00 worth of Na2SO3 at Artcraft’s price, if you’re making your own from scratch. The other ingredients in D-76 add - at most - another $2 to the cost of DIY D-76

So, compared to the current price of $15 for the 3.8l Kodak D-76 package, making it at home from scratch is approximately 1/3 the price. I’d say that‘s a compelling reason to make it yourself, assuming you’re willing to commit to making it often enough to justify the initial purchase of the component ingredients.

 

[Don_ih]

Artcraft sells five pounds of Sodium sulfite for $18.11
D-76 requires 100 grams to make a liter ($0.80 per 100g) of developer. The Kodak packages of D-76 make 3.8 liters, which requires $3.00 worth of Na2SO3 at Artcraft’s price, if you’re making your own from scratch. The other ingredients in D-76 add - at most - another $2 to the cost of DIY D-76

So, compared to the current price of $15 for the 3.8l Kodak D-76 package, making it at home from scratch is approximately 1/3 the price. I’d say that‘s a compelling reason to make it yourself, assuming you’re willing to commit to making it often enough to justify the initial purchase of the component ingredients.

6 or 7 years ago, a 3.8 litre envelope of D76 was still only about $7 and a pound bottle of sodium sulfite was about $10 (for me to buy online). There was also the issue of ease of acquisition. Not that long ago, people could but D76 at a real camera store but not necessarily sodium sulfite (or metol or hydroquinone). Anyway, my point was that the majority of people going to the trouble of mixing their own developer were probably mixing something other than D76.